 Articles by Mukazo Vunda. |
To my Brothers
and Sisters
It is the year 2001, the actual millennium, and many of us are
still wondering at Africa's dream deferred. The continent is
still wallowing in misery. The situation keeps getting worse
and worse, and there seems no end to this sordid state in sight.
Message of Love
I went to Egypt this summer to see the stone remains of the
Egyptians. It was while I was there that an untold truth about
these relics struck me. There are many explanations of the reason
the Egyptians built the pyramids. Many are believable, but some
are utterly preposterous. There is a lot of uncertainty on this
subject. The Egyptians themselves left ambiguous clues as to
the reasons they built these monuments.
Philosophy
of rule
The question of Africa's secure and safe passage from the present
woes, into a safe union which gives to us, its occupants, the
identities we lost due to colonialism, security from IMF dominance
or western dominance , protection from despotic rule, stable
governance, control of our interests, determination of our own
destiny, etc., is intelligence, plain and simple. Africa has
to mobilize its intellectual resources to meet the challenge
of the modern world, to meet it on its own terms...
Mirror
of Truth
I
know you have heard of the pyramids in south America that were
destroyed by the Spanish, of the Buddha statues that were blown
up by the Taliban in Afghanistan, of the heads of African tribes
and Kings of empires that existed here at the time of conquest...
Biography
and More
I was born in south-central Africa. Asked what my nationality
is, I will always answer I am South African, not referring to
the Republic of South Africa, but to the region where I was
born. This is a definition I am much more comfortable with.
I will never accept anything less defining of me, my ancestry,
and race. Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Angola, or any other
such creations have, as far as I am concerned, no historical
precedence.
Think
Big!
It has long been time to Think Big for Sub-Saharan Africans.
In fact, it is always good to think big. It is well known that
the pot of goodies always goes to the man who thinks big, and
not to the man who thinks small. Raise a bet, but raise a big
one. There will always be time to go back to the good old small
and secure bets if the big one doesn't succeed, and besides,
there is no feeling more satisfying than to go away knowing
you did the right thing.
The
Basics
I know deep down in my heart that you, like me, secretly, or
unconsciously long for the glorious rebirth of Africa. If you
disagree with me, then do not touch that remote when you see
images of a continent in perpetual tragedy and misery. Do not
feel a part of it, then. Feel detached (if you have successfully
detached yourself from your people's fates and are happy with
your new found direction), but if you do change the channel,
then recognize what you feel in that instant
Reply
to Mr. Ochieng
Dear Mr. Ochieng,
I
read with interest and elation your article "Why It's Futile
to Spoon-Feed My Customers", and, while I am happy to meet
a like spirit, I despair at the depth of the problem, and the
ramifications of this, just like you mention in your article,
the various facets of our African social, political, and economic
existence are indeed rendered mediocre by this deficit
Comment
on issue of reparations for slavery
Firstly, Mr. Woodgeard leads us through the poor backgrounds
of his ancestors, which, to me, without seeming to state that
I think the family Mr. Woodgeard stems from were actually a
guilty party, seems to be an emotional attempt to equate poverty
with innocence. It is as such impertinent to the matter he aims
to involve himself in, short of saying that this is the art
of the demagogue.
The Real Colour of English
I wrote this article in response to those letters I received,
to try and show that there are more people out there who think
like I do, and, not to let my claim to be right rest upon numbers
only, to show that there are still others who have not left
it at that, but have acted by conducting experiments to gain
empirical evidence, and the results thus gained have proven
the point I aimed to make in my letter to Mr. Ochieng.
Comment
on Mini-Renaissance of Lumumba's Memory
I think that it is appropriate to engage in educated speculations,
even posthumously, of an assassinated leader's political agenda,
and make conjectures about how he would have gone about actualizing
his aims, how the land and its people could have fared under
his program, even if this speculation remedies nothing, but
I find it a little far fetched to go to great lengths trying
to prove that the man was more a charlatan than a blessing for
his own people, had he lived on.
Standing
by Thabo Mbeki
The effect that the opinions of leading news agencies have had
on my psyche, in defaming Thabo Mbeki's stand on the issue of
AIDS, became apparent to me when I hesitated in finding a fitting
title to this article in defense of him, wishing not to seem
associated with his ideas, the reason I wanted to defend him
notwithstanding. I chose one title, then dropped it, then another,
and, because of this, almost came to the point of giving up,
like so many have done.
