What The Legendary Fela Kuti Wished We Knew About The World Economy, Africa & The Future (Volume 2.)


As much as I deem this short article expository towards a greater and more robust Nigerian and African economy, we must also not forget about our old wounds that has grounded and landed us in the fate and common predicament we share today as a country and as a Continent.

The words of Prof Charles Soludo struck me like a blow when he said "We have been living on a borrowed robe." Be it of our colonial master or our long standing benefactor trade partners. This discredit does not concern Nigeria as a nation alone but as Africa as a continent. It is like a scenario of an old friend now turned enemy who gave you a landed property on certain conditions now pressing to have his property back in an unfriendly times and pressing moments. That is exactly the economic situation of Nigeria and the entire Africa now waiting in theatre for expert surgical attention in economic tandems.

We have always wanted to live and run everything like the developed world as we often admire them and hastily forget that there's a need to be more conservative on some of our values.
It is the job of an industrialist to look for opportunity where. The world today have an organised way of doing business for the interest of the one with a greater financial votes. the USA tops the world in its GDP which total up to USA $19 trillion dollars, this is serviced by the influx of the exports of The rest of the world so in simple terms the USA is the winner takes all while the rest gravel at the dollar demands to include the more flexed Euro and British pounds. This is the point I intend to strike the light and the reason for the British Brexit tussle. Fela Anikulapo once said, The colonial masters have removed the chain from your legs, arms and neck, Africans try to remove the chains from your head and minds.

We import our cars, trucks, Yatch, boats, vessels, airplanes, and jets both for luxury or commercial purpose, machineries and tools, electronics, mobile technology, intelligence and security training, computer, consumables, military weapons, energy, building materials, health care, pharmaceuticals, wears, we even go over seas to schools and to acquire all sort of training that does not in anyway have any effect in the home economy, with all of these, how can the servant ever be greater than the Master The rest of the world labour to glorify the US dollar which has enjoyed substantial incentives and royalties from for the economic demise and disintegration of the world combine economy. Alot of effort has been poured in on the USA financial and reserve front to include effort from Japan, Korea, Germany, France, China, and the rest of the world.

How far has the reiteration of our past and present pan African taken us? Remember the coordinated economic sabotage of the Ghanian and Nigerian democracy as at of 1966 through coup d'etat and the political discord and seeds of 1960 that festered deep into the bone of the then Nigerian politicians with all eyes on the oil and the hastiness to expunge our colonial master on a bitter far well bidden when Nigeria was at independence, a naira was exchanged at #1 naira = $1.4 USD, over the years, this is an inflation of 751.84%. So the reasons are obvious, who is the master and who is the slave? With all the sweet packs for our deluded African citizen and citizens of the world to come to the central home and mecca of the world to get free lunch and enjoy part of what has been taken away from you.
Remember that all the macro econometrics of exchange rate really doesn't matter of whose currency is stronger or weaker so that Ghanaians should not be quick to be jubilate of the revaluaton of 2 zeros removed from her currency, same applies to Botswana, Gabon, Equitorial Guinea, Zambia, Libya, Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia and South Africa. We are all a people on the same ship with a common fate and common destiny, its either we make it together or we all drown together because the grieve of South Africa was a then Nigerian Popularly criticised head of State grieve; General Ibrahim Babangida who facilitated and hastened the the South African independence, so South Africa Should not use graven oratory nor speak evil of the same grave that awaits her.

From the 1960 till the 1983, despite the home exchange rate was about $2 USD = #1 Nigeria Naira, some people as at that time were not still happy. so what transpired was obvious. Nigeria has been through it all but today she's still standing strong undisputed even in her moment of economic crisis. Remember the same time between the 1963 till 1983, people were still complaining of bad economy, so we Africans truly need to wake up and redefine the true meaning of economic instability, Just as it was the Then 4 High Life Maestro, Fela sang a track titled "Stale Mate", Victor Olaiya Sang Ilu le O! (Country hard o!), Cardinal Jim Rex Lawson Sang the Song "Yello Sisi dey for Corner", and Bola Johnson, Lagos Sisi, so African should be reflective enough when we chorus the Paradise lost of the good old days.

