Zimbabwe: Education System Must Mould Patriotic Youth

Source from:  The Herald (Harare) 22 August 2008 08/25/2008

MANY nations, especially those in the developing world, are tempted to believe that whatever comes from the Western Press is factual representation of reality. Western hegemony has taken root because of the fatalistic attitude that has seen the African's readiness to accept the second class citizen tag to the world. For Zimbabwe, reflecting on this wholesale acceptance of a world defined by the West has more significance now than ever before within the context of the ongoing dialogue between the country's main political parties and also in light of the fact that we were recently commemorating Heroes' Day. The Second World War ended in 1945, and up to today the British, the Americans and their allies in that war remember and passionately celebrate their victory. Zimbabwe attained its independence in 1980 and a mere 28 years later the importance of that achievement is fading from the country's collective memory. And even in the face of this we like to strut around as if we are progressive and dynamic! The British also pride themselves on how progressive they are, but many decades later they still cherish their accomplishments in World War II while the Americans will speak of pride about Vietnam even though we all know they were humiliated in the jungles of that country. They celebrate their heroes and draw inspiration from them as a nation. What are we doing as Africans to show that we have an active memory? Right now, many do not subscribe to the fact that Zimbabweans and Africans can achieve anything else without the assistance of a white outsider and this is precisely what MDC leader Arthur Mutambara was talking about the other day. He told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that they viewed Africans as stupid and incapable of doing anything meaningful without the assistance of Westerners. Why then should we reinforce this belief by the collective white psyche by swallowing hook, line and sinker their perceptions of Africa and by failing to realise the fecundity of our own achievements such as the attainment of independence? The results of long-term brainwashing, which has created these skewed perceptions, cannot be underestimated. Like Thompson in Charles Mungoshi's Coming of The Dry Season, even the most uneducated whites, who never passed today's Grade Two, would require an Ordinary Level African graduate to pick his tobacco crop and do all sorts of menial manual labour just to deflate the ego of an African. The question we Africans should ask is: what can we do to regain our confidence and self-belief? Perhaps we can take a cue from the manner in which the West has advanced its economic, political and cultural causes across the world. Of course, the world knows that they have relied on an inordinate amount of sheer brute force, but there are other ways they have imposed their will and attained the self-confidence that they have. Essentially, they have managed to hide their iron fists in gloves of velvet. Africa desperately needs programmes like the National Youth Service to inculcate a sense of belonging to our society, country and region. It might not be called "Border Gezi" or National Youth Service in America, but what cannot be denied by anyone is that the education curriculum from kindergarten is heavily infused with the same things that are being taught at our own camps here in Zimbabwe. Why not also infuse our National Youth Service syllabus in our curriculum? We have never asked ourselves why American movies rarely fail to show the image of the United States flag fluttering innocently in the background regardless of the story line. In fact, in our own movies and music videos we go out of our way to give the impression that they were shot in America as if we are not proud of our own country. Subconsciously people are promoting that vague thing that is often referred to as the American Dream rather than promoting our own interests. Our cultural industry is merely reinforcing Joseph Conrad's notion that Africa is a Dark Continent full of savages. The origins of all this self-denial and self-flagellation lie in our subjugation in colonial times. We have become predictable because of our lack of desire to prioritise development of such issues. Why is it that the Government, through its various ministries, has failed to adequately structure the education system so that it produces a Zimbabwean who not only is intellectually sound, but also knows the value of protecting and promoting the national interest? The benefits of a National Youth Service programme are not political but are, in fact, a philanthropic investment that will secure the future of this country. Apart from creating oneness, the programme promotes a sense of belonging, love for one another and will see a brother becomes his brother's keeper. With such programmes, every citizen will think of what he will do for the country and not what the country will do for him. It will give the country the firm foundation on which to define its destiny and ensure that it has cadres loyal enough to build a nation that is truly sovereign and independent. The National Youth Service is one policy that works well in both socialist and capitalist societies because, above all things, it creates a dependable citizenry. All this talk of having governments of national unity would fall away naturally because the country will already be united. We do not need to wait for Western approval to do these things. Indeed, such approval will never come because the West knows the good that will come out of this and they would rather keep Africa and the rest of the Third World subjugated. The starting point should be the development of our own continent-wide economic, political and cultural policies and if we do that, perhaps we will start to see the beauty of President Thabo Mbeki's African Renaissance. Right now, nothing is being done consistently to educate the youth and mould them into a generation that can promote the country. The solution lies with our attitude towards solving our problems. What are we doing to show our children that they are not inferior to white people and that they can go out in the world and carve a niche for themselves and their country? Our syllabuses should dispel the cheap lies that we are second class citizens and that we are inherently predisposed to do certain things in life because of our skin colour. As Chinua Achebe would say, we should trace our footsteps and find where the rain began to beat us in the face. Enditem