Africa Bitter LegacyIntroductionHe did it yet again, President Donald Trump said something offensive about poor countries occupied by individuals who are not white. Whilst appearing at an immigration meeting with a bipartisan group of senators President Trump, called some countries occupied by black and Latino people as “shithole” countries. During this meeting Trump was talking about Haiti, El Salvador and African countries.
In the following essay from an educational point of view I’m going to employ my understanding of African philosophy to try and solve the fundamental problem that is implied by President Donald Trump that there is a dysfunctionality in South Africa.ContentCrumbling power structureThe unpleasant events that occurred during colonialism the world formed a perception of Africa. The challenges the colonial order was faced with in the end led to angry questions and reactions out of which African philosophy emerged and European colonies in Asia and Africa were liberated. According to (Higgs, 2000) unlike the Westerners who are known to put the individual as the center of life, African thought are known to put the community as the center of life. But why are Africa left faced with the problem that is being implied by Trump, struggling rural communities would beg to differ, for example Isivivane Senior Secondary School. According to City Press Isivivane Senior Secondary School has been described as one of the worst schools in South Africa with a 0% matric pass rate in 2016. (stats) bron Since (specific time) Africa has been dominated by unequal power structures.
These unequal power structures consist of the government, department of basic education, department of health etc. The heads leading these power structures all seem to have something in common, lack of education, which is considerably ironic, because these individuals who are promising equal education to people are uneducated. Not Leading by exampleThe main concern is that some of Africa’s leaders such as Robert Mugabe, Jacob Zuma, Julius Malema, and Muhammadu Issoufou, president of Nigeria, have all been a far cry from being a noble example. These ‘leaders’ often talk about fighting corruption but there has been little to no action regarding the implementation of an equal and working educational system in Africa. If we want to solve the fundamental problem of being a shithole country as implied by Trump, political corruption must be dealt with, only then can we have an equal educational system that everyone, including educators, learners, community and ultimately the country will benefit from. Because of improper budget spending, limited access to education, poor schooling and corrupt educational systems in South Africa, millions of children and adults are being deprived of their right to knowledge (Anon, 2013). The real problem that Isivivane Senior Secondary School and other schools in Africa face is the poor state of resourcing and infrastructure, this specific school has no such thing as a library or computer and science laboratory. Schools lack water, electricity and sanitation, because of these circumstances how can one expect learners to perform well and contribute to the growth of the economy.
Ultimately the outcome of this can result in the school shutting down after being established 26 years ago in 1992. The community and parents have tried their best to stop attempts of closing Isivivane Senior Secondary School. According to the community and parents the Department of Basic Education has failed them and their children. https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/the-worst-school-in-sa-20180113United we stand
