Miracle, a source of African Retardiness and  laziness

 

Some Africans  believe that luck and miracles are what one should rely on for one’s success or eventual break out from the shackles of poverty. Many wait for miracles and luck to occur; so, they sit down and wait, and many perish in this waiting list as miracles and luck often never occur.

Children are trained to pick up coins and notes from streets; those, who pick up huge amounts, are considered very lucky. They grow up with this pick-up mentality to the extent that some dream of being lucky one day to pick up a huge amount that will finally terminate their poverty. Thus, whenever they walk on streets they look out carefully with searching eyes if there will be lying a huge amount in the streets. They will keep dreaming of picking up a huge amount  - a miracle indeed, because how can one dream of picking up a huge amount in an area where every one else just dreams exactly as one does?

They believe in miracles not calculated procedures and causes to get the effects. Thus, myths and miracle worships are easily grasped and consumed by Africans. If one wants to pass an exam, one does a myth; if one wants to get rich, one does a myth; if one wants to get pregnant, one does a myth; and if one wants a job or position, one does a myth. Believe in miracle, and you are cured; believe in miracle, and you are rich; believe in miracle, and you are pregnant; and believe in miracle, and you get a position. It is a miracle that has never occurred, and I am sure it will never occur; and even if it does occur, we will not enjoy it, because as we rush to collect the gushing out oil, a neighbor, who hates to see a miracle, will set the thing ablaze, or lightening may strike, and many of us will get perished; and those who may escape the burn will catch the Dutch Disease. They will be poorer than before, because they will not learn to cultivate the miracle (if any).

Waiting for miracle and luck is a sign of laziness and escapism. It is a simple way of escaping responsibilities and avoiding to face the realities. We do not like to take pain in facing the reality and formulating the solutions for it. Training and schooling, which are calculated procedures and causes, are too long for Africans, and moreover they do not bring about miracles. Africans can only sacrifice for and invest (or speculate )in beliefs. Training and schooling are not beliefs; while miracles and lucks are. People can only sacrifice for a belief. Thus, an African can be ready to take all his accumulated savings, sell his houses and lands or mortgage the innocent souls to buy miracles and myths including, of course, the entries to the Babylon, the Fortress Europe and the Lands of Opportunities, the USA. If one member of the family gets the so-called miracle, the rest depend on him for the rest of their livelihoods. The rest will almost do nothing for their selves, because they expect the miracle member to take care of everything miraculously  - a miracle indeed, when the miracle member himself depends on miracles to survive by sending home hard earned money to buy additional myths and miracles and ask the rest to do some investments with the balance money, so that those investments will see him one day coming home to join the party. The rest will not disobey the order to buy additional myths and miracles, because everybody believes in myths and miracles, not carrying out that task is considered a major violation of African Belief, a major sin no body wants to commit. But money for investments will in many cases remain a miracle to be. Investment means following calculated procedures and causes and taking calculated risk, then wait for some business cycle, which can take two to three years, or inventory cycle that can take nine to ten years, or a trend that can span from twenty to forty years; too long for Africans to wait. We, in Africa, believe only in miracles; that is, the money should be invested today harvested today and enjoyed today. This is why we do not plan our investments for business cycle much more inventory or trend, and thus the money for investments will remain a miracle to be. On the contrary, we can wait for a miracle even if it is going to happen after the Doomsday. This is how a belief in miracle and myth makes a difference; if you believe in a miracle, you will not be bothered about what happens to you today, because you are always assured that by the end of the day a miracle will occur and all your sufferings will end.

This belief has rendered us lazy and reluctant to change. Change is abhorred in Africa, it is a violation of African Belief to attempt a change. Every condition is miracle and myth and should be maintained until another miracle or myth takes place – a miracle indeed; because another miracle can only be considered if the existing one (if any) is outmoded. So, we keep dreaming and waiting longer than the trend.

I think, Africans should read the reality carefully and then face it. We should throw away the myths and miracles and work with the facts and realities; in that way we will not be lazy, we will endeavor to explain everything rationally, we will achieve our goals with calculated risks.

 

Bukhari Sillah

Kiel Deutschland