The remarks were made on Sunday, by Rwanda Senate President Bernard Makuza as he officially opened the second National Congress of the Pan African Movement Rwanda themed as “Making Pan African Movement relevant to the people of Rwanda and Africa”.
Makuza said it was high time Africans changed the mindsets and emancipate themselves from the colonial thinking and thinking they can’t achieve big things on their own.
As an example, Makuza reminded the participants of the viral video by the US Television CNN released in February this year showing the slave trade as in Libya where one African was being sold between US$300 and 800 to work as slaves and this was done by their fellow Africans.
Besides, the recent numbers by the International Organization for Migration indicate that from 2014 to July 2018, 168000 Africans had died in the Mediterranean Sea on their way to Europe to seek a better life.
Bernard Makuza said, “It is very much sad for us all to see our fellow Africans being sold as mere merchandise, while others are made to wander on the sea and most of them finally lose their lives.”
Makuza said that mindsets that Africa should be dictated what to do by somebody else should change.
“The time we wasted is enough and will never get back to us but we can predict own future starting by changing the mindsets by preserving our self-esteem, stop always waiting for donors and know our worth,” Makuza noted.
“This will be possible only we change mindsets and know that Africa should not slow in its journey for transformation. We should be aware that the hands that kept us lagging behind are still present.”
Senator Tito Rutaremara said that Africans should understand that their brains work like those of other people from elsewhere in the world.
Rutaremara gave China as an ample example of a country that is developing fast while its elite and intellectuals don’t know foreign languages like English and French which are believed by many Africans to be the elite’s languages.
He said: “Having an “Africa first” mind is fighting for yourself because in the coming 15 or 20 years, Africa will be lagging behind if mindsets are not changed. Others will be running on the way to settle on Mars Planet whereas we will be fighting to settle in Sahara Desert while we have the same brains as theirs.”
One of the youths that particaipated in the second Pan African Movement Rwanda congress, Clememce Mbabazi urged fellow youth to valorize the African culture and customs if they wish to have the African continent with a firm foundation.
“We, youth don’t give much value to the African culture. You will find us most interested in fashions, movies, music from outside Africa while we even don’t know our history. We don’t know a lot on African traditions. The first change needed is to value our cultures,”explained Clemence Mbabazi.
The African Union member countries have set the agenda 2063 which aspires to see Africa self-reliant in all its citizens’ aspects of life.
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