By Senator Anthony Agbo l Thursday, October 27, 2022
ENUGU, Nigeria – From the medieval period through the renaissance, to the evolution of the modern nation-states to the contemporary era, Africa has maintained such abysmal presence or indeed near total absence in the table of global development evolution that the rest of the world has assumed and indeed tagged Africa an inferior race, and in further mock attestation to this called it “the dark continent”.
This conceptual view of the continent and its people seemed justified by her lack of disposition to move along with the rest of the world in the fast trajectory of modern civilization and its resultant developmental evolution had in strategic scale helped to encourage and facilitate the emergence of the darkest chapters of the continent’s history, being the massive slavery of the African people, as well as the so-called scramble and partitioning of the continent and the subsequent colonization and indefinite domination and exploitation.
As civilization and development among the ambitious and developed nation-states of the modern world and their leadership have taken them beyond the frontiers of known and obvious global riches, wealth and comfort; into further frontiers of conveniently inaccessible parts of the earth, our solar system; and the possible fabulous, promising opportunities there of; the length and breadth of black Africa has continued to grope around and unsuccessfully struggle with the most primitive, elementary and routine tasks of leadership, such as payment of wages to workers, provision of roads, water, electricity, basic education, etc.
In all the troubles, tribulations, challenges, failures and shame of black Africa, one factor has stood accused; and that is LEADERSHIP. In other words, undoubtedly, African leadership experiment through diverse credentials of different personages that have been in power in different nations of the continent has for several decades, on the average continued to produce inverse results. Africans of different academic qualifications, orientations, backgrounds, beliefs and persuasions who have been in power in different countries of the continent have not in any way matched their colleagues of other climes, in vision and imagination, and in observable accomplishments. Why is this the case? And why has the situation persisted and indeed become broadly characteristic of African leadership phenomenon?
Even beyond and outside leadership/governance at the level of the nation states, contemporary Africans undoubtedly have comparatively joined in the acquisition of knowledge through formal education, but seem not to have measured up in bringing out global standard of practical utilitarian benefits that broadly manifest from such education. For instance, a Nigerian architect/builder who even may have had his degrees from America, Britain or Europe will come back to Nigeria but will be designing/building (public and private) houses that cannot in anyway measure up with the standard of aesthetic beauty and sophistication that are seen in other countries. The same applies to virtually every branch of human endeavor. Hence Africa seems to have comprehensively been failing in virtually every aspect of human civilized effort, except of course in acquiring (non-practically productive) certificated academic knowledge.
Hence, if notable academics, intellectuals, nationalists, reformists, sufficiently western-exposed persons, products of conventional text book leadership theories, self-acclaimed revolutionaries, and people of diverse social classes and orientations have held leadership positions in Africa, without moving the continent into symmetrical development match with other competing nations of the world; then there is a hidden factor behind the continent’s predicament that has not been canvassed or revealed.
My task in this paper shall be to reveal to you the deep mystery, the hidden, ancient (primordial) factor/obstacle that is responsible for the comprehensive failure of Africa, and then propound the ways our universities can be an instrument through which this ancient obstacle can be removed, for Africa to rise and compete with other nations and ascend to the ultimate height of world dominion. In going about this task, I will start by posing a simple but staggering question: Who are the Africans (the black people of the world)?
The written word of God, the Bible has had fierce opposition for onward of 2000 years. The enemies of the Bible range from those who resent it, to those who hate it, to those who doubt it, to those who fear it, to those who criticize it, and including those who exploit it for gain. And all those different divides of anti-scripture schools of thoughts have molded and regularly vent their opinion through the unrelenting, interdisciplinary Scholars who persistently disparage the Bible and cast doubts at the historical authenticity of its records. But despite all these, the Bible has remained the most published, the most circulated, the most read and the most quoted book on earth; and evidently, indeed the most reliable ancient historical record, whose power, authority and impeccable truth have defied the coordinated onslaught of misguided men of all ages, including those of elevated but sinister institutions; to produce the greatest nations on earth and most insightful men of all time.
