Vultures of African colonialism. The curse of South Africa and Zimbabwe

Africa has been under the imperial system longer than it has been independent,as a result,the colonial legacy still survives. In as much as pre colonial African states offer points of similarity in terms of attainment of independence,the same can be said about the processes which culminated in the transfer of power.The former white settler colonies of Zimbabwe and South Africa offer stunning similiarities in the way the white minorities are involved in shaping the processes needed to establish these newly independent states.This suspicious involvement has not only stiffled the total economic freedom of Africans,it has also made it seem almost impossible.With Zimbabwe having been made an effective example of the results of questioning white supremacy,South Africans are only but just a border away to be true witnesses to what disaster really means,hence the leaders are not tempted to attempt the process,even legally.In other words,the former colonizers continue to define the way post independence African states ought to behave if they,re to be stable internally.

When president robert mugabe assumed office in 1980,very few had an ideas on the kind of man he was.Several white people impulsively left the newly independent Zimbabwe,bemoaning lost colonial priviledges,whilst the majority of the white population remained,calmed by the president's messege of reconcilliation.Working with the tamplet he had recieved from the Lancaster House constitution,Mugabe was hoping to ensure stabilty in the newly independent state,hence the reconciliation effort.Better still,the land question had remained part of the package negotiated for but the manner in which it was claused ,"willing buyer willing seller"never really threatened white interests,and the majority felt comfortable to stay!

In his quest to strike a deal to end apartheid for black South Africans,Nelson Mandlela extended an olive branch to the white settler colonialists and absolved them into the very fabric of the newly establishing South African society,this he called Rainbow nation.The primal objective had been reached,that is the general independence of South Africa.Yet the very process Mandela took upon to achieve liberty was just a single step in the long journey for total emancipation of South Africans.One could argue that,no one could ask for everything on the same day,Mugabe didn't ,Samora Machel did a a very huge cost,who could follow the same process.

In both cases it remains evident that the former colonizers were either involved in the act of diluting the true definition of independence or delaying the various packages of the total gains of independence.This they achieved also through the defects of our leaders and their inability to implement effective empowerment policies in time.Every time an important question has been bought with regards to the part the Western countries play in undermining the gains of the liberation struggle,certain defects are pointed towards our leaders that dilute the focus from the true enemy of the struggle ,"economic disempowerment".Nonetheless this goes without absolving the leaders themselves,but on the contrary,calls into question the very internal systems that we have in Africa which ought to achieve those checks and balances.The sad parts though is that very few institutions in Africa are operate independant of the West and the few that are available are either under equiped to do this or not effective enough against internal elements hence dependence on foreign intervention looms evertime.

Former SA president F W De Clerk and gang insured the status quo of the white minority remained unquestioned throughout the processes leading to the abolition of apartheid.Infact,this was their bargaining chip,that they be forgiven their colonially inherited crimes at the expense of the Black African,that pardon included African land.At the same time,reference to Dutch and British origins was also lost in the narrative,turning whites into natural Africans.On the Rhodesian front,the British at Lancaster House played the delaying tactic to achieve the same with Zimbabwe. Even when Mugabe and Zanu pf had the majority needed to enact any land law in parliament before the 2000,they did nothing except adopt a wait and see attitude ,only acting when the British rescinded on compensation in 1997.It took the rise of the MDC for Zanu pf to act on land,whereas a commodity that was meant to be equally distributed would be given to party supporters,in one of the largest vote buying schemes to date.Only when power was at stake did Zanu pf act on acquiring land using war veterans in an effort to steer anarchy in the state. This confusion was necessary to create enough smokescreen in the state of affairs that Zanu pf could now only use land for vote buying prosseses,effecting a warfar on the general populace which it continues to do,hence the true meaning of reform has fallen to preservation of power by any means necessary.

From the onset,it appears the independence of black South Africa has been equated to the Civil rights movement in the United States,were the struggle was a general fight for civil rights .The end of apartheid is depicted as the beginning of Utopia for Black South Africans as has been the reaction to the end of apartheid laws in America.There has been little or insuffient attempts by succeeding ANC leaders to clearly and effively walk the nation the path of definitive historical South Africa inorder to come out with a clear map of what colonisation of South Africa really implied.No outright comparison with other post independence African states has been made at this point in South Africa except in pomp and funfare.Various leaders have been tempted to even suggest that the country is not part of the African struggle.Even the supposed independence day of South Africa is called by the substitute term,"freedom day" instead of "independence day"as if to categorically state that South Africa has had no colonial past,at least in an African context.Infact the real meaning of independence has lost impact amongst ordinary South Africans so much that they even burn fellow Africans in tires in a quest to secure white minority provided jobs.The ruling elite,on their part has made very little strides in educating the masses and ensuring the economy is driven by the  black South African majority.Rather they often choose to hide behind the unfinished story of Mandela,glorifying themselves in it and securing positions both in the party and the government through the same process.
If one cannot expect the ANC,the only party with support sufficient enough to effect land reform laws,who is going to effect it?.After all the party is beginning to lose its support as witnesed by the August 2016 municipal elections out comes.The narrative is slowly shifting in South Africa, from the colonial legacy to day to day basics of peoples livelihoods such as service delivery and social welfare.Colonial narratives are slowly loosing their appeal to voters,rather ,the advocates of these narratives have suffered from defects,from corruption to shamefull scandals,hence the focus on the  empowerment mandate lost with their mistakes alone.The people,it seems,have since forgotten about land issues,their leaders are mum about it.The EFF in South Africa,the most vocal proponent of economic freedom in South Africa was born out of personal dispute the dispute between Zuma and Malema suffers from lack of originality in as much as  a tailor made South African revolution is concerned.Infact Malema has tried on sveral occasations to find patronage in Mugabe,who continues to value his relationship with the ANC over that of the EFF.Lack of sufficient supporters continues to affect the EFF such that it has desperately decided to align itself with the white backed DA party in local government structures.Amidst all this confusion,the question of the total economic emancipation of the South African remains just but a pipe dream. Despite enjoying the majority of support in SA ,the ANC has made little or no attempt to enshrine the very fabric of South African history in the constitution,that is,the land question.This,according to various pan African groups,is an outright justification to the colonial wrongs.If any party is guilty of ignoring what was stolen,ANC must be able to to the list.

In anything is clear,it is the fact that the MDCs,the only opposition party to challenge Mugabe is western backed.No one could expect the party to challenge western policies if it were given a chance to rule.Infact,the party's narrative is based on bread and butter issues,far from total economic control of Zimbabwe,hence the west as usuall can be expected to take over upon the fall of Zanu pf.Nonetheless,this gives the impetus on the citizens of the country to define their own identity once again,which is far from possible.

In conclusion,it is my view that there appears no effective internal African state truly functional and free of colonial plunder.All have been raped one way or the other,some still,more than others ,continue to be bent over.The ones which have succesfully dislodged their colonial masters have defects in themsleves and continue to suffer from isolation like Zimbabwe,whilst the ones which remained lamb suffer the consequences of dependency to white masters.