PATRIOTISM: A solution for Africa’s development. Part 2

Ok! Then what’s Patriotism? 

Patriotism is the love of country; devotion to the welfare of one’s compatriot; the virtues and actions of a person who loves and zealously supports and defends their country; the passion which inspires one to serve one’s country; the desire to compete with other nations. But let me chip rise a red flag here, when I talk about patriotism I don’t mean chauvinism.

There is a difference between patriotism and chauvinism. Patriotism is about the love of one’s country with the respect for others to do the same for their country but chauvinism leads to racism. With the definition I gave about patriotism, the question is, as an African how patriotic are you? Just give a sincere answer to yourself now!

Most people will agree with me that, patriotism in Africans and Africa is, if not zero then I think it’s getting closer to zero. Honestly, I met with a lot of Africans who are very patriotic but being under societal criticisms and ridicules, they are gradually giving up the idea.

To be honestly, people who are patriotic are not afraid, they do not fear to stand up against any oppressor or any leadership who they see swaying from the reason they brought him where he is even if they voted for him. Patriotic people are perseverant and stand their ground whenever they are face with problems politically or economically and try everything they can to find solutions to their problems. Patriotic people think about the future of their children and the next generations, so their decisions and plans are made to cover the future.

Throughout history, there are hundreds examples of patriotic people and with their patriotism, they lifted their countries from ashes to glory. It was patriotism in 1775-1783 that helped Americans to gain their Independence from the British. It was patriotism that help Germany to recovery from the economic crises after the World War 2, when the citizens agree and eagerly worked after a pay cut in their salaries. It was patriotism in 2016 that lead the Turks to stand against the attempted coup that was meant to topple a democratically elected president. It was patriotism in 2017 that lead the Romanian people to stand against their own elected government when the government intended to approve a law that will give way to corruption in the country.

All these people were ready to sacrifice everything they have to protect what they believed in. they were ready to give up their sleep and stand in the cold nights to defend what is rightly for them and to have a secure future for the next generation. That’s what patriotism installs into people, the need to give up all you have for that you believe in.

How can we be patriotic? Or simply, how can we love our country?

It’s simple……it starts with education, more education and more reading about our countries and Africa. We didn’t just come into being from nowhere. Some people had to sacrifice everything they had to secure everything we are enjoying today. We never met any of the Prophets but how come do we love them that much? It’s about education.

We were taught about them ad we also read about them in such a way that, they become part of us. And most of the time, everything we do is straight from what we learn about them and has an influence on us. The more you read and learn about something, the more it becomes part of you.

We need to read more about African history and the people who sacrificed themselves for us to get to where we are today. The more we read about our history, the more we get closer to the missing part of us that disconnected us from each. And with time, we will reconcile with our past and help create the Africa that once attracted a lot of people to herself.

So what about the leaders at the top who are not patriotic, how can we be patriotic to someone who is not patriotic, how can we make them patriotic? I believe that everything starts with the people, if we can create a house of patriotic people, it will later turn into a community or society of patriots then we become a nation full of patriotic people. It is at this level that we will see some patriotic leaders because the people we choose to represent us will be from us with the same values and believes then we will see the reflection of it in the leaders or in the government institutions.

With the power of our votes, we reject anyone who doesn’t recognize our values and believes. We change anyone who we choose to represent us and later deviate from our course. Just don’t forget that everything starts with us and that we can make progress whenever we choose to. The power is in our hands. I want to end with a quote from the late MP Tony Benn of the Labor Party (UK), he said: “I think progress is being made by two flames that has always been burning in the human heart. The flame of anger against injustice and the flame of hope that you can build a better world.” LET’S KEEP THE FLAMES BURNING!

You can reach part 1 by clicking here.

By: Yaqoub Ali