For instance, America which became the greatest nation and indeed the ubiquitous empire of the modern world is a nation whose foundation was laid upon God and the scripture, through the inspired, bold and decisive resolve of Christian puritans who left England to found the new nation in about early 18th century. James Madison (1751-1836), a founding father and the 4th president of the United States, had stated; “We have staked the whole future of American civilization not on the power of government, far from it but on the Ten Commandments of God.” President Andrew Johnson (1808-1875), the 17th President of the United States, on his own had stated; “Our Republic rests on the Rock of the Scripture”. Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859), a French Judge, Diplomat, Aristocrat and political Scientist, who was sent by his country France in 1831 to America to study the secrets of America’s miraculous successful system, after his years of investigations had written in his report; “I sought for the greatness of the United States in her commodious harbors, her ample rivers, her fertile fields, and boundless forests and it was not there. I sought for it in her rich mines, her vast world commerce, her public school system and in her institutions of higher learning, and it was not there. I looked for it in her democratic congress and her matchless constitution, and it was not there. Not Until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power.”
The Great Britain and the holistic European empire grew to dominate and control the world through their Judgeo-christian foundation. And the endless array of world intellectuals, scientists, explorers, philosophers, and scholars of generalized sphere of interdisciplinary persuasions, all of European stock, all came from this background.
The writings of inspired ancient scholars, historians and philosophers, such as the ancient Greek historian, traveler and acclaimed father of history, Herodotus (484-420BC); the pagan historian, geographer and philosopher Strabo (63BC-24AD); the Judeo-Roman historian, Flavius Josephus (37-100AD), as well as the ancient Egyptian Priests, Manetho and Cheremon among many others, had all confirmed the historical authenticity of biblical records.
The painstaking research of Professor Julius Oppert (1825-1929), a French-German Assyriologist, born in Harmburg; Jens Otto Harry Jespersen (1860-1943), and Alfredo Trombetti (1866-1929), Danish and Italian linguists respectively confirmed the Biblical story of the entire humanity originally having one language, but which God confounded and divided at the Tower of Babel. Indeed, generally speaking, no human discovery, archaeological findings, historical fact, credible ancient record or worthy and dependable research had ever contradicted Biblical facts, rather, all had always confirmed same.
The Bible is the only book of records that give specific, precise and obviously coherent account of human origin on earth, starting from one (created) individual to a family, through the first organized, pristine human society and then to the table of nations and the first prototype nation-states.
In answering the mighty question; “who are the Africans, the black people of the world?”, we must travel back in time to visit the origin of humanity and seek out the family/ bloodline of the African people.
The Bible narrated the graphic story of how God created the first man, Adam on earth, and how the first human world fathered by this human progenitor and patriarch, Adam and corrupted by sin and godlessness was destroyed by God with a world-wide flood, which spared only the righteous patriarch Noah and his family in addition to the male and female of every other living species on earth.
The patriarch Noah, who fathered the new world had three children, namely; Shem, Ham and Japheth. Authentic ancient records, and uncontestable geographical and cultural facts established Ham (the second son of Noah) as the black son of Noah who gave birth to the African people, the black (or negroid) race. Ham begat four sons, namely; Cush, Mizraim, Phut and Canaan.
The entire family of Noah which constituted the new world after the flood first settled on “a plain in the land of Shinar”, (Genesis 11:2) being Babylon, in the present nation of Iraq.
Even at that time, the great waters of the earth (the oceans and seas) had divided the earth into different portions of large land masses called continents. When the children of Noah began to disperse from the first settlement, in the “plain of Shinar”, the children of Ham took habitation in the continent of Africa, first in the north and the north East Africa. Hence, Cush, the first son of Ham settled in Ethiopia, Mizraim settled in Egypt, Phut in Libya and Canaan settled in the land of Canaan, the present day Israel. The children of Shem on their own settled in Asian continent, while the family of Japheth settled in Europe.
The children of Ham called their ancient geographical settlements after their own names. Hence the original ancient name of Egypt was Mizraim. But later, at the early stage of Egyptian civilization the ancient Africans called the nation “kemet”, which meant, “land of the blacks”, or “Black Country”. Similarly, the ancient name of Ethiopia was Cush, that of Libya was Phut, and the present land of Israel was Canaan.
Ancient Africans Civilized the World and Ruled Same for 3000 Years Before their fall
Cush, the first son of Ham, among other children begat Nimrod; his last born child, whom the Bible stated, “began to be a mighty one in the earth” (Genesis 10:8). This ancient African, Nimrod became the first king on earth and indeed the only successful human king/ruler of the whole world, who among other things constructed the Tower of Babel.
