BY KENNETH DUMBURA
If we’re lying to ourselves that we are free whilst the opposite is true, we’ll never be liberated. Africa is not free: neo-colonialism, neo-apartheid, neo-liberalism and imperialism do not translate into freedom.
That examination starts with the freedom we claim – are we free or dom(dumb)?
One who is on denial of his/her material condition can’t be helped or help himself/herself. Harriet Tubman: “I freed a thousand slaves. I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves.”
What does ‘freedom’ really mean?
In Africa and Zimbabwe in particular, only black political elites are free. Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger governments are the governments that are in the correct path to real freedom.
Black political elite (imperialist agents) are just donkeys carrying loads of money getting it from the spoils of neo-colonialism, neo-apartheid, neo-liberalism and imperialism for betraying our liberation struggle against colonialism, neo-colonialism, apartheid, neo-apartheid, liberalism, neo-liberalism and imperialism. A donkey carrying loads of money is still a donkey. Not even a rank can surpass a great liberated mind. A puppet ruler with an empty head is no different to a clown.
While freedom is a beautiful and powerful virtue to have, it becomes very dangerous when it manifests itself as a false consciousness. Freedom becomes a false consciousness when the one who perceives oneself as free is not necessarily free.
The danger of living in a false consciousness of freedom and democracy lies in the fact that the fruits of freedom do not descend upon the one who perceives oneself as free. The result is perpetual frustration.
The concept of freedom can be illustrated in two levels: freedom-from and freed-to.
Freedom-from relates to freedom from having certain things done against you. For example, freedom from racial discrimination. Essentially, this is the freedom black Africans enjoy but to a limited extent. I am saying to a limited extent because black Africans are still suffering from racial discrimination all over the world. During Covid-19, we have seen how black Africans were ill-treated in Europe and in China. We have seen how black Africans were ill-treated at the beginning of Russia-Ukraine conflict by countries like Poland even African imperialist puppet rulers got a share of that ill-treatment.
We have seen during the funeral of Commander-In-Chief of colonial looting queen Elizabeth Il, where African imperialist puppet rulers were packed in a bus like school pupils.
Freedom-to, refers to one’s capacity, given the proper conditions, to pursue one’s goals through rational choices. Given the triple challenges (inequality, unemployment and dehumanising poverty) black Africans are still synonymous with these triple challenges.
However, given the emerging so-called black middle class in Zimbabwe, this would be a too general to take. The fact is, on economic class basis, blacks are no longer a general homogenous group. This so-called black middle class is living on debt and corruption proceeds which makes them a fake middle class.
In Zimbabwe whites are still fighting to maintain white supremacy in controlling the economy and politics through proxies. Blacks are divided, some fight for inclusion, others want redress but none fights for black power. Black Africans are just free from political domination, but not to realise personal ambitions, secure basic needs and rejoice in life’s meaningful pleasures.
The emerging so-called black middle class largely owes its position to high bureaucratic positions in government, as well as politically facilitated business deals.The very same whites and political elites are colluding in fixing the Zimbabwe’s currency. The facilitated business deals are largely under the umbrella of black economic empowerment which was created by politicians to benefit friends and kith.
There’s also a class character to freedom. In the history of Zimbabwe, there is also a race element in freedom. Race possesses psychological characteristics almost as fixed as its physical characteristics. Considering that whites as a collective are economically powerful, they remain freer in the post-1980 political establishment. Whites are more free than most blacks who fought against colonialism and imperialism.
Black rulers sold their souls and our birthright and land to the devil.
Not yet Uhuru!🥷🏿
