Can insults ever ginger us up? (II)

Take for example what Morocco did recently which I think is a collective insult on supposedly fellow African brothers. She refused to host the 2015 African Cup of Nations championship which will now be hosted by Equatorial Guinea, giving the excuse that she fears her populated might be at risk apparently with the coming of […]

Take for example what Morocco did recently which I think is a collective insult on supposedly fellow African brothers. She refused to host the 2015 African Cup of Nations championship which will now be hosted by Equatorial Guinea, giving the excuse that she fears her populated might be at risk apparently with the coming of West Africans some of whose countries are ravaged by the Ebola disease.
What is at the root of that Arab country’s action is her people’s inherent disdain for Blacks, which is why assurances that steps would be taken to prevent her justified fears fell on deaf ears. Morocco did it because the target is us—poor, powerless, voiceless and actionless Africans. If the target had been some more powerful race, Morocco would definitely have thought twice because the consequence of such slight would be too grievous for her to bear.
Morocco’s action is inconsiderate or insensitive to the plight of some West African countries. Let me tell Morocco a little proverb from the Bekwarra people of Cross River State, south-south Nigeria. It says: ‘’When the small grass-thatched reception hut catches fire and is burning, the bigger grass-thatched house standing some short distance away should not be seen laughing at the hut’’. There is another one, still from the Bekwarra people, which says that ‘’your neighbour’s violent cough should worry you because it could disturb your sleep’’. If Morocco was indeed African at heart she should have braved the odds and went ahead with the hosting. And it should not have stopped at that. She could have decided that in solidarity with fellow West Africans suffering the ravages of Ebola, a portion of her share of the gate-takings at what was to be Morocco 2015 would be donated for the complete elimination of the disease.
But because Morocco is not African at heart, she chose the path of being unfeeling towards her neighbours in West Africa. The big grass house was laughing at the small grass hut burning. And that is foolish. In this age of jet travel is there any country that can be absolutely sure that she is immune against epidemics or infectious diseases? Nobody is asking Morocco or anybody else to deliberately allow its citizens to be afflicted by a deadly disease. Surely, the Moroccan authorities have a responsibility to protect their population from a deadly virus. But with some measures now in place all over the world in response to this malady, anyone with Ebola can be prevented from going to infect the ‘superior’ Moroccan population or any other persons if the people running Morocco did not have so much disdain for Blacks and want to keep them out at the slightest of excuses.
How do I know that the dissuading factor behind Morocco’s decision is their contempt for Blacks? While Morocco is unwilling to host a party where some Ebola afflicted countries of West Africa will be partakers, she is ready to stage the FIFA World Club Cup coming up in December in which a large member of the ‘’superior’’ races will partake! Moreover, Morocco cannot risk the censure of FIFA. But for CAF? Let them go to hell. And for this great insult on Blacks, what was the punishment meted out to Morocco by the Confederation of African Football (CAF)? A mere slap on the wrist, if you ask me. CAF asked Morocco to stay away from the party in Equatorial Guinea and to possibly rejoin the next edition in 2017 if she qualifies. It is this type of light attitude towards those who engage in disparaging Africans that I am complaining about here. Morocco ought to have been expelled from CAF and advised to join the Maghreb regional football confederation if one exists and if she wishes as she is too superior to belong to a club of black people.
I think the Morocco snub calls to attention the need for us real Africans to begin to consider and review our relations with others. It is clear to us that some Arab majority population countries on the continent are only geographically African. They are culturally not so. And this is a matter I think the AU should be man enough to address courageously. The Maghreb Arab Africans show greater affinity towards their Arab and Berbers brothers and sisters in the Middle East than they care to show towards we jet black people with whom they interact more in Africa. I think that the AU was formed to champion primarily the political unity and cultural integration of Africans. Anyone who is only geographically African and who disdains his cultural affinity to black-skinned people should be excluded from this AU umbrella.
We authentic Africans are numerous enough to form a significant cultural entity and we should not be seen begging others who do not quite appear to be willing to be a part of us. This is what is called self-pride or racial dignity. With what the children of Seth and the children of Shem have done to us the children of Ham, killing, enslaving and exploiting us for millennia now, the time has come for us the descendants of Ham to begin to choose our friends by placing a premium on those who have a healthy respect for us. Even if a curse has been placed on the children of Ham that they shall be slave of slaves to the Caucasian and the Semitic races; that curse has run its course and we must begin to enjoy the favour of God once again. And that I see in the abundant natural and human resources it has pleased God to put on and under our soil.
The reason we are still such great underlings today in spite of the fact that we have gained political freedom several decades ago is to be found in our refusal to think, plan and execute a set of coherent policy aimed at breaking the terrible yoke of poverty in the midst of wealth and riches afflicting us. Because of what I think God has endowed me with I feel pained each time I am looked down upon because we have collectively failed to lift our societies up from our degrading morass of poverty and underdevelopment. In our world today, if you are not rich, no one respects you. No matter how numerous and self-respecting a country may be, without money she can be dismissed with a wave of the hand.
But we have been despised for too long by so many people that I think the time has come for us to begin to assert ourselves. And the first step is to reject any form of derogatory reference to our plight no matter how it is coated in sweet diplomatic language. We must begin to show intolerance towards anyone, country or organisation that looks down on any Black man whether he is in Arica or anywhere else in the world.