OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE OLD - by Jefferson Nnadiekwe

As Africans living in the 21st century, we often believe that we are different from our ancestors. This difference includes thought process and ideologies. We like to think that as modern people in a modern era, our ideologies have changed and have become superior. While this may seem accurate, taking into consideration the way we speak, dress and interact with ourselves. We also need to examine the foundation from which our thoughts spring from. As strange as it may sound, modern Africans and their ancestors, have a lot of similarities in the way they think. You may want to disagree, but let's consider two significant similarities. The first based on spirituality or religion. Africans from both ancient and modern periods believe that all solution to life's problems, lies in the hands of a spiritual being(s). For our ancestors, these beings were the gods of the land. For us, it is the almighty God. It is a common misconception that the advent of Christianity caused Africans to put all hopes for solutions to problems on God. It is infact, the nature of an African since the old days. Africans have always been strong subscribers to Pre-determinism. The notion that the fate of man lies solely in the hands of the gods. This believe causes our passiveness. Since our fate isn't up to us, a lot of us just react to things, rather than cause them to happen. It is common to see an African wait for a divine intervention, even when he has been provided with the capacity to handle a situation. For example, we wait for a divine intervention in the progress and development of our society, even if we have the ability to be innovative with our thoughts. Another similarity between us and those before, is our approach to the issue of governance and civil responsibility. Both governance and civil responsibility, are solely rested on the shoulders of those in government positions or royalty, as the case may be. We shift all forms of accountability to the ruling class, and we expect them to take care of each and our every need. This particular thought process seems heightened in modern times. Africans tend to heap the entire blame for a failing society on their leaders. While I understand that leaders are responsible for their people and community, we must not neglect our own civic duty. Africans do not just act like followers under a leader, but like children under parents. Children who cannot fend for themselves, requiring constant supervision. This has been the case, whether we are refer to the person in authority as; 'Igwe' or 'Mr President'. We like to believe in the total evolution of human beings across generations. We think that we have evolved to a more sophisticated generation, who have shed old ideologies and practices. True, we have evolved, certain influences have taken effect on us. However, I believe that this evolution doesn't actually occur at the foundational level. We just have just found a modern way of acting, based off the same foundation

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