Comment
on Mohammed Awaleh's Article
Half baked theories, vague descriptions, insufficient information
and clarification for the points made, and fallacies are the
hallmarks of Mr. Awaleh's letter. The letter is wrought with
mistakes, and barely makes the consistency test.
Mukazo
Vunda's Reaction to the Assertion that "Renaissance"
isn't the Right Word
Knowledge is power. Knowledge comprises jagged but coherent
pieces of information, the free and abundant dissemination of
which is absolutely essential for such empowerment of a person
or group, and this is absolutely essential for a group like
ours (Africa) which has lagged behind more by lack of information,
a condition that was earlier forced on Africans by colonizers,
and later by structures they left in place.
Excerpt
from the Book "Black Fathers White Fathers"
Mukalu got out of the car and walked towards the building, onto
the gravel of the driveway that led up to the entrance of Dick's
mansion. Dick was going to pay for being Dick, was all Mukalu
could think as his shoes scrunched on the gravel driveway. The
way it was going to be done was too dangerous, for Mukalu, who
had volunteered for the task more out of necessity and responsibility
- he knew that he was the best man for the task - than out of
knowledge that this was the end of the road for his posting
in Utopia; for Dick's family who would all be exposed to the
danger, but the agency had insisted on this method.
Motivation
for the book "Black Fathers White Fathers"
Simply put; this is an attempt to put things strait.
I like reading.
Not so much now as I did ten years ago. At this time in my
life it was almost all I did, almost all that gave me pleasure.
Reading fulfills
several functions, all blessings when considered. There is
one thing that reading does which when consciously experienced,
can put you off of it. Propaganda is not annoying when not
recognized as such, or when trivial and innocuous. Written
information that aims to warp, to win favour, or change a
point of view, regardless whether the information contained
in the script is wholesome or pernicious, true or false, is
not experienced as such when one is oblivious of these facts,
or simply cannot care less.
America's
Salmon Rushdie
I
am assailed enough as it is already that I would not wish
to give those who keep me in their sights the excuse they
need to openly blast at me. This is why, to avoid such an
eventuality, I have held out on a written response to the
tragedy in America in which thousands of innocent people
lost their lives, even if, as an activist, there is a lot
to relate about the issue. I break my silence over the issue
because I am conscious of the many issues that will remain
sacrosanct and keep this race on the precipice to self destruction
as long as humanity refuses to confront these issues, as
long as humankind stays obedient to this barbarism which
masquerades as a civilization.
The
Fallacy of Laser Wielding Alliens
A week ago, I was listening to a BBC radio broadcast, as
I usually do when tucked up in bed. It helps put me to sleep.
The program that was airing at the time was about science
and discovery. The topic was the Dogon tribe in Africa.
I
thought it was going to be the usual stuff that the BBC
is always broadcasting about Africa in the realm of science
and discoveries; a new wind-up radio that works without
batteries, a cheap, fuel efficient car that could be very
effective in Africa, a new, cheap, more effective medicine
for malaria, and the like.
Comment
on Kwanzaa
By Mukazo Mukazo Vunda.
As an individual
grows, he gathers knowledge, and experience. Confronted with
like situations later in his life, he can recognize them,
and handle them with ease. It goes without saying then that
the more a person knows, the broader the range of his experiences,
the better able to survive he is, the better the quality of
life he is able to lead.
The
Aim of this WebSite
This site is an initiative by Mr. Mukazo Mukazo Vunda, founder
of the company Burning Bush Solutions! the designing power behind
this site. The aim of this site is to present the salient features
of books by Mr. Mukazo Mukazo Vunda. It is both a promotional
tool for the books, as the opinions of Mr. Vunda presented on
this website are to be found in full in his books, as well as
an opinion exchange point for people interested in knowing more,
or contributing to the idea of an African renaissance.
Exposing
Chiluba's Weaker Nature
Time
comes in any person's life when he is confronted with a problem
whose resolution calls for self-examination. When the very
welfare of the given individual is at stake, the very best
of this individual's mental and physical capacities are called
upon in this examination. To get a true picture of the self,
the memory of the given individual will play a leading role.
Knowledge of what a person was, and how he became what he
is will give a better picture of what a person really is in
the present. Apart from serving as a guide to self knowledge,
memory gives to the person paradigms that he can follow, examples
he can apply to the present. This memory of the self will
help prevent the individual from repeating mistakes.
Tell a Friend | Send Comment
This
site is powered by Burning Bush Solutions!