The Bible stated of him; “He was a mighty hunter before the Lord; wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel and Erech, and Accad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar” -Genesis 10:9-10
The children of Ham originated ancient civilization and developed and expanded it to unimaginable scale and scope that has marveled and confounded generations of humanity from the ancient time till date. And ancient Egypt was the epic center of this civilization, which also stood as the “capital” of ancient Africa, and the reference point of the world.
The stunning accomplishments of the children of Ham, the ancient black Africans started quite early in human history when their iconic but aberrational kinsman, Nimrod rose to become the mighty one on the earth after the flood and among other things built the cities of Babylon, Erech, Accad and Calneh. The Bible further stated that; “From that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh…” – Genesis 10:10-12.
Herodotus (484-425BC) the ancient world travelers- historian and father of history stated that the city of Babylon which Nimrod built had, “a great many houses of three and four stories. The main Streets were are all dead straight… And the city, surpasses in splendor any city of the known world…”
The ancient Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus (AD 37-100), who described Nimrod as “a bold man and of great strength of hand”, quoted Nimrod as saying that “he would be revenged on God, if He should have to drown the world again; for that he would build a tower too high for the waters to be able to reach, and that he would avenge himself on God for destroying their forefathers” -Antiquities of the Jews, chapter 4(2) ***
Now, coming out of Babylon, the ancient Africans, in ancient Egypt showcased their extraordinary gifts of ingenuity, knowledge, vision and imagination in a way and manner no nation had ever come close to from the ancient time to the present. In human organization and bureaucratic administration; in city building and construction of enduring, colossal and national propaganda architecture; in knowledge, science and philosophy; in literature and arts; in development of religion; and in industry, commerce and agriculture; ancient black Africans ruled the world for 3000 years and pioneered all that glorify the world today.
Their rulers were called Pharaohs. They built pyramids, the most notable of which is the greatest pyramid of Giza, which is one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and which the modern world still regard as the most astonishing structure in the world, and of which the great nations of today cannot copy even with their sophisticated technology. They built great temples, huge palaces, paved processional ways, grandiose chapels, imposing government buildings, private dwellings etc. They originated and gave to the world mathematics, medicine, geometry, architecture, astronomy, philosophy, arts, literature and sciences.
The Eighteenth Century French philosopher, anthropologist, orientalist and politician; Count Constantin- Francois de Chasseboeuf Volney (1757-1820) stated of the ancient Egyptians/Africans as follows: “The ancient Egyptians were true Negroes of the same type as all native born Africans… And this race of Blacks who nowadays are slaves and objects of our scorn is the very ones to which we owe our arts, our sciences and even the use of the spoken word.” This was a French man, and a European speaking.
Reclus Jean- Jacques Elisee (1830-1905), a nineteenth century French geographer who was awarded the gold medal of the Paris Geographical society in 1892, in his book; The Earth and Its Inhabitants wrote that ancient Egypt/Africa was a: “Great civilized power during the period in which Europe was being overrun by savage tribes. Arithmetic, architecture, geometry, astrology, all arts and nearly all of today’s industries and sciences were known while the Greeks lived in caves. The pattern of our thinking originated in Africa”
Herodotus (Circa, 490BC), the ancient Greek travelling historian and the acclaimed father of history, in his renowned classic work, The Histories, wrote that; “Egyptians (ancient Africans) were the cleverest nation in the world.”
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), the respected German astronomer, mathematician and natural philosopher who formulated the famous Kepler’s Laws of Planetary Motion, had implied that in formulating his laws of planetary motions, he was merely; “Stealing from the golden vessels of the Egyptians.”
In the Bible we read: “And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds” –Acts 7:22
The ancient Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus (Circa 37-100AD), wrote in his Antiquities of the Jews as follows: “Now the sagacity and wisdom which God has bestowed on Solomon was so great that he exceeded the ancients in so much that he was in no way inferior to the Egyptians, who are said to have been beyond all men in understanding”
Jean-Francois Chamollion (1790-1832AD), the celebrated French Historian and linguist who deciphered the Egyptian Hieroglyphic writing, once remarked; “The Egyptians (Africans) of old thought like men a hundred feet tall. We in Europe are but Lilliputians.”
