Winter is coming
As it were in the beginning, is now and forever shall be - world without end; there are certain things that are so fundamental to our being that they cannot be overlooked irrespective.
‘Winter is coming’ echoes the Arthurian mythology that I have once referenced in my series reflections on Mwalimu: “there is no real victory without sacrifice”.
Sacrifice for a greater societal good as a social value is a prerequisite for effective Statecraft (the core of nation building) and is probably Mwalimu’s greatest gift to us as a people.
SACRIFICE needs BRAVERY and breeds HONOR which is the basis for LOYALTY - the core ingredients of Statecraft. Any claim to VICTORY without real SACRIFICE for a greater good being seeded as a faith is nothing short of foolhardy.
Later this month I will share my most compelling reflection piece yet that will culminate my “Understanding Mwalimu Nyerere” series.
Inspired highly by Magufuli’s unique leadership approach, that has defied all stereotypes that have plagued Africa from her independence, my latest reflection piece, will also serve as the premise to argue the necessity of our current passage under his administration: building the Tanzania we NEED to get the Tanzania we WANT.
Africa, at best, is an extension of the West (or East, depending on the season and reason) but has never evolved to being an intention of its own making. Like a child grows up (and out of parental bondage) and has to ‘figure it out’ upon reaching the age of self determination (umri wa ukomavu) in order to truly assume the noble profile of an independent adult, so will Africa if it truly wants to be ‘independent’ - there is no free lunch.
The NEW WORLD ORDER has forged interdependencies through complicated financial structures and societal linkages often beyond our contemplation, let alone, intervention. Though still important, no longer is military force the principle lever for securing sovereignty. Economic strength in the form of effective self reliance against these inherent dependencies, compels Africa to fix itself from within as a prerequisite to achieve true ‘independence’. Fixing Africa can no longer be exclusively about celebrating sovereignty and economic growth but more importantly doing the hard work of building sustainable social and economic systems from within that reinforce effective self reliance.
So long as Africa cannot depend on itself more than it depends on others, it will always fall in the trap of depending on someone else and continue with the blame game like a spoilt child who grew up in privilege but never learned what it took for his/her parents to get their wealth in order to continue creating wealth for themselves.
Depending on yourself needs SACRIFICE. There is nothing more important to Africa’s future than how we view and reward SACRIFICE as an honorable trade and social value.
H.E. Dr. John Pombe Magufuli, has employed methods that have, if only one thing, served to remind us of the power and indispensability of these four ingredients: BRAVERY, SACRIFICE, HONOR and LOYALTY.
When we complain about donor dependency (funds often derived from tax payers in those donor countries) yet we bemoan reforms aimed at bolstering tax collections here at home, it is a clear sign that Africa/Tanzania is more at conflict with herself then it is with anyone else.
Simply put: *we know what we want but are not prepared or unable to do what we need to do what it takes to get it...*
My two part culmination piece serves to draw attention to the evil within by examining where the WORLD ECONOMIC ORDER is heading so we see the urgency in preparing NOW...
WINTER IS COMING...