Femi Kuti, the Son of the late Afro music legend Fela Kuti once sang a song titled, Sorry Sorry, I sorry For Africa, I Sorry for Nigeria. With all the economic reforms and macroeconomic tools used to salvage the dwindling and fading African economy the fixed economy, the floating economy, inflation rate, the interest rate, the exchange rate, the UN human development index, revaluation and devaluation of the concerned home country currency, Economic confab, The National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy (NEEDS), believe me I doubt if Africa would truly survive "The Insect to an Elephant tussle of The save the the keep the dollar alive and atop bureaucratic world struggle ." In this foul play, if the Nigerian economy which by now should have been 80% in GDP and in per capital income and purchasing power greater than the USA such that an average Nigeria should be able to boast of between $90,000 to $250,000 annual income and as such for the greater benefit for the rest of Africa.

My injunction is this, Africa needs to create its on Kind of Market and business Atmosphere such that the Rest of The USA, East, West, Europe, Asia, would be coming to learn from us and lets quit this master servant and victim of circumstances lifestyle of fighting and tearing down on one another. I tell people that no matter how long you stay emigrated in Europe or in The USA adding value to a foreign land, You are still a visitor and can never be one of them even if you have the keys and evidence to the false claim of hope. Even if your eventually a plus with your tax and labour force oversea, you will always remain a discredited negation at home.

At these point, I must remind us that the development of Africa can never be the task and duty of our political leaders alone because its obvious that with all the best brain consultations from all the Harvard, Yale, Oxford and MIT, it has continue to yield a cycle of endless confusion. African problem is unique such that what always work in the developed world here often defy the norms of conventional business environment for reasons far from fetish attachment but for the uniqueness of our business psychology and atmosphere just as the USA financial wise in stronger than the Nigerian naira but the monthly cost of a flat rent in the USA is the annual cost of rent of the same flat back here in Nigeria and the same applies to cost of food which is 10 times cheaper in Nigeria.

A lot of us have been told too many lies and pumped with too many invalid and unsubstantiated facts and figures of how ugly the African Economy is which is a big tragedy for those of us that chose to believe outsiders telling us about ourselves in details. With all the oil, gold, platinum and diamond mined in Africa and carted away, how has it profit the 98% of Africans? I here some Africans countries and Nigeria are on quest and expedition for new site of crude oil discovery, to me these effort is like the reopening of another fresh death mine, and unguarded nuclear project site that could pave way for another round of killings of our unborn African children and leaders of tomorrow. The world is evolving in it past to abolish the trade of oil business and the best we could do is to pick up on the same project that has brought many home more pain than gain nor fame.

I am not here to convince anyone that our colonial masters were the genesis of our problem but here to assert and posit it the other way round, our Colonial masters was our Asset and wealth for speedy development as it is obvious that the later African countries who secured independence of late are doing alot better than the countries who secured their independence earlier and a big example is South Africa as these Colonial masters left alot in terms of social infrastructure and evidence of national wealth behind. For Nigeria and her likes of African countries, the Colonial masters left us with vast wealth and expensive robes but we see to have thrown it all away earlier and sooner than we had all kicked off from Independence in the 50s and 60s.

For those who have blamed the military for truncating the African Democracy at some point in time, As pungent, debasing, abashing and acrid it may seems, I want to use this seemingly soiling avenue and encourage Nigerians to be greatful for the effort of our past Military leaders starting with Late Gen Sanni Abacha, Odimegwu Ojukwu, Yakubu Gowon, Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida, General Muritalla Muhammed, Mohammed Buharri, Kwame Nkrumah, Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Tafawa Balewa, Sheu Shagari, Goodluck Jonathan, Ahmadu Bello, Dr Micheal Okpara etc. "may the labour of our heros past never be in vain, if not for this gallant men, nothing would be left of a country called Nigeria, even when its hard to smile thinking and looking back to the times of these great men and how they willed the power in their custody during their times in office. believe me, its not always easy to be a leader, especially when you fall out with your followers. From their success stories and failures, let the youth of today attend theirs eyes and learn.

As Africans, Lets unite and collectively invest in An African groomed kind social infrastructure, massive industrialisation, massive agricultural expedition, scientific innovation and technology, education, health, technology. Even if we cant invent the wheel, we can pact with those who have to transfer the wheel and technology. we are in an information age right now. The military is also part of the Nigerian society and community that must not be alienated nor vilified, The people brazening up to counter the effort of the demonic insurgent in the extreme North Eastern Nigeria is the Nigerian Military and not untrained nor uniformed civilians in and the effort so far has been satisfactory. If you have brothers, friends, relatives and family in the military, you will understand the depth of what am talking about here.

Written and compiled by Adewale Oladipupo
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