Stan

A Chinese man and an African met in Europe. Chinese: My name is Ki Pin African: Nice to meet you. I'm John Emmanuel Samwel. Chinese: So, you're not African? African: No. I am proudly African. Chinese: Yet your name is John Emmanuel Samwel? African: Yes. It's the name my parents gave me. The Chinese man smiled. Chinese: Interesting. Even something as simple as names—something that requires no technology, no factories, no engineering—you still import. We never realized Africa was such a large market for foreign names. Perhaps we should start manufacturing names too. After all, if they're "Made in China," they'll probably be cheaper than the European ones. The African laughed. African: You have quite a sense of humor. What brings you here? Chinese: I'm studying neuroscience, with a specialization in robotics. I also lecture on Chinese civilization at the University of London. And you? African: I'm a doctoral researcher. Chinese: In what field? African: English Literature. I specialize in William Shakespeare. The Chinese looked puzzled. Chinese: Shakespeare? The man has been dead for centuries. African: I study his writings and analyze his literary works. Chinese: You're not a forensic scientist, so why spend your life analyzing the thoughts of a man who died hundreds of years ago? Instead of solving today's African problems, you're dedicating your intellect to explaining yesterday's European ideas. The African smiled awkwardly. African: Well... I actually came to invite you to our worship service. Chinese: Wonderful! I've attended Christian, Muslim and Buddhist services out of curiosity, but never an African one. This should be fascinating. Where is it? African: At the International Church of the Last Soldiers of Jesus. Chinese: Wait... you're inviting me to a church? African: Yes. Our founder is the great American prophet Weiss White—a man of extraordinary miracles. The Chinese paused. Chinese: You don't even have your own prophets? Your names are foreign. Your academic heroes are foreign. Your religious leaders are foreign. He shook his head. Chinese: I'm sorry, my friend. I don't think I'll make it today. As he walked away, he glanced back at the African's clothing. Chinese: That's a beautiful outfit. African: Thank you. It's African traditional fabric. The Chinese quietly whispered to himself as he walked away: "Poor man. He doesn't even know that the cloth he proudly calls African was manufactured in one of our factories." Moral Lesson: The greatest form of dependence is not economic—it is intellectual and cultural. A people who abandon their own names, celebrate other people's heroes while forgetting their own, consume other people's knowledge without creating their own, and wear imported products while believing they are symbols of local pride will always struggle to define their own future. Africa's greatest wealth has never been beneath its soil. It has always been within its people—their ideas, their identity, their innovation, and their confidence to build for themselves. Until Africa produces what it proudly consumes, tells its own stories, invests in its own knowledge, and believes in its own potential, true independence will remain unfinished. @~Masanza Muntu