Youths: Repel Uncultured Invaders & Stop Terrorizing Grassroots

One of the most important prayers of our parents was: our children would grow to achieve more than they did. Those prayers and struggle to accomplish better goals for our Youths bestow admiration and respect for elders everywhere, not only in Africa. Even when we disagree with elders, our Youths always had a way of expressing their objections without being disrespectful. We have opponents among learned cultures and reasonable people like ours, they leave enough room to disagree without being disagreeable.

Youths everywhere are the social conscience of their communities and countries. It is no longer valid that most Youths are liberals because they have hearts and those over 40 years old are conservatives because they have brains. We can demonstrate good hearts and brains at any mature age. As we get over our 50s, we revert back to good hearts after realizing we cannot take with us what we acquired with brain and experience. All the rush for money boils down to a rat race trumped by good health to enjoy a little more out of whatever we acquired.

Elders remain the keepers of culture, etiquette and history. This is the reason Yoruba say: Agba kin wa loja ki ori omo tuntun wo. Where there are elders, kids seldom go astray. One of the sayings in Things Fall Apart was: though age is respected, achievement is revered. So if a kid knows how to wash his hands he would eat with the elders. The same is true in the teachings of the holy Books. Degenerated culture leads to monkey see, monkey do. The greed of some elders leave very little good characters for the Youths to emulate.

Youthful exuberance is a highly desirable character of the youth to encourage and further progressive ideas but not to make money at neck breaking speed. Unfortunately, today's youth cannot wait to get into nefarious activities like rituals, 419s, drug peddling and worse, terrorism. Their recruiters pay Youths more money for hopeless deadly missions in order to further their own selfish goals.

The aberration we see today in leaders is disheartening to say the least. These recruiters of evil doers and destruction are the same entities that deprive Youths the opportunities they need to solve the pressing needs of their local communities with their skill and talents. So, Youths in desperation fall into their hands as instruments of terrorism or leave for what they think are greener pastures in foreign land as inferior beings. If colonial masters leave your countries in ruins, what makes you think they would love us there?

It is no longer a secret that many African countries make good money from natural resources like oil and diamonds far in excess of what they made from Cocoa. Yet, Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana and Awolowo in Western Nigeria made unprecedented progress in Industrial Estates and Education that the colonists repressed to extend Africa dependence as colonial masters. When they were kicked out like the French in Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), the British and Portuguese in East Africa, they abandoned and intentionally left projects uncomplicated.

Haiti in the Americas is another case in point. The French not only destroyed projects, they taxed Haiti and demanded heavy compensation as a condition for withdrawal to gain Independence. They made sure Haiti never recovered, even today. African slaves were told to be grateful they were sold outside. Otherwise, they could have been slaughtered and eaten alive. It is strange coming from slave masters that sold their own children by raped slave women, into slavery like cattle.

While Africans are running out of their countries where foreigners get rich. Our Youths just want to get out since they believe their salvation is not where others get rich; because they have an indoctrinated neo-colonial mentality. Usually, the obstacles they face outside are greater than the ones they left at home. But they can at least eke out some subsistence living, better or more tasking than where they are well known.

If we want to understand how that can happen up to the present day, we have to revisit what Nkrumah meant by Neo-Colonialism. It boils down to handing over power to unscrupulous elements within us that can deliver laundered earnings to them by remote control without being held responsible. It has never been a secret that if Europeans, Americans and lately Asians want to get rich, they rush to Africa.

If you do not understand Nkrumah meaning of Neo-Colonialism, study how Lumumba was discarded in Congo and replaced with Mobutu yesterday or what is presently going on in Nigeria that was supposed to become a Regional Power in the 60s. These are well planned orchestrated policies of European domination in Africa. It is still paying dividends today with entrenched long term returns. Ask the Libyans of the quality of life during the time of Gadhafi compared to their lives today.

The indelible mark of man's inhuman treatment to man lingers on till today. It was so vicious, many slaves revolted making Slavery a risky business and threats to lives of European slave traders. Since history has become a selective subject or dropped in schools, the pains have escaped presents African leaders basking in money laundering with a sense of false security that their children and relatives would never want while others languish in abject poverty looking for anyway out. Are these the descendants of slaves that revolted at home and abroad?

Politicians boast of development as Africans race to the bottom of abject poverty. They entice Youths as thugs and religious fanatics while they disrespect cultural heads like Shaka, Osei, Eze, Sultan, Oba. These politicians are the tools of Neo-Colonialism that distract us from holding their masters responsible for laundering trillions out of Africa. They shuttle between Africa and foreign countries continually on consultations, medical treatment, vacations and religious homages as if there is no God in Africa. Though God taught us he is everywhere.

Are you still wondering why we are at one another’s throat, Youths against elders, men against women and children running out in desperation instead of using their God-given talents and education to solve challenges in their villages, towns and countries.

Farouk Martins Aresa @oomoaresa