Prof. Jean Emmanuel Pondi
Prof. Jean Emmanuel Pondi has told 255 graduating students of the Pan-African Institute for Development-West Africa (PAID-WA) that the perception of Africans and the world, about Africa should be modified, to foster economic growth and social economic development.
The professor was speaking in an academic discourse during the 46th graduation ceremony of PAID-WAin Buea recently.
“Green pastures are an illusion,” said Pondi, further cautioning the graduates to make green pastures back at home in Africa.
In his Pan-Africanist discourse which was in line with the theme of the graduation ceremony, “Making higher education relevant for Africa’s development in the 21st Century”, Prof. Pondi noted that Pan-Africanism, which is more than 160 years old, has faced problems year in, year out,in a drive to bring the Africans together.
He noted that intellectuals don’t bring convincing arguments ontopics relevant to Africanism. On the issue of conflicts, Pondi regretted that conflicts spread between borders in Africa, whereas economic growth and other positives aspects do not easily spread as conflicts do.
He said the strengths of conflicts are an indication that most parts of the continent are in crisis, notingthat today there are about seven major conflicts in Africa.
Additionally, Pondi regretted that news on Africa only focuses oncoup d’états, wars, famine, and other negative things “because there is selection of news to be broadcast about Africa.”
On conflicts in the continent, the professor said although the number of conflicts has reduced, impactand intensityhave increased.
According to Prof. Pondi, today 80percentof the casualtiesare civilians and only 20 percent are military personnel; a majorityamong civilian casualties are women and children, which was not the case before because violent conflicts are on the rise.
On the kinds of insurgency in Africa, Pondi said they have nothing to do with African life and values.
“Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, Boko Haram, al-Shabab and others are not who we are, they are not Muslimsbecause 80 percent of the people they kill are Muslims, they break every rule of the Quran, wait for the holiest month to kill because they want to re-draw the map of Africa which only exists in their minds. African-Islam is communal,” Pondi said
On the on-going talk about riches and potentials of Africa, Pondi said they are true, but at the same timemisleading.
“We don’t eat gold, diamond and the others. The riches are not distributed in an equitable way. That is why people fight,” he said, adding that Africa must be in a position to transform its resources and be able to make it useful for not a few but the entire population.
