Mereja Forum

[justo]

Isiaias visited Jimma and Asosa and on the news videos we could see that Asosa and Jimma airports seemed to be more modern than Asmara airport. There is absolutely no excuse for this. Isaias has to work to transform and modernise Eritrea, and this means modern facilities everywhere including the cities. He has no time to waste in this and development projects in far-off regions are no substitutes for this.

[Halafi Mengedi]

Isiaias visited Jimma and Asosa and on the news videos we could see that Asosa and Jimma airports seemed to be more modern than Asmara airport. There is absolutely no excuse for this. Isaias has to work to transform and modernise Eritrea, and this means modern facilities everywhere including the cities. He has no time to waste in this and development projects in far-off regions are no substitutes for this.

You are saying he has to loot more and more and very fast???

[justo]

You are saying he has to loot more and more and very fast???

Shushshshshsshshshshshs. This is not the outpatient clinic for treating autism, you've come to the wrong place

[Halafi Mengedi]

You are saying he has to loot more and more and very fast???

Shushshshshsshshshshshs. This is not the outpatient clinic for treating autism, you've come to the wrong place

What do you think Issayas failed to modernize them for the last 30 years, because his hand is tight and there is no means to do anything unless he loots. That is the reason you have been crying for the last 30 years, independent depend on others looted wealth???

[justo]

What do you think Issayas failed to modernize them for the last 30 years, because his hand is tight and there is no means to do anything unless he loots. That is the reason you have been crying for the last 30 years, independent depend on others looted wealth???

Did I misspell "Shushshshshsshshshshsh", I seem to have spelled it correctly.
What part of "Shushshshshsshshshshsh" is that you don't understand?

[Halafi Mengedi]

What do you think Issayas failed to modernize them for the last 30 years, because his hand is tight and there is no means to do anything unless he loots. That is the reason you have been crying for the last 30 years, independent depend on others looted wealth???

Did I misspell "Shushshshshsshshshshsh", I seem to have spelled it correctly.
What part of "Shushshshshsshshshshsh" is that you don't understand?

Why make you to think Issayas to modernize his infrastructure now he did not do for the last 30 years, because he got an access to loot others wealth???

[justo]

Edu shukor scared of the "shushshshshshsh" sign, does not dare enter justo's den

[Fiyameta]

Jimma and Asossa were never under UN sanctions due to tens of thousands of their sons were used as sacrificial lambs in wars fought in far away lands on behalf of foreign powers in exchange for a line of credit from international loan sharks, whose beneficiaries were Chinese state-owned companies that built the infrastructure using their own manpower to the detriment of the unemployed Ethiopian youth who find themselves saddled with ballooning debt for literally decades. When you're only looking at the infrastructure you may lose sight of the bigger picture, but scratch at the infrastructure and underneath you will see a nation chained to a heavy steel ball. Not a super fun sight if you ask me.

As for us Eritreans, we are content with the infrastructure we have, for we enjoy living within our means and without putting financial burden on the younger generation. We have given high priority to providing quality education to empower our youth with the necessary set of skills and knowledge they need to build their own Airports themselves, as opposed to borrowing billions of dollars from the World Bank and hiring Chinese companies and workers to do the work we can do ourselves. It may take us a while to build the infrastructure, but we will build it ourselves nonetheless, for patience is our greatest ally and time is on our side. We Eritreans have no desire to become a trophy wife for international loan sharks and banking cartels. Watch this....

[justo]

Jimma and Asossa were never under UN sanctions due to tens of thousands of their sons were used as sacrificial lambs in wars fought in far away lands on behalf of foreign powers in exchange for a line of credit from international loan sharks, whose beneficiaries were Chinese state-owned companies that built the infrastructure using their own manpower to the detriment of the unemployed Ethiopian youth who find themselves saddled with ballooning debt for literally decades. When you're only looking at the infrastructure you may lose sight of the bigger picture, but scratch at the infrastructure and underneath you will see a nation chained to a heavy steel ball. Not a super fun sight if you ask me.

