23 Oct 2017

Africa is imbued with the potential to turn its fortunes around.

 At the core of the countless things that it could do to achieve such a feat, lays a resolve to start doing only those things that were beneficial to the continent.

In an impassioned address characteristic of the many speeches he has delivered in many forums in different parts of the globe, the much-acclaimed director and CEO of the Kenya School of Law, Professor Patrick Lumumba made reference to the 1976 independence day speech by Botswana’s founding president, Sir Seretse Khama in which he implored the nation to start doing things that would benefit them.

In the speech delivered during a career elevation seminar held in Gaborone on October 20, Prof. Lumumba indicated how relevant and necessary those words were even today, adding that in saying them Sir Seretse was nudging his people towards understanding the importance of doing only those which served their best interests.

He said it was more incumbent now than ever for African leaders to deal with the unnecessary wars that riddled the continent, and to channel the energy of their countries’ young men into things beneficial to their respective countries.

“I am aware that there is still unnecessary conflict in Africa. I do not understand why the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo are consuming themselves in an unnecessary war which nobody understands. 

I do not understand why the people of Central African Republic are fighting. I do not understand why the people of South Sudan are fighting,” he said, highlighting how engaging in non-beneficial activities blinded Africa from seeing the need to engage in that which could contribute to its growth.

Speaking of the armed conflicts, he said he did not understand why some African countries had entered into the arena of normalising the abnormal and giving premium to the absurd.

Prof. Lumumba also said it was crucial for Africans to begin measuring themselves according to their own standards, adding that it was suicidal to allow others to impose their own standards on the continent.

“By telling our own story I am not in any way suggesting for any moment that we must embrace mediocrity,” said Prof. Lumumba.

He sang praises of the many Africans that had and were continuing to prove their capability to achieve great things in different fields the world over.

He, nonetheless, decried how Africa continued to sell itself short despite its vast potential, demonstrating with Botswana how notwithstanding the country being one of the better African countries in terms of economic performance, the country’s GDP remained about 20 times smaller than that of South Korea, despite the latter having at some point being embroiled in war.

He said it was disheartening that 50 years, on average, after independence, many African countries continued to punch below their political and economic weight, and still allowed themselves to be confused by other powers.

“But 50 years after independence, when we continue to give slavery and colonialism as a reason for our failure, we are not being fair to ourselves. We have had the opportunity to make things right, and there is evidence elsewhere in the world that those who are our independence age mates have realised their potential, the difficulties notwithstanding,” he said.

Prof. Lumumba said for professionals to realise some career elevation or advancement, personal conquest was of utmost importance, connoting that unless the mind was liberated, there was no way one’s true potential could be realised.

“Self-conquest is the beginning of self-realisation and the beginning of success,” he said.

The respected legal guru also wondered why Batswana were complaining of lack of job prospects when they could be taking advantage of the many opportunities available to them.

“Who said you must live from pay check to pay check? Who said that you must be employed? Go out there and create employment; don’t be insular; don’t think that Botswana is the only place where you can work,” he said, encouraging them to rather to go out and seek opportunities in other countries.

Urging members of his audience to not limit their capabilities, he admonished them that instead of thinking outside the box, they should begin to think without reference to the box.

“It used to be said that you hit the iron when it is hot. I’m saying no, don’t wait for the iron to be hot, hit the iron so that it becomes hot,” he stated, opining how critical it was for professionals to seize opportunities as and when they presented themselves.

Speaking earlier on the topic 'Survive and Thrive,' Institute of Development Management (IDM) regional director, Mr Richard Malikongwa said while Botswana was doing relatively well, it was not necessarily the best in nurturing talent and leveraging on it to reach even greater heights.

He said it was important for Batswana at individual level to endeavour to leave an indelible mark in their country as they each carried the potential to make a huge difference.

He said while Botswana had seen great improvements in key areas such as life expectancy, adult literacy rate, rural access to electricity and ease of doing business, a lot more could be achieved.

Mr Malikongwa encouraged the country to borrow a leaf from game changers such as Israel and Rwanda, who despite being basically desert and emerging from warfare respectively, managed to successfully turn their fortunes around to become the powerhouses that they were today.

The career elevation seminar, which drew the interest of many, was thus attended by people from diverse backgrounds. ENDS