My A' Level literature class this year is studying Half of a yellow sun by Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie a Nigerian writer who brings to the page a kind of lyricism which is reminiscent of Ngugi wa Thiongo and Chinua Achebe. I was enthralled right up to the last page; she wove the story so intricately in idiomatic English that I could relate to. The story brought to the fore the reasons why as Africans we have failed to progress and eradicate poverty.
1. Tribalism
Whichever country on the continent you go to, the country is always divided along tribal lines. The massacre in Rwanda in 1994 was because of failure to understand each other as tribes of one country, the call for a separate state of Matebeleland in Zimbabwe is because of suspicion and failure to get along as one nation. Tribal polarisation is the root of all the ills in our country.
2. Jealousy
The green - eyed monster has been at the centre of the hoarding, defrauding and sabotaging of local infrastructure, personal injury and fatalities when we are faced with the senseless behaviour which we occasionally engaged in in the past but which of late has been a regular alarming occurrence.
3. Religious polarisation
Whilst we talk of religious tolerance, we still have a long way to go. We need to start practising what we preach and our church leaders need to be tolerant and considerate people. We need to live together in harmony with no prejudice.
4. Selfishness
I have noticed that Zimbabweans behave like crabs, always pulling each other down (although this is also true of other parts of the world). The moment we start thinking about how our actions affect the person next to us and how we can make the world a better place, we will become less selfish.
peace,
fadz
1. Tribalism
Whichever country on the continent you go to, the country is always divided along tribal lines. The massacre in Rwanda in 1994 was because of failure to understand each other as tribes of one country, the call for a separate state of Matebeleland in Zimbabwe is because of suspicion and failure to get along as one nation. Tribal polarisation is the root of all the ills in our country.
2. Jealousy
The green - eyed monster has been at the centre of the hoarding, defrauding and sabotaging of local infrastructure, personal injury and fatalities when we are faced with the senseless behaviour which we occasionally engaged in in the past but which of late has been a regular alarming occurrence.
3. Religious polarisation
Whilst we talk of religious tolerance, we still have a long way to go. We need to start practising what we preach and our church leaders need to be tolerant and considerate people. We need to live together in harmony with no prejudice.
4. Selfishness
I have noticed that Zimbabweans behave like crabs, always pulling each other down (although this is also true of other parts of the world). The moment we start thinking about how our actions affect the person next to us and how we can make the world a better place, we will become less selfish.
peace,
fadz
