BLACK MAN, BLACK SENSE

The sum total of what we are doing is; spending money we don’t have, buying things we do not need and laughably trying to impress the West, which doesn’t care. (The INSIDE VOICE)

It’s a cancer, a blatant lie turned truth. What is? The ideology of some different brain matter, probably black in complexion stuck comfortably in the skulls of black men. What is glaring truth is, that the black race is plagued by a lot of horrors in this cesspool of corruption we have for a continent, and is in dying need of immediate rescue.

We almost can do nothing on our own, we’ve got nothing covered and so we find solace in the fact that our knees will always be available to fall on. Beggars of our own possessions, that’s what we have become. To say that the white man stole from us in order to get to his present world is a very silly and laughable excuse. The white man never stole from us, we battered. If anything should be said, it should be that he was smart in his exchange. As a matter of fact, this dent in the course of history highlighted with the slavery of our fore fathers shouldn’t be an excuse for such an equipped and highly able people. We traded gold for a mirror! Instead of wallowing in the sorrows of ages past, in unison we should think about how to move forward purposefully. It is not evident when I blush (still wondering if black peeps actually blush), the INSIDE VOICE is black to the bone, but someone must reach for the hammer and hit the nail right on the head. A few symptoms of our disease will get the job done.

It is more like a natural tendency to accept a bad job done, a wrong service rendered or anything inferior. ‘Excellent’ is not in our dictionaries, it’s only in primary school exercise books. And there’s the “black man stomach no dey fear germs”. I’ve said that before. It is a great way to console the mind while we swallow filth. It’s bad enough when we are ignorant about something and so do not venture. But knowing what’s appropriate and then doing the exact opposite is so unforgiveable. It is possible to think that such utterances help us live life of an easy note; not making a fuss about small things that can be overlooked. On the contrary, it only makes things hardest. Giving thumbs up to negative behaviour only ensures its continuity even in generations to come.

The Ghana Man Time (GMT) theory did not start with us. It was concocted long ago. Unlike the white man who respects time as it should, we operate as though we’ve got more than 24 hours. This causes so much frustration for the man who believes time needs respecting but lives in a society that believes otherwise. Here, it generally takes two to three times as much time to get anything done especially if it requires any level of collaboration, be it civic workers in suit and tie or construction site workers. It’s unacceptable, yet accepted. Of course only in a world where watches don’t tell time but adorn their owners.

All over the continent, filth is scattered, it’s as though it is for an aesthetic purpose. Some heaps of rubbish can be set as landmarks. It is that real! We have clichéd “cleanliness is next to godliness”, yet don’t seem to understand what it means. It is the 21^st century but Africa still battles cholera. Let’s not look too far. Right here in Ghana lays a pool of rot, the Korle lagoon. It gets worse as time elapses. And my word! The stench is unbearable. What do we do? Nothing! Maybe we are waiting for it to breed the next deadly virus, so we can once again grace the headlines. The Leaders don’t care. Sanitation is not on their “to do” lists. The populace on the other hand feels no responsibility over their health. As such, the unimaginable is just a ticking time bomb. One can always take a leak whenever the need be anywhere, especially where you can find “do not urinate” signs. No one is shy. At least not anymore. No shame is felt, men and women alike.

The world has branded us as third world countries and that saddens my heart. Our land is fertile, rich in minerals. Our people are nice and sociable. The world knows that we need to realise our potential to be a great continent. The backlash can go on for ages but without a change of ideologies nothing will ever be achieved. Our leaders need to do more and talk less. Citizens will definitely follow suite. Nothing is impossible. All the super powers of the world started from somewhere little. Everyone should bring something on board in our quest for true freedom. We have always known what is right; it’s just that we never tried it. Emancipating ourselves from mental slavery is what we need! (A big shout-out to the late Bob Marley). It is never late to start over. The INSIDE VOICE believes strongly in us. Today, let us all close our eyes to all negativity and work for a better Africa.