It was in the summer of 2010 and as usual, i was at the popular news stand in Kumasi, Ghana to fulfil my "lustful" longing for political literature in Pan-African monthlies like Africawatch, New African and the like.There was something unusual however about this day. As i was searching, i chanced upon this autobiography that was to affect my life immensely. It was Koffi Addo's A Village Boy's Dream. A Will To Succeed. The man who had earlier on stunned us with his classic piece, at least in my candid opinion, LETTERS TO A SON: GUIDEPOSTS TO MORALITY had done it again.
What makes his autobiography seem of special interest to me is the fact that like him, I am also a 'village boy' with a strong will to succeed and leave an indelible mark in the annals of history. Like him, academic excellence and discipline in the early years of life had seen me enter the best secondary school in Ghana at my time and experiences in various leadership positions and student activism would translate into huge advantages during the pursuance of higher education beyond the shores of my beloved Ghana.Another area of similarity is our seeming political inclinations, not in partisan lines, but the will to see the ruling elite deliver in the best interest of the people while seizing the opportunity to in our own small way resist any form of oppression and wrongdoing on the part of those who wield political and administrative power. The biggest and the most important difference between the two of us however, is that his story is a complete one told by a master storyteller while mine is one that i have only started writing in that i am only in my early years in medical school. This article will be the first in a series that seeks to remind my readers that it is always good to live our life in view of where we are coming from.
This write-up will however not focus on any of our differences or similarities but pose a simple question and in my quest to attempt an answer, throw much light on what i think most Africans privileged to obtain quality higher education whether in Africa, Europe and the Americas do easily forget. .. where we are coming from. Everyone has an aim and a target in life to achieve.Whatever it is, it remains the yardstick against which you measure your progress and success in life, the pursuant of which many a time leads us to forgetting our roots and staying with the people in our new social class.That Africa is a rich but poor continent is no issue for debate. Although it happens mostly that a privileged section of the people of this continent live 'decent' lives, here i choose my words advisedly and in the broader sense of the word, the African story is full of people who rose from obscurity to national and continental heroism not only in politics and governance but in the areas of education, health, religion business and the honourable field of advocacy for the voiceless and powerless. That is for the history books to elaborate.
My focus here will be on the 21st century African who is privileged either by fate, inheritance, hard work or accident to rise above the 'odinary' citizen, his relationship with the lesser society and his contribution to the success or demise of others. Our world today is shaped by the complex forces of globalisation, technology, powerful media and what psychologists call ''the century of the self''. This makes it easy to blend with the 'world' and easily forget our roots. Like many people out there, i am a 'village' boy whose parents and family had to rise from the village to face the world. Their sacrifices and personal decisions in life has invariably decided the current path my life is taking. Chances are that had they decided to forget where they were coming from and turned themselves into fashion fanatics, indulged in immorality and despised their culture in the name of modernisation, i would not have benefited from their personal successes and failures. Any time i have the chance to speak with my family in the village, it reminds me of what Lt. Col Opuni - Mensah always used to tell me, that if God grants you the opportunity of a successful life, He does it not for you, but for the numerous people who are supposed to benefit from what He has given you and the unborn generations who will reap the fruits of your labour. I do not suggest here that i am successful, no. This assertion is based on the rather reasonable assumption the education is the foundation for all forms of success, whatever the area of education it is. I therefore look on educated people as potential successes in life. Whenever i look into the eyes of my village folk, eyes filled with ambition, a passion to make it in life in the face of all these hardships, eyes filled with hope for a brighter day, it reminds me of the moral duty that awaits those of us who have the privilege of good education. I am reminded of where i am coming from and the need to make the best use of opportunities available to me today so i can help others tomorrow.The mere benefit of higher education places us on a certain pedestal in our traditional social structure. We have a moral obligation to affect positively the lives of the 'ordinary' people and this we can only do if we are mindful of where we are coming from.
Not only that. Knowing very well the sacrifices our parents and guardians make to provide us with education, it is only wise to make good the debt we owe them and future generations by learning hard and shunning all forms of wastefulness and invest our time in relevant and productive activities. The 21st century African is gradually losing his sense of identity. This spells doom not only for himself, but the entire continent. In pre-independence times, Africans abroad were very conscious of their homeland and most of them had to return to help in the independence struggle. Today, there are no colonial forces to fight, although some will argue for the existence of neo-colonialism. We only have poverty,corruption, disease, hunger and ignorance to fight. Among these, ignorance, for me, ranks highest. The masses are suffering just for the mere absence or lack of knowledge. Ruthless, selfish, greedy and insensitive politicians will continue to impoverish our people and add to their woes so long as the masses remain ignorant. Sometimes it saddens my heart how people who are privileged to gain a little education begin to distant themselves from their families because they are "primitive", archaic and therefore feels ashamed to associate themselves with such a class of people considering the level of education he/she has. How pitiful it is! If those who have the benefit of good education fail to positively affect the lives of the uneducated, we make nonsense of education.
Except you wish to tell me that you are irresponsible. But every educated African has a moral duty to his continent and we can't afford to fail ourselves and future generations. What have you done to help your people with the education you have or the many privileges and opportunities open to you? Have you sincerely felt embarrassed when you see our people fighting and killing themselves over very trivial issues? How do you feel when people remain in abject poverty just for the mere fact they lack the knowledge to help themselves out?..........................this is just the a prelude to more articles in the waiting. Start thinking about how you can help. Don't forget where you are coming from.
.......................................to be continued.
