Saturday, July 11, 2009

What choice words will Bob Mugabe have for the President of United States this week?

Obama stood up in front of all Africans today and said: "Brothers, get ye hence and fix thine selves." Gone are the days of the white preacher. And not a minute too soon.

One cog in the wheel turned slowly in favour of democracy. One cog turned slowly away from the self-absorbed so called leaders of Africa, those concerned more with the appearance of leadership than leadership itself.

Suddenly African leaders have been thrust into a world where they will be judged on merit. Some, perhaps many, among them will heed the words of this disarmingly honest yet strict disciplinarian who has shown up on their shores from Chicago. A man who can claim above all that he has the right to admonish the foibles of the likes of Bob Mugabe and numerous others if, for no other reason, that it is from this great and wondrous continent that he can claim his ancestry.

What a day. What, as Obama might word it, 'a moment'. Another moment in the life story of this man who seems destined for many more occasions such as this. What next one wonders?

I wonder this; will Mugabe continue his infantile name calling of his peers (I don't believe he thinks he has any, but that is another story) and come up with an inappropriate name such as 'that silly little boy from Chicago' or something equally simple minded? Mugabe at times like this wears his inferiority complex large.

The west has failed to achieve in decades what Obama may - just may - have achieved in this moment. This so, so intriguing moment. This moment where Africans may be tempted to believe 'yes we can.' In a sober moment one could add; yes we can, if our leaders give us the freedom to do so unencumbered by fear, tribalism, religion, sexism, racism and freedom of speech.




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