In wealth and prosperity, ancient Egypt, the heartland of black Africa was the world’s last resort. The Holy Bible wrote: “So all countries came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain, because the famine was severe in all lands”
In a letter of request written by King Tushratta (Circa 1360 BC) of Mitani (a kingdom in northern Mesoptamia) to Pharoah (king) Amenhotep III of ancient Egypt (Africa), the Mitani King had written; “May my brother send me in very great quantities gold… In my brother’s country, gold is as plentiful as dirt.”
In ancient time, the greatest, fastest, and most luxurious means of transport were the horse and the horse-driven chariots. Horses were the luxury cars of the time and chariots were comparable to aircrafts of today, and they were both used by then kings and nobility. Other nations of the world imported these coveted high profile goods from Egypt/Africa.
The Bible indicated this; “And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yan at a price. The Kings servants received the linen yan at a price. And they fetched up, and brought forth out of Egypt a chariot for six hundred Shekels of Silver, and a horse for one hundred and fifty (Shekels).” -2Chronicles 1:16-17.
Indeed, at that ancient time, to possess a good or product made in Egypt/Africa was a source of great pride like having goods made in America or UK, in the 20th century. The Bible wrote; “I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linens of Egypt.” –Proverbs 7:16.
Indeed, the list of factors indicating the unimaginable greatness of Africa in ancient time and the fact that they ruled the world of the time is endless. And as recorded in authentic history (as against the history written and imposed on us by foreigners), Africans ruled the ancient world in power, prosperity; in knowledge, philosophy, science and arts, and in impeccable civility for over 3,000 years.
The Curse and The Fall
Of all that has been narrated above about the greatness of black Africa in ancient time, there was an indelible dark spot and deep stain that led to their tragic fall and relegation to the seemingly incurable failure, not only in leadership but in all aspects of life, that has remained manifest in their affairs till today. Ancient Africans in their extreme glory, prosperity, power, authority and dominion, ruled the world in stark defiance and rebellion against God; and misguided and corrupted the entire world with idolatry, apostasy and godlessness. And God laid comprehensive curse upon them that touched virtually every aspect of their lives.
Every nation of the world is in the Bible. And the Bible is the greatest and most amazing book of immutable prophecy ever written. In the Bible, God, through His prophets spoke on virtually every nation on earth, in the form and pattern in which such nations existed at the time of the Old Testament Prophets Whom He spoke through their mouths.
The mystery of Africa’s leadership and general failure lies in the curse pronouncements upon Africa and African people in the Bible. The pronouncements are clear and precise and are being fulfilled to the later.
What specific things did the ancient Africans do that warranted these curse pronouncements?
- Ancient Africans originated idolatry, the worship of gods of wood and stone.
The book of Jasher, an ancient ecclesiastical but non-canonical book which the Bible also cited as an authority at least twice, wrote of Nimrod, the African first king on earth and the first and only world rule ever, as follows: “And all nations and tongues heard of his fame, and they gathered themselves to him, and they bowed down to the earth, and they brought him offerings, and he became their lord and king, and they dwelt with him in the city of Shinar, and Nimrod reigned in the earth over all the sons of Noah, and they were all under his power and counsel… But Nimrod did not go in the way of the Lord, and he was more wicked than all the men that were before, from the days of the flood until those days. And he made gods of wood and stone, and bowed down to them, and rebelled against the Lord, and taught all his subjects and the people of earth his wicked ways.” –Book of Jasher, Chapter 7:43-47.
From the fall of man (Adam) through the end of the first world in Noah’s flood up until the rising of Nimrod the African, man had offended God through sins of various forms but the sin of idol worship (having another god outside the one and the Almighty God) was never part of their offences, until Nimrod originated it. In addition to this, Nimrod according to Josephus (AD37-100) the ancient Jewish historian, built the tower of Babel as an affront to God as he declared that through the tower he will frustrate any future attempts God will make to drown the world with water again, and further boasted that he will take revenge upon God for drowning his ancestors with water.
- Ancient Africans, the Egyptians enslaved the Jews, the chosen people of God, afflicted them with hard labour; killed their male innocents in organized state policy of male infanticide and challenged God’s power to do miracles.
