Dear Mr. Kanteh,
I saw your well-written piece on what you called Panafrican Marxists in
which you also made reference to my interview with the Independent
Newspaper. I would have reacted earlier but a suddenly increased
workload and intensified power outages made it impossible. Though I
still stand by my declared trust and confidence in SOS Sarjor Jallow's
sincerity and personal integrity, I will not dwell too much on that
matter in this posting. I will instead concentrate on your rabid
condemnation of Marxism in general and the legacy of the African Left in
particular. As mentioned in an earlier posting, I had always wanted to
engage you on what I suspect as your allergy to all forms of marxian
thought, not because of its relevance, but because it is my belief that
it will help us in exploring and untying the knotty riddles of the
terrible African condition I will also desist from dwelling too much
on your evaluation of Nkrumah and Nyerere who you chose as your
case-examples, because Mr. Halifa Sallah is already engaging you on that
one and there is therefore no need for duplicity, and because, seen from
your viewpoint, your choice of examples, Nkrumah and Nyerere, when you
have the likes of Sekou Touray and Mengistu, could have obviously been
improved upon to illuminate the strength of conclusions as strong as
yours. This made me to believe that your choice of examples was more per
chance than one of inclinations strong enough to warrant such a polemic.
In other words, I take it they were more of passing references than the
result of serious case studies. What I mean is that the excesses of the
Red Terror of the Ethiopian "Revolution" and the bloody repression of
the "counter-revolutionary" plots in Guinea could have helped to
illuminate your points more emphatically. This, simply because what
obtained in Ghana and Tanzania was far less horrendous than the bloody
upheavals in Guinea and Ethiopia. From the way I see it, your general
and outright denunciation of everything that the African Left stands for
is my more immediate cause for concern. I hope we will be able to
conduct this debate successfully with open and free mind and without too
much passion. For the sake of clarity I suggest that we use the word
"Pan -African Marxist" or " African Leftist" to mean all those African
individuals, societies, governments, parties and others who by self
ascription consider themselves opposed to the Capitalist and imperialist
powers and systems.
But before going any further Mr. Kanteh, please allow me to make a
brief recapitulation of the recent past. This, inorder to stage a
platform for the development of my position. We all know that by the end
of the second world war, European mission and colonial schools were busy
creating a new generation of Africans who were to be the
apprentice-class of the the colonial establishment in most African
countries. Though some of these were descendants of the traditional
ruling elite, many hailed from impoverished communities of serfs,
peasants and other working people of societies that were still trying to
come to terms with the jarring spasm of the Afro-European encounter.
Africa has perhaps the most heterogeneous collection of human
communities, but one thing that all African societies had in common was
the torments, some even say the trauma, of the defeat in the hands of
European colonialism. Aspects of western culture that made the west
powerful and superior had to be identified and assimilated so as to put
a quick end to the enormous inequality of the Afro-European
relationship. Societies with wholly different political traditions,
ranging from completely stateless ones to those of elaborately
centralised types, were forced into entities that together embarked upon
this venture of selective assimilation in a new and alien political
environment. The assignment of leading this political adventure
naturally fell on the shoulders of none other than the new class of
Africans being produced by the colonial school system.
Take note, my Brother, that underlying this historical scenario I have
painted are some important factors that continue to play tremendous
influence on today's African Condition. First, that the communities that
embarked upon this political venture of selective assimilation went into
it believing it was only a temporary and adhoc arrangement. Many had
thought that after the accomplishment of the "mission", in the not too
distant future, they would be able to step back into their respective
ethnic or national shells, only this time more "modern" and "powerful".
No wonder, now decades after the start of this venture and after the
departing European colonialists, Africans everywhere feel disillusioned
with the results and their post-colonial states look like things that
are falling apart.
Secondly Mr. Kanteh, I think you will agree with me that different
political traditions must necessarily have different political values as
well as recommended criteria and procedures of appointment to any
leading political office. I believe that in the eyes of the average
African, the mandate that was given to the western-trained governing
elite was only of a limited nature; one meant solely for the said
selective assimilation and not the type accorded to kings, emperors or
other traditional leaders. Close to home, the mandate given to Dawda
Jawara (being of low-caste origin and muslim-turned-christian and all
what not), would not have been accorded to him if it were not for his
western education and the said mission of selective assimilation. The
same goes for Senghore in neighbouring Senegal. This limited mandate of
Africa's political ruling classes has gone further in complicating the
already questioned legitimacy of both the colonial and post-colonial
African state.
Mr. Kanteh, I feel we should bear this in mind when we evaluate the
performance of the post-colonial state, if we want to grasp the
dynamics of the present precarious African Condition and as we chart out
a way forward to a better future. In fact it is this very westernised
Africans that were everywhere ready to take over from the departing
European colonialists.
