Africa - The Growing Minds and The Generational Obligation Of The Youth

Our world is education. If two or three moments pass without any edutainment it seems to be like we're dead. We are within a binary world: either evil or good, light or darkness, conscious or sub-conscious mind; something or nothing.

Cars, houses [and things like that] do not matter to us. All we know is that we're rallying with conviction and passion and commitment. We were brought up in the struggle of our ancestors and to contribute to the betterment of humanity.

Our Ukugcina [stores] are books, where we go to cultivate knowledge and fill our minds with beneficiary lines of literature.

We were taught that readers are leaders; therefore, during the revolutionary hours, we put our broken pieces together and march at day without any fear of contradiction or favor. We were taught the power of courage and self-recognition.

In the midst of hell, panic, terror and outburst, we consistently maintain, uphold and protect our characters so as to engender public trust and confidence. We believe that we will reach the promised land with our heads up knowing that we are the masters of our thoughts and commanders of our destiny.

We know the enemies. They have settled in ambush for us but we have weapons of mass distractions. Our weapons remain the best and constructive weapons used by revolutionaries throughout history: the pen, creative mind, public forum, political rally, protest and connection with God.

OUR INSPIRATIONS AND GOALS
Some people ask: what inspire us to be studious, courageous and steadfast in our quest for a better version of our world? Virtually every headline coming out of the continent seems to be showcased on terrors, panics, outbursts, wars, neo-colonialism or some other.

With the above mentioned, we are inspired by the mothers who give birth on the roadside because there are no hospital facilities or the fathers who can't send their children to school because of low incomes.

For, we were inspired when Little Abraham Keita said, "poverty has encapsulated the minds of our people so much so that even when they are bathing with cool water they still sweat". That tells us the degree of mental tension.

We were imbued with the courage when we examined our educational environment - the idealized alternative for the betterment of any society - where we are generating graduates, many of whom are certified illiterates and have been programmed to becoming losers just from the education they received. Many of whom are taught to beautify their bodies than their minds and to seek harmony over equilibrium or to cherish money over humanity.

We were instigated by a political system where the politicians are getting rich at the expense of the ignorance of the majority. A system that promotes hypocrisy than democracy; a system that degenerates into deceits, pretenses, and mockery. And the vast majority remains in shackles, in their native townships - the slums and the ghettos.

We were instigated by the widespread social, political and economic unrest which fed a rising distrust of reason and a growing impulse or ascending degree of modern ignorance.

We became conscious as well as convinced that the society is corrupting us because we lack self- sufficiency. The children in the nook and cranny parts of Africa that don't have good learning space inspired us to think outside the box.

We're conscious and aware of the neo-colonialism and dominance struck by the newest world hegemonies and "imperialistic trap and bomb diplomacy" distributed to third world countries.

At the semi-continental, continental and global stages we identify more pitfalls and morasses than accomplishments. There are emerging conflicts in the global-south, Asia, in the Americas or somewhere else.

The African Union has been designed as "Oration Site" for regular jamborees. The United Nations veto system has allowed a handful of nations to distribute injustice and undermine the sovereignty of other nations. We're quite conscious of this reality.

We were also instigated when we lost the three real forms of pleasures: Great intellect, Strong brotherhood and Connection with God.

Finally, we were truly inspired in the pursuit of common rationality and earthly wisdom that we can provide an idealized alternative to the many problems or challenges our country and continent are engulfed in.

We don't like engaging in fistfight, using grenades, pistols or brutal malpractices, for, we are moralists. They are not idealized alternatives to the peace and stability of country. In fact, the conscience of our revolution is committed to promoting peaceful coexistence among all and manifests itself in the force put in all activities by the people.

In these times, the only security we ask of the world is the tutelage of teachers and the freedom of the library. We need education and mostly intellectual or critical scholarship education to change our minds and hearts. We need men and women who rise to the occasion and speak about the harsh realities that leak buckets and rotten tomatoes among us. We need cooperation among all nations not exploitation and covert diplomacy. We need a world of tolerance and peaceful co-existence among nation-states. Onward to victory!

About the author:
Sallia S. Komala, A freshman student studying civil engineering at The Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, An Activist, Emerging Pan-Africanist leader, Engaging peacemaker, and a columnist.