As we already know, the Jews, the chosen people of God were enslaved in Egypt for four hundred years during which the ancient Egyptians/Africans subjected them to extremity of harsh treatment as they also challenged the power and authority of God. In the book of Exodus 1:11 14; we read; “Therefore they (Egyptians) set taskmasters over them (the Israelites) to afflict them with their burdens, … And they made their lives bitter with hard bandage,” -Exodus 1:11, 14. In addition to this, the Pharaoh (Egyptian King) enacted a horrific policy of population control through male infanticide (killing of all male children) born to the Jews. Pharaoh instructed the Egyptian midwives; “when you do the duties of a midwife for the Hebrew women, and see them on the birth stools, if it is a son, then you shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live” -Exodus 1:16
In addition to this, when God instructed Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him to allow the children of Israel leave Egypt? Pharaoh made the most outrageous blasphemous utterance ever made by man; “Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go,” -Exodus, 5:2. And when Moses, in order to prove to Pharaoh that an all-powerful and miracle- working God sent him, did ask his brother Aron to throw down his rod before the Pharaoh and the rod instantly turned to a snake; Pharaoh, in abhorrent mockery and affront to God instructed his magicians to do the same; and the rods of Pharaoh’s magicians through their enchantment actually turned into snakes also. But the snake of Aaron’s rod swallowed up the snakes of the Pharaoh’s magicians.
The event of the slavery of the Jews by ancient Africans (the Egyptians) had already been foretold by God to Abraham, the Patriarchal ancestor of the Jews and a resultant divine curse determined upon the Africans: God told Abraham; “know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And the nation whom they serve I’ll judge.” Obviously, “the nation whom they serve”, under reference above was of course ancient Egypt, the land of the Pharaohs, the ancestors of black Africans.
- Consolidation, Expansion and Spread of Paganism and it’s associated Strange/pagan gods.
Ancient Africans through the first world ruler Nimrod originated idol worship, and from same, the diabolic arts of black magic, sorcery, astrology etc; as well as different shades of pagan gods all came into being. Indeed, it is believed that ancient Egypt had over 1,400 gods; the most prominent of which were; Osiris, Isis, Amun, Atum, Anubis, Aten, Hathor, Set, etc. The Pharaohs made idol worship the official state religion and consecrated their land and their enormous wealth unto the idols. Colossal temples were built by the state in various Egyptian cities for these deities with sophisticated, well entrenched and highly revered institution of pagan priesthood that officiate over them and who receive remunerations from the state. The cults of these deities later spread to other nations of the world, under different names.
It is also recorded that after the death of Nimrod, his wife, Semiramis established a religion in his honour named Babylon Mystery Religion or the Mysteries, which the basic element is the worship of mother and son. Different continents and countries of the world later adopted this religion under different names, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Zorasthranism, Mithraism etc; which actually corrupted the sanctity of true worship of God.
Hence, the black African family tree were the people that led the world astray, away from God.
The Curse of Africa
As a black African, anytime you are reading the Bible and you come across Egypt or Egyptian in the historical and prophetic sense, know it that you’re reading about your land Africa, about your ancestors and about yourself. And whenever you come across the word Pharaoh, you must know that you’re reading about your rulers/leaders, either in the context of the past, the present or future.
As the civilization of ancient Egypt/Africa flourished and their ancestors gloried in their wealth, power, authority, learning; and were building pyramids, temples, royal tombs, grandiose public buildings and all manners of propaganda architecture; the great prophets of the Bible were walking the streets of Judah, Jerusalem and Samaria proclaiming what shall be the fate of future generations of Africans. These proclamations of curses, which from the fall of ancient Egypt are being fulfilled with mathematical precision are as follows:
- The Curse of Bad, Weak and Visionless Leadership
Isaiah 19:1, 11:13: “The burden of Egypt. Behold, the Lord rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt; and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it. Surely the princes (leaders) of Zoan are fools; Pharaoh’s wise counselors give foolish counsel. How do you say to Pharaoh, I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient Kings? Where are they? Where are your wisemen?”
Isaiah 19:14: “The Lord has mingled a perverse spirit in her midst. And they have caused Egypt to err in all her works, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit.”
Ezekiel 30:22: “Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against Pharaoh King of Egypt, and I will break his arms, both the strong one and the one that was broken; and I will make the sword fall out of his hand.”
