If you ask me: who my prophets and books of authorities are, you’ll laugh at me (if you are foolish enough to do so). For, I’ll never mince words to tell you that they’re Mussamaali Nangoli, Chinua Achebe, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Shaaban Robert, among others without forgetting their books and what not.

Why have I reached this apogee of describing my personal belief!? What occurred recently off the coast of Libya has forced me to put this on the agora!?

We recently heard from the western media that at least 200 African immigrants died when the boat they were on sank, as they were trying to make it to Lampedusa, Italy in their attempt to seek green pastures.

Without any shame and conducting any research, the said media fed us with mere lies all aimed at demonizing Africa. When another boat was towed to safety, it was full of Palestinians, Indians and other non-African nationals! Yes, Africa has economic problems. But she’s not alone as western media puts it. This does not mean the western media were not aware of this truth. Nay!  To them, miseries and desperation to escape from “west-made-poverty-vicious circle”, are only on Africa! Shame on you!

Western media have no gist of humanity. They don’t feel any guilt of using even dead people!  How should they, if at all, when the west introduced slavery and colonialism… and thought it’s doing the right thing? How should they, if at all, when today the world is groping with recession resulting from their greed… and does not include Africa in whatever measures they’re taking? To them Africa and her rulers are either tabula rasa or babies that should not torture their brain.

Instead of clinging unto demonizing Africa, the world needs to face this reality resulting from history… that is, colonialism and slavery that sanctified exploitation and degradation of one continent by others, needs to be corrected by treating Africa fairly in all international affairs… especially trade and Human Rights! Doing so will solve the current problems.

When western media is making the world believe that Africa is the source of illegals, as they call them, it does not know that the same Africa has no Africans, say, seeking green pasture in India. There are no green pastures there. Instead, it’s vice versa. Many Indians are flocking into African countries for green pastures.

Had what was reported was about Europe or America, they’d rush to clarify and warn not to mention tutoring about ethics and research for the media. But who cares if the victim is Africa? This is the why Africa’s always been abused and given all bad names without Human Rights campaigners to condemn, let alone blotting it.

Some years back I was at loggerhead with World Vision Canada. This happened when I saw many pictures showing poor Africans. They were degrading and exploitive pictures, though to World Vision they were good source of printing money. Then is when I asked myself: “if all these creatures were whites, what would have been the repercussions of their countries?” They have the grit of abusing and exploiting poor Africans for the good of their own citizens.

It’s only now that the world knows that the richest country of the world, the USA,  is currently grappling with homeless population after the greed-geared credit crunch surfaced, as it dressed down its holistic capitalistic greed and myopia. 

The other day my daughter was given a book about Tanzania. The said book, apart from being authored by a racist and supremacist white, it showed Tanzania as a village full of thatched hats. This grade four daughter asked: “where are the mansions of our rulers and who’s who?” Her teacher, being ignorant of Africa, astonished, then asked: “are there any mansions in Africa?”

Through pummeling lies and concoctions of their making, the west has succeeded in hoodwinking their people and ours. Ask a white kid about Africa. He or she knows diseases, wars, hungers, vampires and such to be only thing Africa has. They don’t know the simple fact that the coffee they drink and the computers and other gadgets they use everyday are made from raw materials from Africa! Sad indeed.

We may blame them. It is our right to do so. But looking at the other side of the coin, we’re to blame. For example, if you look at our academic setting and all that we inculcate into our kids, you’ll find that sometimes we’re our own enemies.

I’ve never gotten it as to why, for example, a very simple, clear and eloquent book like “No More Lies About Africa” by Professor Mussamaali Nangoli is not taught in our schools and universities? Though some of our literati are internationally applauded, their contributions are a lot more appreciated in the west than in Africa! And to add injuries to insults, most of them are at western universities teaching. Our thuggish rulers do not want them home for fear of unveiling their plot to exploit our people. Yeah. Our rulers do not want “much-know” people in their countries. They’re happy and at home with the crop of elites that they either use in their regimes, hell bent to ruin people, or those are at universities teaching and keeping animals. Refer to how academicians like Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Dr. Willy Mutunga, Dr.  Gibson Kamau Kuria and others were incarcerated under Daniel arap Moi in Kenya.

I once felt pity and small when I found that most of the professors at the University of Dar es salaam are renowned for keeping pigs and chickens to subsidize their negligible incomes. When do such people get time to invent or mentor students whilst their petit projects need them the most? Sadly, they don’t give the government the heck to see that they’re well renumerated just like the politicians who make millions for telling lies or doing nothing! Education is for human manumission. Failure to this being educated is a good as being illiterate. 

It’s reached a point whereby a drug baron or a mere dealer is highly adored compared to an elite. In Tanzania, there was an operation of busting thugs. You know what… this exercise had to stop after finding that most of those thugs were donors and sponsors to the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM).

It’s no secret. Most of professors in many African countries have abandoned and betrayed their professions to join politics where money is printed easily. What makes the situation worse is when they become politicians; they become even more corrupt than common con men and women in politics. This is why, despite having many PhD holders and professors in government, African governments are still begging and allowing themselves to be degraded and used for the peril of their own people.

I once asked the logic for the current regime in Tanzania to deny a hundred percent loans to students, whilst those doing so went to free school under Mwalimu Julius Nyerere’s socialist regime? The answer is simple. These folks are not educated despite wasting much time in schools. They’re using their stomachs to think in lieu of heads. They’re endangering the future of their own country.

 And sadly though, the situation is the same almost everywhere in Africa. What adds the twangs and pangs, western government support such nugatory regimes even when Africans try to pull them down.

Going back to the west with its demonization, vampirazation and exploitation of Africa. It’s time to tell it: “enough is enough!” If this goes on, soon Africa will breed many more future terrorists than any continent. Because shall they be promised a good life and solace in the future as other religions do. They indeed will join the already full pond of terrorism in which Asian countries lead.

Though we don’t want to face it, we currently are suffering from terrorism, not just because those serving it are morally inclined to it. Their desperation is the sole cause of being preyed on easily. They have nothing to lose. If people can risk their lives to cross turbulent seas, what of being given petrodollar and carry on whatever dirty mission they will be assign to?

To conclude, look at, for example, the money wasted on killing people in Iraq, Palestine, and Afghanistan, instead of serving humanity. For how long will Africa sit on her treasures as she is always abused and exploited?

The solution is simple; starting reshaping the mindset of our young ones. China did as well as Japan and you can see the fruits of its labor.

Nkawzi Mhango is a Tanzanian living in Canada. He writes regularly for “The African Executive” and also has a blog entitled “Free Thinking Unabii”. He is a regular contributor to AfroSpear.