Given the western nature of the colonial oppression that reigned over
most of Africa under a good part of the last century I think it is still
easy to understand why a great number of post-colonial African states
opted for exploring and experimenting with models different, or even
opposed, to those of the former colonial masters. In fact the
pre-independence anti-colonial platform could hardly be based on
anything other than the total overhaul of the colonial political system.
Remember, the states themselves were creations of the West designed
according to their respective self-interest. The states attained
independent nationhood and came to birth at extraordinary times with the
world caught in a so-called Cold War. A global conflict between two
world powers that for decades permeated every aspect of human affairs.
Basing the anti-colonial struggle on a footing that was anti-capitalist
or joining the Easter European bloc of countries in their contest with
the colonial West became almost automatic. The temptation to go for the
so-called "non-capitalist path to development" became endemic to the
African body-politic. Generations of anti-imperialist and marxists were
being created in the continent's schools, universities, army units and
among fighters of Africa's then sprawling guerilla wars.
The African socialist tradition can be classified under three broad
categories: revolutionary states that emerged out of the anti-colonial
struggle; military coups that stumbled into socialism, and armed
national liberation struggles that almost inevitably adopted marxism as
their official ideologies. Today, looking back at the balance sheet of
post-colonial African states, I can agree with you that Africa's
polities of the Left have hardly performed better than those that
pursued the inherited capitalist models of the former colonial matters.
This is perhaps best highlighted by the the respective performances of
the two Congos. While Mobutus's Congo pursued an unrestrained capitalist
path to development, the Party Of Labour Congo Brazzaville steered the
country towards a strictly marxist course. Now decades after, I can
safely say that as far as ordinary citizens of both countries are
concerned, neither model proved to be of any use. This goes to show that
the great failures of the post-colonial African state cuts across both
the capitalist-socialist dichotomy and the East-West divide. This is not
because the questions of these contentions( private vs collective
ownership, planned or market-oriented economies) are not relevant
questions. No, it i because there is something in the African Condition,
embedded somewhere in Africa's terrible historical experience, that
defies all that is sane and rational in modern political affairs. The
great challenge for all Africanists has been how to identify what these
specificities are. Does the problem lie in the natural inabilities of
the negroid races? Is it lying under the make-up of African cultures,
climate, or what?
Mr. Kanteh, I am of the strong opinion that the problem lies nowhere
other than in the two factors I have already mentioned, namely: the
adhoc and temporary "license" of the Africa state and "limited mandate"
of the governing classes. Marxism, capitalism, or whatever you called it
had little to do with this. African states, all of them, no matter what
advertised model they have claimed for themselves, have failed miserably
in moving their respective peoples forward towards meaningful
development. In fact what we have been experiencing since the middle of
the eighties is that the states have come to the end of this limited
warranty and they are now inevitably falling apart. All over the
continent, from Somalia to the Congos, Liberia to Angola, Sierra Leone
to Eritrea, civil unrest, mass discontentment, endless wars, and the
disintegration of nations seem to be order of the day. Mr. Kanteh this
is why I tend to agree with Mr. Sallah that the argument over
cold-warrior ideologies, is not only irrelevant but even superfluous.
Those ideologies are meant for sane and "normal" societies. They mean
little for societies that are still unable to find their bearings in the
brave new globalized world in the making.
It is after we are able to sort out things properly that we will be
forced again to look at the choices of paths available for Africa's
development. The challenge for choosing a path, will not however run
away, they will be still around steering at us right in the face. Should
we retreat back into our tatched huts and build hermetic economies
completely shielded from the rest? Shall we copy plans of building mass
consumer societies that cultivate and whip up common greed to be able to
fuel the motor of development? Where will we, in that case, get the
capital for the industrilisation that such a path will need? Is it going
to be a private-sector led effort? In that case who will mobilize and
synchronise the efforts of such small and fragmented private-sector
capital? Given the limited availability of domestic capital how will we
best attract foreign capital while ensuring our own hierarchy of
priorities?
I for one, Mr. Kanteh, fit squarely into what you call "Pan-african
Marxists", and inspite of all, I remain unrepentant. I agree, so much
has been said and done in name of marxism, but I am still to see
anything in the failed socialstic experimentations of Eastern Europe or
Africa that has proven wrong any of the basic tenets of marxist thought.
I still find historical and dialectical materialism as valuable
instruments in grasping social truth. I am familiar with the reasoning
of the gurus of modern capitalist thought from Hayek to the rest. But I
still believe that they are yet to offer any viable prescriptive system
of ideas that gives any analytical perspective on Africa's current
difficulties and a vision of hope for the future.
My brother I will rest my case here until I hear from you again. If the
logic of this rejoinder seem disjointed to you or anyone, please excuse.
The power outage we have been experiencing down here have just been too
much. I have had to sit on up to nine sessions just to complete it.
Regards
Ousman Manjang
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