All the word of God as stated in the above Bible passages are referring to the governments of Africa from the past through the present to the future. Pharaoh mentioned in these passages is referring to the past, present and future heads of governments of African countries up till when these curses shall expire. Zoan mentioned above was the capital city of Egypt (Africa) between 1070-655 BC. The Bible uses the word “princes” to refer to rulers, Kings, leaders or people in authority, heads of governments or leaders of a people.
If you have visited the countries of America, Europe, Asia, Australia, etc; and compare what leadership have achieved in those places with what you see everywhere in Africa; you will automatically agree with the above biblical pronouncements that African heads of government are without wisdom (“princes of Zoan are fools”), and their policy makers (“Pharaoh’s wise counsellors”) enact bad (“foolish counsel”) policies. African leaders are generally naive, timid, comprehensively dependent and weak. They are neither strong in character nor good in evolving bold, independent, self-sustaining policies, programmes and time-honored projects of global standard and acclaim. They just usually manage along, neither getting the present right nor having a concrete plan of where the future is leading. When God declares that he is against a leader (“Behold, I am against Pharaoh King of Egypt”) then, in vain shall that leader aim to achieve great leadership, as enabling wisdom, vision and imagination that yield great leadership are removed from that leader by God Himself, so as to make the leader, “to err in all her works, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit” -Isaiah 19:14.
Isaiah 19:14. “And the Egyptians will I give over into the hands of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith God, the Lord of hosts”
This passage simply implies that God shall cause Africans to be ruled by mindless, corrupt and self-caring leaders, as well as brutal dictators who will not care about the sufferings of their people.
- The Curse of Slavery, Emigration And Servitude
Isaiah 20:2-6. “At that same time the Lord spoke by Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saying; “Go, and remove the sackloth from your body, and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so walking naked and barefoot. Then the Lord said, “Just as my servant Isaiah had walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia, so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. Then they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation and Egypt their glory. And the inhabitants of this territory will say that day, “Surely, such is our expectation, wherever we go for help to be delivered from the King of Assyria; and how shall we escape.”
The story of African slavery first by the Arabs and later Britain, Europe and America is well known by every modern African that read books and care for knowledge. God uses the fact and imagery of the great Assyrian empire to represent the dominant power that shall execute his word when the time is due for it to be fulfilled.
It is estimated that within a space of ten centuries of Arab slavery of Africans, more than 14 million black Africans were sold as slaves to the Arabian Peninsula alone.
European, British and American slavery of Africans lasted for well over 400 years, within the period which black Africans were considered to be legitimate items of commerce among European traders, and well over 30 million Africans were captured and sold across the Atlantic into Europe, Britain, America, North America and the Caribbean. Millions also died from their point of capture to the coast and during the unfortunate voyages.
In respect of slavery, colonialism and exploitation of Africa, God had spoken to Britain, America and Europe, as follows: “Thus Saith the Lord, ‘The Labour of Egypt, and merchandise of Ethiopia and of the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over unto thee, and shall be thine: they shall come after thee: in chains they shall come over, and they shall fall down unto thee, they shall make supplications unto thee, saying; surely God is in thee” –Isaiah 45:14
The above passages states that Africans shall come to these people in chains, which is exactly the way the slaves arrived the shores of these lands, shackled, manacled and chained to each other; and were so displayed for purchase. The wealth and resources of Africa shall also go to these people as predicted above. And all have been fulfilled.
This abhorrent merchandise of slavery laid the foundation for the scattering of black people across the world. Indeed, Africans are the most scattered people around the globe among all races of mankind. This also became further reinforced later by the modern craze among Africans to travel abroad for greener pastures. God had already proclaimed this too: “And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among the countries; and they shall know that I am the Lord.” -Ezekiel 30:9
Ezekiel 29:14. “And I will bring again the captivity of Egypt, and will cause them to return into the land of Pathros, into the land of their habitation; and they shall be there a base kingdom.” Ezekiel 29:15. “It shall be the lowliest of the kingdoms; neither shall it exalt itself anymore above the nations: for I will diminish them that they shall no more rule over the nations.” Which nation today is more inferior, more wretched and poorer, more held in contempt or more dishonorable than Africa (“the lowliest of the kingdoms”)? This prophetic curse has also been fulfilled.
