Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro Tomorrow Africa celebrates her independence and freedom when it marks the 44th birthday of the Continent’s freedom and liberation flagship, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), predecessor of the current African Union (AU). The Continent’s eldest family member, Ghana, turned 50 on March 6 this year while two of the Continent’s younglings, Namibia and South Africa, celebrated 17 and 13 years on March 21 and April 27 respectively. But the African liberation is not complete yet. We still have the case of Western Sahara on our plate, the coloniser, if one can call it that, being a family member of the African fraternity, Morocco. This 50th anniversary of the independence of Ghana seemed to have passed quietly in Windhoek for some reasons. In fact, the independence of the Continent has hitherto been celebrated severally in “five-star” venues with pomp, glitz and fanfare limited to only the African elite and its fellow international caste. The addictive poisoned water flowing uncontrollably, as if from a natural fountain, watering such occasions and making sure any other serious business is at best only a transient matter. Nothing of note seems to have been happening either in terms of celebrating our independence collectively on May 25, or severally on our respective national days. This is why one is awaiting the celebration of African Independence on Africa Day, the 25th of May, with excitement, especially this year when the Mother of African independence, Ghana, has turned 50. The independence of Ghana and its first president, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, were the brain and motivation behind the birth of the OAU. The other day this month the Botswana High Commissioner to Namibia, Norman Moleboge, went to see President Hifikepunye Pohamba to inform him about the intention of the African Group of Diplomatic Corps to celebrate this year’s Africa Day “in style”. One applauds the diplomats’ good intentions and well-meaning gesture, especially in raising funds for the needy. But Africa Day should become more than just a day for raising funds for the needy. It is true that the basic needs of our people must enjoy priority and should be one of the yardsticks against which to measure and value the independence of the Continent. While a lot has been achieved since independence, a lot still needs to be achieved. As long as year in and year out we repeat the act of addressing the vicious cycle of the needy through charities, we shall forever remain the Continent of beggars. Thus along with this conscious and benevolent act, Africa Day must also provide us as Africans with an opportunity to pause and seriously reflect on the pertinent question why we continue to be needy and beggars on the Continent of plenty. I am sure this is a question that many of us have been asking and continue to ask. However, until we find an answer to this question and others, marking our national days and continental days would at best remain superficial celebrations detached and meaningless to the mass of our suffering masses. Serious introspections and sustained debates on the plight of our Continent are long overdue. Not as a matter of rhetoric but with the serious resolve and vision to cast away the honeymoons of independence and freedom to give real meaning to our beings. As one civil activist in South Africa recently pointed out, for every dollar of aid coming into Africa, seven dollars go out. Is this not cause for concern rather than celebrÃÆ’Æ‘Æ‘ÃÆ”šÃ‚©? Yes, in the dictum of one of Africa’s greatest leaders of all time, Nkrumah, to first seek political kingdom, this kingdom we have achieved. But as can be seen in many of our countries around us these kingdoms have as yet to become part of our African persona. A typical case – it took the Mother of African liberation, Ghana, more than 40 years to eventually take direction. And we are not even sure that she is eventually on course. The same can be said of many of our countries that have achieved political independence. Such independence remains for the time being, and one never knows for how long, just an experiment. Until we reach a stage when our experiment becomes foolproof we cannot speak of the next kingdom of economic freedom. I think this is the proper mental frame with which we collectively need to approach the Day and all other national days severally and not the usual habitual meaningless clinging of champagne glasses that is usually the privilege of a few. I don’t want to sound pessimistic, but realistically speaking we are far from having reached the Promised Land. You may convince me that what I am seeing in most African countries today are the promised lands. However, I don’t know whether you will convince the masses of the wretched otherwise – that it is NOT YET UHURU? Our African leaders are gearing up for the AU indaba in Accra, Ghana this July. On the agenda is the political integration of Africa. One wonders whether at this stage the nominal integration of the Continent is a priority. This is especially when many of the institutions of the Continental body still have to operate effectively and bear the desired fruits. In fact, as they operate currently most of these institutions are more a liability to the Continent and in reality mere fashion houses for the African elite, and of course their fellow global travellers, unable to relieve the grinding poverty the Continent’s inhabitants are caged in. The African Parliament, you name them, are meaningless to the majority of the African people and one does not know at what stage they will become meaningful. For now this institution and many others remain but only elite clubs. Thus one wonders why we still spend more resources and energy on the dream of African political integration if the initial results from institutions, that are supposed to lay the foundation for this integration, seem stagnated at worst and at best only outlets for the imaginations of the African elite. One also wonders why such an important initiative such as the integration of the Continent remains confined to the ruling African elite and is not open to public debate, at least in some countries like the Land of the Brave?