As for us Eritreans, we are content with the infrastructure we have, for we enjoy living within our means and without putting financial burden on the younger generation. We have given high priority to providing quality education to empower our youth with the necessary set of skills and knowledge they need to build their own Airports themselves, as opposed to borrowing billions of dollars from the World Bank and hiring Chinese companies and workers to do the work we can do ourselves. It may take us a while to build the infrastructure, but we will build it ourselves nonetheless, for patience is our greatest ally and time is on our side. We Eritreans have no desire to become a trophy wife for international loan sharks and banking cartels. Watch this....

I like your basic attitude, but I am not convinced that we cannot do better. It is not like we're operating at the absolut maximal and absolut optimal level.

Within the grand Eritrean vision, there should be room for improvement and room for things that inspire the fertile mind of our children. We need things that nurture us and things that inspire us. No attitude or excuse should block or dampen our aspirations for greatness.

[Weyane.is.dead]

Cuba went through something identical

[Fiyameta]

Jimma and Asossa were never under UN sanctions due to tens of thousands of their sons were used as sacrificial lambs in wars fought in far away lands on behalf of foreign powers in exchange for a line of credit from international loan sharks, whose beneficiaries were Chinese state-owned companies that built the infrastructure using their own manpower to the detriment of the unemployed Ethiopian youth who find themselves saddled with ballooning debt for literally decades. When you're only looking at the infrastructure you may lose sight of the bigger picture, but scratch at the infrastructure and underneath you will see a nation chained to a heavy steel ball. Not a super fun sight if you ask me.

As for us Eritreans, we are content with the infrastructure we have, for we enjoy living within our means and without putting financial burden on the younger generation. We have given high priority to providing quality education to empower our youth with the necessary set of skills and knowledge they need to build their own Airports themselves, as opposed to borrowing billions of dollars from the World Bank and hiring Chinese companies and workers to do the work we can do ourselves. It may take us a while to build the infrastructure, but we will build it ourselves nonetheless, for patience is our greatest ally and time is on our side. We Eritreans have no desire to become a trophy wife for international loan sharks and banking cartels. Watch this....

I like your basic attitude, but I am not convinced that we cannot do better. It is not like we're operating at the absolut maximal and absolut optimal level.

Within the grand Eritrean vision, there should be room for improvement and room for things that inspire the fertile mind of our children. We need things that nurture us and things that inspire us. No attitude or excuse should block or dampen our aspirations for greatness.

It's all about priorities. A father who tells his children that he cannot afford to send them to school, yet borrows money from the bank to finance some home improvement projects, hasn't set his priorities straight. The house may look decent from the outside, but inside there lives a family that needs saving from the darkness of illiteracy, and as the saying goes: "where there's illiteracy, there's always violence and chaos."

In a country where over 80,000 people continue to scavenge for food on a landfill site, and an estimated 20 million people live on the brink of starvation, I fail to understand the logic behind having Chinese-built airports springing up like mushrooms to cater the needs of the country's top 1%, while the bottom 99% is made to bear the brunt of national debt, whose benefits they never received. Keeping majority of the population illiterate prevents the people from knowing and demanding their rights to education, healthcare and social services. For such people, an airport is a luxury not a necessity.

The Eritrean vision is to have a majority middle-class population by producing a well-educated workforce. We're laying the foundation vital for socio-economic development by utilizing our own human and material resources. That's what China, Singapore and other self-reliant nations did to reach their dreams of becoming great economic powers. They built roads before they built airports. They educated their people before they put them to work. Some 60 years ago, a Chinese premier visiting Singapore marveled in awe as he watched young Singaporeans assembling transistor radios, digital calculators and watches, as well as many other electronic equipment, jobs that require an educated workforce. The premier returned to China and made education the top priority of his government's policy and, as we all know it, the rest is history.

But that's not to say there weren't a few Chinese who saw new airports in debt-ridden Philippines and wondered why they couldn't have the same in China. Today, however, China is one of the major aid donors to the heavily-indebted Philippines. It's priority, priority, priority!

[eritrea]

The Eritrean vision is to have a majority middle-class population by producing a well-educated workforce. We're laying the foundation vital for socio-economic development by utilizing our own human and material resources. That's what China, Singapore and other self-reliant nations did to reach their dreams of becoming great economic powers. They built roads before they built airports. They educated their people before they put them to work. Some 60 years ago, a Chinese premier visiting Singapore marveled in awe as he watched young Singaporeans assembling transistor radios, digital calculators and watches, as well as many other electronic equipment, jobs that require an educated workforce. The premier returned to China and made education the top priority of his government's policy and, as we all know it, the rest is history.

