Thread: Is A UNITED NATIONS OF AFRICA possible?

Greart topic, Juikk and one that raises many questions and emotions.

The short answer, I think, is a definite NO. Let's be realistic here. For a United Nations of Africa to have anything more than symbolic value and actually be a force of change for good in our countries, it would not only mean that the member countries have to give up part of their autonomy, but are also prepared to put their money where their mouths are.

Two organisations with similar aspirations serve as very good indicators of the potential pitfalls a UNoA would encounter. They are the AU and SADC. Both are in fact pretty inefficient and ineffectual talkshops - nothing less, nothing more. Riddled with a lack of resources, plannign capacity, authority, legal muscle and authority these two organisations show why a UNoA will remain a pipedream.

The reality - and we know this to be true - is that very few African leaders are prepared to and can think beyond the interests of their own "nation states" - where they exist. And if they are prepared to lead their countries down the path of giving up some autonomy and hand it over to a UNoA to - for example - come up with a binding agricultural policy, they may most probably not have the means to actually implement such policies.

I think it's a noble idea, but little more than that. The money spent on all these fancy annual summits should rather be spent on housing and jobs for the poor. We have enough dramas on our continent, and our leaders should come back down to earth and do some serious work to get our nations ahead, never mind our continent.

Once our nation states are in fact sustainable, stronger, stable and on a path of sustainable development, then maybe the time is right to look at a UNoA.

Sometimes i cover my eyes to be an African. The reason being the abundance of idiotic leaders we have who cannot call a spade a spade.

If we act in a way that makes people regard us in a particular fashion, then cry foul of sterotyping...What else shoulda right thinking human think?

See African Union was once led by buffoons like Idi amin of Ugada, we had the Bokassas, the Mengistus who not suprisingly has found solace and hibernation in Mugabes Zimbabwe.

This guy wrecks his country , behaves like a mad man in Rome, has no understanding of the term global warming , makes an arrpgant idiot of himself with his robustly large and useless entourage, attacks some imaginary colonial masters....Yet other African leaders are so quiet.

Sometimes ago I made some comments in this forum, having stayed 7 years in Namibia.

The trend that i have found that our leaders are a shambolic failure and abuse the trust of their people. True the colonialists divided and ruled us , men that was yongs ago, things have changed, we now abuse ourselves. We now hurt ourselves, the first place i heard the word foreigner in my life was in the southern african region , in fact the word was ALIEN it was stuck boldly at the airports... I tried a lot to see hope in the region southern Africa, i mean , as oposed to the cesspool of the West Africa I came from, regards to the need for unity, abolition of corruption, accountability of leaders , unity on all fronts , brotherliness ..rather than xenophobia and propanganda.

I was told that these things and mistakes in the rest of Africa will never repeat in the region. How wrong was I?. Very Wrong, the leadrs have manipulated the uninformed because of their own failings.....WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE BLACK MAN?.

I am no fool and no racist for I am a black man and have never seen a people so nice in my life , accomodating, caring and not self-centred being ruled by the most vicious vermins called leaders.

We so often cut our noses to spite our faces.

What we must know is that we do ot have any friends and the fact does not make someone who is not our enemy a friend just because he is black or african.

How else can you explain Sudan and Somalia where African union troups are killed by Africans or is it better put Arabs who claim to be Africans?

Or how would you explain the shameless display of the African leaders at Rome or on the issue in Darfur or the chinese rape and support for pogroms against black sudanese....Common where are all the aluta people explain these eggheads... Not to be disillusioned as a hopeful and religious person is not human... This continent has failed and is failing.

It should not be , We have a God who is able to help and has helped.. with all the crises in the west, financial , food etc The agro revolution that has always being the key to empowerment is set upon us again and we are not taking the opportunities n our hands.
I expect a discourse on this issues.

In total agreement .... IF we continue to keep the current bunch of "leaders"!

I don't believe in Father Christmas or the Terminator! But I do believe in Father Time!

Vergeet dit mense! Daar is nie eens nations wat united is in Africa, never mind 'n united nations of Africa. Pipedream en ook nie iets wat nodig is op hierdie oomblik.

The real question that has to be answered here is rather can different cultures and a language groups form up a goverment that will last.

Lets say we doi get the good leaders and the perfect goverment bits working, I do not believe it will be atainable currently. Look in Belguim the strife between The french speaking and Dutch speaking citizen there, no working goverment currently. Then their was the whole former JoegoSlawia thing. Nigeria with is multitude of cultures and languages.

Thus language and culture are real barriers here to be dealt with as the most critical issue.

Originally Posted by Patriot007

The real question that has to be answered here is rather can different cultures and a language groups form up a goverment that will last.

Lets say we doi get the good leaders and the perfect goverment bits working, I do not believe it will be attainable currently. Look in Belguim the strife between The french speaking and Dutch speaking citizen there, no working goverment currently. Then their was the whole former JoegoSlawia thing. Nigeria with is multitude of cultures and languages.

Thus language and culture are real barriers here to be dealt with as the most critical issue.

Completely agree, Patriot007 - This is also not a project that is a priority of rour people and I honestly don't think the AU should spend any scarce resoruce on pursuing it. Many of our countries are not even able to hold themselves together economically, socially, culturally and politically and how on earth are we to hold together our Continent. Let's get real! It's one thing to dream, and quite another to dream up something that is truly attainable. Looka t the AU now. It's a talkshop, little else, and it does not have the resources to fulfill its mandate and role as it is.