‘Money is just an expression of activities’

By Bernard Nzombe Muchemwa

From Magufuli and his zealousness to Zimbabwe’s continuous indulgence in folly. Chiyangwa takes the hot seat at the Football Association amid national nervousness, a chronic disease which has gripped the Nation for a very long time. A nation which is impatient with itself.

A new currency for Zimbabwe to augment the Green Buck, the Yuan. Some in their naivety believe the Chinese currency is a magic wand to have the same impact as its economy in the Global economic conundrum.

No, a currency is just a medium of exchange which has a negligible bearing on a nation’s economic well being. It is the activities which galvanize an economy. How many times we step out of our doors to go out and engage in meaningful activities to bring food to our family’ s tables . How do we conduct ourselves out there.

Closer to home, the Munhumutapa empire under Mutapa, one of a few African emperors equated to Alexander the Great thrived and reached its zenith pinning its activities with barter. Mega public projects were embarked on and we have a magnificent relic to show off, the Zimbabwe Ruins, courtesy of activities in ancient gold mines, iron ore smelting, ivory trade, etc.

It is activities stupid. I have never come across any scholarly passage hailing a currency for bringing Europe where it is now nor North America. It was activities, albeit some of them obnoxious like the disheartening human cargo, but the bottom line is there was work.

Zimbabwe needs work and the first step is to unfetter the citizenry at grassroots
The industrial Revolutionary was a grassroots activity. China is a great activity today because of the masses.

Money is just an expression of activities.

I feel Mogofuli the new Tanzanian boss needs to translate his zealousness into policy reform which builds strong institutions to harness his zeal and enforce his commendable point.vIf he does not build up these basic tenets and relies on raids and sporadic ad hoc surprise visits and directives, soon he will get tired and the corrupt will devise new tactics to further impoverish his people.

Corruption is a scourge and it has done more damage than colonialism

Colonialism laid the eggs of poverty in Africa and corruption, cronyism and self aggrandizement hatched the eggs and Africa is tottering on the brink of being an object of scorn, and an endless beggar surviving on other people ‘s pretentious benevolence.

Africa lies at the gate of the temple called the Beautiful Gate and desperately needs a Peter and a John who will not give her gold and silver but will exhort her to rise and walk which she exactly needs not paid mercenaries but selfless men and women who are driven by collective pride and not cowardly and dastardly acts of individual pride which is full of deceit and a horrible caricature which aids to humiliate a Great People who have borne the brunt of all manner of stereotypes.

Hand in Cap when we are supposed to be Kings. All Kings come from Africa and let’s live our Kingly heritage by doing the right thing. Ditch individual pride and embrace collective pride. Please forgive me am not a scholar in anyway but this is just a cursory look at things in a different way.

I wish the Mother Land a Great Year too. No doubt the African is immensely blessed, but the blessings need holistic activation.

The writer Bernard Nzombe Muchemwa is a social commentator based in Australia, Sydney