There is greatness in Africa

Hunt for Greatness

Milton Kamwendo

Rex Niven, in his 1964 book “The Nine Great Africans”, identified nine great Africans that shaped and influenced history. The stated purpose in his book was “to show by looking at the lives of certain people and at surroundings in which they found themselves, how men of outstanding abilities and powers acted in their peculiar conditions”.

What distinguishes people are not their circumstances but what they choose to do about them. Greatness is not a right of birth but a decision of the heart.

Niven’s selection of great Africans of old are: Arabi, the Egyptian; Mutesa, the chief of the Buganda; Menelik, the emperor; Seyyid Said, the Sultan; Chaka, the soldier and military genius; Muhammed, the Askia; Usuman, the preacher and founder of Achimota that was the foundation of the success of Ghana; Crowther, the bishop; and J.E.K. Agrrey, the teacher.

In talking about Askia, Niven comments: “From among the people in the old kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, Songhai and so on, the Askia Mohammed the Great seems to stand out pre-eminently. He would have been remarkable in any age and on any continent.”

That is true greatness — to know that, regardless of age, one would still have been great. This DNA of greatness in Africa is not dead. There is greatness in Africa.

Niven takes us back to African greatness when he says: “There they are. The chiefs and scholars: the men of action and the men of God. We might have chosen a different team: we might have followed a different pattern. But here is variety, here is courage, here is leadership: here is that indefinable quality that comes out in great men, whatever their colour or their creed, whatever the age they live in.”

Greatness knows no boundaries, no limits and no excuses. Great people will always be people of action.

We can build on this legacy of greatness to create the Africa we want. In Africa’s bosom lies great men and women. On African soils today walks the continent’s great people. Many of them are not aware that there is greatness in them and a calling to be great stewards of Africa’s vast resources. In demand are leaders, not just title holders. Value-driven leaders with vision and willing to bear responsibility to the unborn generation are the ones needed.

Niven challenges us to emulate his class of Africa’s finest when he says: “Without them the earth would have been a drearier place: without them man’s lot would never have improved. They did not go about trying to raise up the underdog; indeed, they sometimes did evil; but they stirred up the spirits, and indeed quite often the souls as well, not only of their contemporaries and of those in their vicinity but also of those in the future still unborn.”

This is the spirit of greatness — to climb high mountains not to be seen and display our prowess, but we climb high to see further, embrace noble visions and pull many up.

True greatness will always stir greatness in others.

Africa is rich, well-endowed and yet it punches so low below its weight category. There are five elements that Africa needs to confront and deal with in order to progress: victim thinking, values that are distorted, vision and leadership, voodoo crafts and vain glory.

Africa’s past is filled with the horror of slavery, colonial subjugation, divisions, violence, rape, witchcraft, fear, apartheid, curse and bloodshed. Tales of ills are many and the cast of perpetrators is also huge. No single group can stand tall absolved of responsibility in some way.

Lamenting about the past has very limited utility because it cannot be undone. Africa is held back by a mass hypnosis of fear and thinking like victims. We easily think that our problems were manufactured elsewhere and were forced on us. Progress is daring to accept and take responsibility. No amount of blame will move us forward in any way. Blame in any guise never takes anyone forward. Whoever we blame, we empower to perpetrate our misery. Life changes when responsibility is accepted.

Moeletsi Mbeki sets us thinking when he argues: “African leaders sustain and reproduce themselves by perpetrating the neo-colonial state and its attendant socio-economic systems of exploitation.”

He continues his line of thought by saying: “As a result, Sub-Saharan Africa today consists of fossilised pre-industrial and pre-agrarian social formations.”

The blame game is not a game that ends well or takes people to their desired end state. Small thinking and victim mindsets will not solve our problems. We have to stop blaming others and start taking responsibility.

Greg Mills, in “Why Africa is Poor”, says: “African leaders have successfully managed, with the help of donors, to externalise their problems, making them the responsibility (and apparently the fault, too) of others.”

To move forward, we have to address our value systems, many of which are confused. Common good must never be scarified by personal gain and toys.

Mills challenges us to rethink our decisions, priorities and policies. He says: “Although Africans have preferred to lay blame for the continent’s predicament, and thus the solutions, at the door of outsiders, there is little that the external community can achieve without Africa’s agreement.”

We have to look closely at our values and what they say about our value system. Values that trumpet shiny things at the expense of real growth and development have to be addressed.

Whatever we do not have was because we did not value it enough. Personal success that does not embrace the good of all is futile. Whatever you see that is shocking or depraved can be traced to our values. Values are not the glowing documents that we write, nor the excellent turn of phrase that we so proudly display. Values are what we do first and what is most important to us.

There is greatness in Africa. There is greatness in you that is struggling to be set free. Dare to believe and take action.

 

◆ Milton Kamwendo is a leading international transformational and motivational speaker, author and a virtual, hybrid and in-person workshop facilitator. He is a cutting-edge strategy, team-building and organisation development facilitator and consultant. His life purpose is to inspire and promote greatness. He can be reached at: [email protected] and his website is: www.miltonkamwendo.com