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Colonialism killed Africa Mr Macron!

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UNTIL last week when he launched a blistering attack on Africa, which he accused of being ‘uncivilised’, Emmanuel Macron, that young French president, had successfully managed to sell the world a dummy by pretending to be an epitome of modesty.
But as has always been the case with Western leaders, they cannot help but reveal their true colours – sooner or later.
In the blink of an eye President Macron laid bare his disdain for Africa.
At the G20 summit, President Macron was asked a question by a journalist from Ivory Coast on his thoughts on Africa’s underdevelopment to which he responded:
“The challenge of Africa, it is totally different, it is much deeper, it is civilisational today.
What are the problems in Africa?
Failed states, the complex democratic transitions, demographic transitions, which is one of the main challenges facing Africa.”
African women were not spared from the diatribe.
President Macron claimed women in some places in Africa have seven or eight children, which is ‘destabilising’ for the continent.
There is something fundamentally wrong with that line of thinking.
In the first instance is the warped and misplaced notion that Europe civilised Africa!
Africa was the most civilised society way before the advent of colonisation and as such, Mr Macron should know better.
Population growth does not in way affect development.
Here are some compelling facts:
Africa makes up 20 percent of the earth’s landmass, but only 16 percent of the planet’s human population live here.
On the other hand, Europe makes up 6,8 percent of the planet’s landmass and 10 percent of the earth’s population currently live there.
Then there is the issue of the colonial pact that Macron should know has led to France’s economic development and the so-called French-Africa’s underdevelopment.
An article on This is Africa by Siji Jabbar on January 24 2013 brings to the fore these facts.
Says Jabbar: “Just before France conceded to African demands for independence in the 1960s, it carefully organised its former colonies (CFA countries) in a system of ‘compulsory solidarity’ which consisted of obliging the 14 African states to put 65 percent of their foreign currency reserves into the French Treasury, plus another 20 percent for financial liabilities.
This means these 14 African countries only ever have access to 15 percent of their own money!
If they need more, they have to borrow their own money from the French at commercial rates!
And this has been the case since the 1960s.”
But it gets worse.
France has the first right to buy or reject any natural resources found in the land of the Francophone countries.
So even if the African countries can get better prices elsewhere, they can’t sell to anybody until France says it doesn’t need the resources.
In the award of Government contracts, French companies must be considered first; only after that can these countries look elsewhere.
It doesn’t matter if the CFA countries can obtain better value for money elsewhere.
Presidents of CFA countries that have tried to leave the CFA zone have had political and financial pressure put on them by successive French presidents.
In Zimbabwe, the issue of population growth has been at the core of development.
In 2016, Registrar General Tobaiwa Mudede told the Women’s Affairs, Gender and Community Development Parliamentary Portfolio Committee that the West was promoting dangerous birth control measures to de-populate developing countries, and advocated traditional birth control methods.
Said Mudede then:“What I am saying is that Zimbabwe needs more children.
“There has not been any meaningful population growth 10 years going back and what this means is that there is a serious problem of generation gap.
“People seem to be comfortable following birth trends of more developed countries and having only one or two children but more children are needed in this country so that the generation gap does not continue to widen.
“Instead of using modern birth control methods, people can resort to natural methods such as menstrual cycle and the withdrawal method.
“They can also use safe condoms that are well packaged and are sold in the pharmacies.”
Zimbabwean women largely use pills, injectables and implants, while men usually opt for condoms or, in some rare cases, vasectomy.
Some women have said implants cause headaches, dizziness, breast tenderness, weight gain, irregular menstruation, mood swings, depression and acne.
According to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey Report (2014), Zimbabwe’s contraceptive prevalence rate for use of modern contraceptive methods was 66,5 percent, with just 0,5 percent using traditional methods.
Thirty-three percent do not use any contraceptives.
Mudede has since co-authored a book, Genetically Modified Organisms and Population Control Drugs in Developing Countries, with Richard Hondo, in which he argues contraceptives can cause cancers.
With statistics from the last national census held in 2012 indicating the population growth rate was pegged at 1,1 percent, Zimbabwe faces the risk of under-population which makes it difficult for the nation to fully exploit its abundant natural resources.
In the book, Mudede urges people to revert to the traditional methods of contraception such as the menstrual cycle and the withdrawal methods that he said had no long-term effects on couples.
He says such methods were quick and more effective if a couple decided on having children than the modern methods of contraception.
With President Macron perpetuating lies about civilisation in Africa, the world faces the threat of another exploitation of weaker nations by countries like France.
Let those with ears listen.

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