- The Curse of Poverty And Disease
Jeremiah 46:11. “Go up to Gilead and take balm, O virgin, the daughter of Egypt. In vain you will use many medicines; you shall not be cured.”
Ezekiel 32:15. “When I make the land of Egypt desolate, And the country is destitute of all that once filled it. When I strike all who dwell in it, then they shall know that I am the Lord.” Isaiah 19:15. “Neither will there be any work for Egypt which the head or tail, palm branch or bulrush may do.”
Gilead was an area of ancient Palestine east of the Jordan River, the home of the prophet Elijah, where people suffering from different diseases in ancient time go to be treated with the popular “balm of Gilead.” We are aware that in modern world, Africa is hardly discussed for anything that is noble; but characteristically for disease, debt, poverty, hunger and famine. Since the dawn of modern civilization a major aspect of African story has been that of battles against successive epidemic infections and recurring diseases; such as: small pox, chicken pox, Lassa fever, ebola virus, cholera, guinea worm, polio, malaria, HIV/Aids, etc.
The other passages above of course clearly highlights African situation of poverty and unemployment, as the riches and wealth of Africa are all carted away by advanced nations as is willed by God.
- The Curse of Disunity, Hatred, War And Strife.
Isaiah 19:2. “And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight everyone against his brother, and everyone against his neighbor, city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.” This of course is what characterizes the lives of Africans, from family, kindred, village, community, state, country, etc. Everybody works to undo his neighbor.
- The Curse of Disposition to Idols and Witchcraft.
Isaiah 19:13. “And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof; and they shall seek to idols, and to charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to wizards”
Before the coming of the Europeans, virtually every African family was a pagan family that consulted idols, charmers, witches and wizards and those that have familiar spirits. Many African leaders are also known to patronize these unholy arts, as they engage themselves in cultism, occult practices, diabolism and blood sacrifices to get to and stay in power. Idol worship, diabolism and witchcraft are known to blind the mind and hence take away wisdom, knowledge and understanding from those who practice it.
The above narrative is the true, and factual history and foundation of Africa which form the root of the hindrance to her developmental manifestations, her greatness and symmetrical competitions with other nations of the world. Many easy going academics and intellectuals will dismiss this factor but the truth of it is cast in stone.
At the end of it all, God did not leave Africa without hope; rather He still ended it with a message of assurance of not only healing and blessing, but that Africa shall be one out of the three nations that shall be dearest to the Lord, God. Read Isaiah 19:19-25.
The Role Of Our Universities In Leveraging A Solution To Africa’s Developmental Challenges.
Educationists have made one of the most landmark statements in the history of learning, namely; “If a student has not learnt, then the teacher has not taught.” This statement does not refer to a teacher refusing to teach, but actually is rather trying to convey the fact that no matter how bad a learning ability is, how uncomfortable and discouraging the environment and circumstances is, the teacher must be ingenious enough to devise a way of impacting knowledge successfully.
African universities have for long been existing and functioning as stereotype education factories that are tasked only for manufacturing certificate holders that are sent into job markets to be purchased. Our modern undergraduates and graduates are fastly losing the most vital elements of formal education, which among other things include; civilized culture and decency of character, critical thoughts and innovations, inquisitive/questioning/deep-probing minds and extended (global) parabolar or circle of thought. No time to analyze these elements here but they are clear and direct enough to understand. These elements are very vital in shaping the character, performance ability as well as integrity of leaders and actors in different areas of society.
African Universities’ products hardly have any measure of vital global knowledge outside the narrow perimeter of the very particular discipline they studied in the university. Such products cannot be expected to measure up with leaders and actors in Europe, America, Britain, Asia etc, where a college student already knows everything about his continent and the rest of the world.
Our Universities should devise ways in which the knowledge horizon of our students should be largely expanded to encompass historical, cultural, scientific and other dimensions of knowledge as it relates to other nations and continents.
They should do this through encouraging broad diverse, extended and voracious reading culture among students. This is what western nations call cultural literacy. Acquisition of basic knowledge in diverse, multi-dimensional areas of life and human historical accomplishments across diverse nations and cultures produces a thorough bred civilized mind that is sufficiently equipped to contribute to the development of his nation in a symmetrical match with the same sophistication as people of other divides of the world.
