New South Sudan; Lessons Kenyans should learn

By Caleb Mutua

It is now official that Africa has 54 countries after South Sudan was declared a republic on 9th July 2011.

I spent most of that day watching one country representative speaker after another pledge their support for the new nation. The Chinese representative tickled my ribs with his accent and pronunciation and I wished he had stayed on the podium a bit longer.

Watching a nation come to birth reminded me of our struggle for independence and the celebrations that followed after we became independent. This also made me think of how important sovereignty and democracy is.

The thought that the South Sudanese were free and on their own made them dance and jump up and down. Some did not bother with the speeches, they hugged and held hands cheering. They were starting history. They had the chance to try and make all the right moves to build their country.

At that moment, I imagined myself in Juba at Dr John Garang’s Mausoleum and wished I had a chance to speak to the people of South Sudan.

If I had that opportunity, I would tell them the secret of success. I would tell them why many African countries could not feed themselves depite decades of independence. I would tell them why many African leaders had failed their people and continued to be referred as “rich beggars. I would even tell them why Africa’s economy is poor.

I would tell them to avoid all types of corruption.

First published on 12th July 2011.