Our policy makers can do with more confidence in the people

Our Arab brothers who won’t get alien stuff shoved down their throats don’t even have half Africa’s resources. But they run huge airline companies that sponsor football in Europe.

Photo credit: Illustration | Joseph Nyagah | Nation Media Group

Despite the bad news of road carnage and nasty politics that old and new media served us in the festive season, people in the region also had a lot to enjoy and be proud of.

Besides partying, many now drive or fly across borders for a change; foreign but East African car registration numbers no longer draw attention in our capitals.

Young Africans are increasingly gaining recognition overseas, and not only for sports. Our scientists, writers and other professionals are increasingly winning accolades in Europe and America. Even not-so-long reigning King Charles awarded some East Africans on his Honours’ List for this year.

A question then arises why many Africans don’t yet exhibit as much confidence as say, our Arab brothers! If, for example, you went to Dubai and spent a full busy month around the place, chances are that you may never meet an Emirati (citizen of the United Arab Emirates), except maybe police personnel if you find yourself in a bad situation.

You will all the time only deal with fellow foreigners employed by Emiratis whom they themselves rarely meet. The Emiratis rarely find time to meet the foreigners including their European, American and India workers. 

The story is somewhat similar in other states in that region, except in a way, Qatar, where many Black African workers say the citizens accord them the same respect as everyone who is law-abiding.

Otherwise states in those parts are so restrictive to immigration and rarely grant citizenship. Applicants invoking marriage to a citizen usually are expected to have undergone a change of religion as understandably, a marriage not solemnised under local religious provisions wouldn’t be recognised.

And a work/resident permit will rarely entitle your spouse and dependents entry; yet a secular marriage to a citizen is almost impossible.

Compare that with the way we Africans fall over ourselves and trip others for a chance to meet with and directly serve a foreigner! Kampala once had a despicably successful conman who used to serve fellow conmen to fleece locals over the phone, because of his ability to sound like an Englishman or American (or neither, as long as the accent was non-African).

He expired, but now we have a popular Tik Tok comedian who fakes a Black American sound to bamboozle locals and get away with anything for which a local would be lynched.

Alien-worship is not only by lowly citizens, but by higher ups also. So, our local businesspersons exploit this inferiority complex of African government officials by hiring jobless foreigners to front as managers of their companies.

These easily secure audience and undivided attention of officials and get tenders they wouldn’t if their bids were presented by themselves, the true owners of the company but with a “wrong” colour – so profiled by their “colourmates”.

This has gone on for decades in several countries, validating suspicion that the officials actually know they are dealing with fair-skinned fronts, but prefer that to begging for a kickback from a fellow citizen. 

Our prayer in 2025 should be for African policy makers to appreciate their worth, that of their fellow citizens and the resources of the continent.

Our Arab brothers who won’t get alien stuff shoved down their throats don’t even have half Africa’s resources. But they run huge airline companies that sponsor football in Europe.

Their democracies that no moneylender can subject to alien ideology are barely decades old, if yet born.

So African policy makers should have pride and confidence to plan their economies in the interest of their people, based on abundant resources that can power modern, clean industries. The population can provide a market for new products, provide employment so that decent living is not limited to a few highly skilled professionals, businesspeople and the political class.

Imagine the next AU summit resolving to eliminate public corruption in 12 months, giving no room to the inferiority mentality that ending the vice from their governments is impossible!

If the AU summit members get the courage to reject criminality in their governments, they would save our 1.5 billion people from being despised as if we are all mentally wired to steal.

Buwembo is a Kampala-based journalist. E-mail: [email protected]