EDITORIAL: Forward Africa? Africa Shine Your Eye Well, Well!
Thirty-one African heads of states spent days in Nairobi, Kenya attending the Africa Forward conference stage, managed by France and Kenya. Our own President was present and delivered a paper which is why the parley is of importance to Nigerians.
We use stage managed deliberately. This is because France the key actor and initiator has to recalibrate it’s position in Africa having suffered devastating setbacks in West Africa.
In many of its former colonies France is now bad news and correctly so, France has for decades bled its former colonies dry with policies based on exploitation and a grotesquely unequal relationship, the African countries fawning in Nairobi had better shine their eyes well, well.
The fault lies within Africa itself, with the transition of the nationalist political movements the continent is now in the grip of elite complicit in the underdevelopment of the country.
Africa should focus on making its own Continental Free Trade Agreement for that is the pathway to salvation. There should be circumspection in negotiating any transaction with a former colonial overload for the leopard cannot change its spot, they better use a magnifying glass to examine the small prints.
Nigeria must focus on the grim, daunting reality of the erosion of purchasing power parity which has led to increasing poverty.
The country is now the poverty capital of the world and there is no space for even cautious optimism. It is better not to live in a fool’s paradise.
Nigeria must focus on poverty reduction and use the levers of the State to turn the war against poverty into the engine room to drive the quest for sustainable development and sustainable development.
The electors of states such as Osun and Ekiti have been placed on notice. They must reject poverty creating political forum and vote for the new wave offering an alternative perspective and lead by those with a genuine pro people and progressive minds.
Right now funds from the centre sent to the states as allocation as allocation are now being converted into slush funds to finance a presidential campaign.
This in the face of mounting poverty is as evil as it can get. The voters of Osun State in particular must shine their eyes very well.
