A Letter to African Presidents

Dear Presidents,

These are the words of the invisible voices that have echoed for decades. Our grievances have been swept under the social carpet for far too long. This time, we want to be heard. From demonstrations to hashtags, signing petitions, and gradually taking the devil’s way. This is our era. Yesterday is far gone. We are living in a new world where we undoubtedly create the trend.

We lack the basic necessity a country owes its youth. We have been deprived of many things. From unemployment to poor sanitation, unfair treatment in schools, stress in doing what is right. Mr. President, the list is endless. We have innumerable entrepreneurs on the continents.

We have great minds that are willing to change the narrative. This is the reality, several entrepreneurs in the universities have to quit the businesses they started and serve the nation for one year by working for other firms as national service personnel which we are not disputing because it’s mandatory.

These entrepreneurs are the real heroes serving the nation by creating other jobs. Most university graduates are placed in bigger institutions and given little allowances to commute to work. Many who finish the service, hoping to get retained or secure other jobs end up on social media searching for alternative means. The job market is tailored to favor the few.

We are an exciting generation. We have wild and creative ideas which your generation might term as “unserious”. We are the reason why the world is changing fast with technology, just to keep up with the way we and the future wild ones think. In as much as most of your leaders are endowed with so much wisdom, you can’t rule a country using the same old stiff method today like you did years before especially when the youth make up the majority

We are suffering from police brutality, sexual assault before jobs are given out. We are suffering from low funds to start our business. We are suffering from high tax levies on our existing business. We are suffering from inadequate power supply to work and bad roads. We are facing nepotism. We are being prepared for something we don’t want to become. They are schooling us but not educating us.

Stop arresting us for doing the wrong things and solve the reason why we engaged in such practice. Stop expecting us to live in a certain way when we have been given no choice. Most of us learned more in life than the classrooms . Yes, our ways are not perfect Mr. President, we are working on it. Create equal opportunities for us. The old should step aside when the time is up and allow us to occupy that position. Allow us to also make decisions on the round table. Create an enabling environment to allow us live.

Give us the chance and we will help you transform the continent. Yes, we can.

signed.

written by

Benedicta Dorcas Tetteh

dhorcey@gmail.com