The education our universities and other academic institutions offer is fashioned and given as a singular- purpose instruction meant only for the holder to make money for survival and comfort; hence such people cannot see and reason beyond material value of knowledge. This situation creates room for desperation in pursuit of money, hence encouraging corruption.
A Nigerian graduate with this kind of education, if he travels to Paris(France) for instance, will not even be able to appreciate the difference between the captivating grandeur, charm and elegance of the architecture of the city of Paris as against that of the sterile, disharmonious and unaesthetic architecture of Abuja city. Such a person does not understand what a Museum is all about. Such a person may foolishly think that these developed nations built underground railway tunnels because they lack land space to put it on the surface of the earth, etc.
Successful nations deliver education as something that has its own intrinsic value, holistically meant to make the society and the individual better. And while employing it to better the society, money comes with it to the individual.
Africa, from the inception of western education till today has no factual written history of the continent, outside the one packaged and imposed on them by outsiders who do not want African people to know who they are.
The true and factual African history must begin with ancient Egypt and every bit of lifestyle and achievement of ancient Egyptians who were direct and indisputable ancestors of black Africans; who first lived in the place, propagated the entire civilization which the world know ancient Egypt for, and ruled the world of knowledge and worthy human achievements for over 3000 years before the fall of their unparalleled empire through successive conquests until finally Arab invaders took over the land as the original inhabitants began to disperse to other parts of the continent.
Why haven’t our universities risen up to compile the comprehensive and factual history of Africa. No human civilization from the ancient time till date have achieved what ancestors of black Africans did in ancient Egypt. The movable historical and archeological assets which the ancestors of black Africans left in Egypt that are today housed in the current Egyptian State Museum and others that are packed in museums across every European capital as well as those being held by wealthy private collectors across the world are worth trillions upon trillions of dollars. What are our universities thinking about all these?
Cheikh Anta Diop(1923-1986) was a Senegalese prolific scholar, who was both a physicist, historian, Egyptologist, a linguist, anthropologist, economist and sociologist, who fought the obvious and sinister bias of the world of enlightenment against black African heritage of ancient Egyptian civilization to a standstill. Cheikh Anta Diop left an immortal quote to haunt the numbed minds and consciences of African scholars and historians and leaders: “Ancient Egypt was a negro civilization. The history of Black Africa will remain suspended in the air and cannot be written correctly until African historians dare to connect it with the history of Egypt. The African historians (scholars and leaders) who evade the problem of Egypt is neither modest nor objective nor unruffled. He is ignorant, cowardly and neurotic. The ancient Egyptians were Negroes. The moral fruit of their civilization is to be counted among the assets of the Black world.”
What the factual history of Black Africa when written and began to be taught in primary, secondary and Higher institutions across the nations of the continent will do in the psyche, consciousness and achievement potentials of young Africans will be indescribable.
The profound success, ingenuity, courage, Industry, doggedness, conquering spirit, and the consequently unchallenged hegemony of medieval, renaissance and modern European empire was holistically built on the platform of cultural pride and self-esteem arising from the glorious identity of being worthy heirs and enteral successors of the much esteemed, rich and glorified history of ancient Greek (European) civilization. Why wouldn’t the same or more be the case if the factual history of black Africa is written and began to be taught in schools. This is a worthy task and responsibility that is crying to our universities to take up.
As the developed nations of the world whom God raised and enriched are today drifting away to the most extraordinary levels of ungodliness by encouraging and legalizing abortion, homosexuality, same sex marriage and transgenderism, our universities must take some practical steps to discourage our young people from these vices; as God ultimately will bring down nations that alter His programme on earth and raise nations that fear him.
I enjoin students to run away from ungodly associations in universities and join Christian union and Bible societies in their campuses.
Universities in black Africa, particularly in Nigeria should pick up their banner of academic freedom and begin to resist bad, retrogressive national education policies that could be enacted just to favor a particular set of people in power.
Our universities should also as a matter of organic responsibility rise up to mobilize themselves to mount pressure on African Heads of Government and religious leaders to come together and address the primordial and predominant obstacles that are holding the continent such as have been revealed and canvassed in this lecture.
Thank you all for listening.
Jesus Christ is Lord.
Being the Matriculation Lecture presented by Senator Anthony Agbo in Coal City University Enugu, at the event of the institution’s 2022 Matriculation.