[Afdeyu]

Justo,
you must be an agame to wish modernizing our capital city to the levels of Jimma, Assosa, or Mekelle airport.
I agree with your comment 100%, just being sarcastic

Personal experience, few years ago we traveled to Eritrea and we had teenager cousins who were visiting Eritrea for the first time, before we traveled we told them how Eritrea is modern and all that... we landed in Asmara and the first thing was we went to the restroom and it was embarrassing without going into detail... by the way our transit was Dubai so the comparison was no fair of course... the teenagers with us at the time now college students were asked to go with us again summer 2020 (trip canceled due to corona) and their response was no thank you. We’ll pass... Eritrea lost potential tourist for a long time.
We went to Beautiful old Havana, Cuba a year before that Trip and reminded me of Eritrea.
Eritrea and Cuba are cursed with the disease of hybrid socialist communist mindset at the highest level. China was a victim of that disease until the 1980. Issu doesn’t see the value of moderation of the capital and unfortunately Asmara will decay until he dies. The man has a flawed way of thinking when it comes to development and stuck ideology of the 1960’s.
You got to give him credit for outlasting the enemy # 1 of yesterday dead tplf, but wishing Asmara to modernize is dead on arrival,... not gonna happen under the current leadership.
The good thing is the warsay generation has learned a lot and knows clearly the contrast of yesterdays experience and on how to take the country to the vision —-EritreanS have for it ,prosperous and developed homeland.

Sesenayu

Isiaias visited Jimma and Asosa and on the news videos we could see that Asosa and Jimma airports seemed to be more modern than Asmara airport. There is absolutely no excuse for this. Isaias has to work to transform and modernise Eritrea, and this means modern facilities everywhere including the cities. He has no time to waste in this and development projects in far-off regions are no substitutes for this.

[quindibu]

Justo,
you must be an agame to wish modernizing our capital city to the levels of Jimma, Assosa, or Mekelle airport.
I agree with your comment 100%, just being sarcastic

Personal experience, few years ago we traveled to Eritrea and we had teenager cousins who were visiting Eritrea for the first time, before we traveled we told them how Eritrea is modern and all that... we landed in Asmara and the first thing was we went to the restroom and it was embarrassing without going into detail... by the way our transit was Dubai so the comparison was no fair of course... the teenagers with us at the time now college students were asked to go with us again summer 2020 (trip canceled due to corona) and their response was no thank you. We’ll pass... Eritrea lost potential tourist for a long time.
We went to Beautiful old Havana, Cuba a year before that Trip and reminded me of Eritrea.
Eritrea and Cuba are cursed with the disease of hybrid socialist communist mindset at the highest level. China was a victim of that disease until the 1980. Issu doesn’t see the value of moderation of the capital and unfortunately Asmara will decay until he dies. The man has a flawed way of thinking when it comes to development and stuck ideology of the 1960’s.
You got to give him credit for outlasting the enemy # 1 of yesterday dead tplf, but wishing Asmara to modernize is dead on arrival,... not gonna happen under the current leadership.
The good thing is the warsay generation has learned a lot and knows clearly the contrast of yesterdays experience and on how to take the country to the vision —-EritreanS have for it ,prosperous and developed

Hmmm......Agames and your anecdotal evidence never end.

Here is another version for you......

Somehow I was just wondering had the fraction of the money your Agames wasted on your 'feel-good' projects spent on buying things like......chemicals to fight locusts, would it have saved us from the images that are coming from your god forsaken kilil?

What is mind boggling to me is, as people who exist by the goodwill of the western world, you should be the last people to lecture anyone about modernity or civility. Retard!

BTW: Justo is a proud Eritrean and he has every right to demand from the government whatever he deems is good for Eritrea!

Please wait, video is loading...

[justo]

It's all about priorities. A father who tells his children that he cannot afford to send them to school, yet borrows money from the bank to finance some home improvement projects, hasn't set his priorities straight. The house may look decent from the outside, but inside there lives a family that needs saving from the darkness of illiteracy, and as the saying goes: "where there's illiteracy, there's always violence and chaos."

In a country where over 80,000 people continue to scavenge for food on a landfill site, and an estimated 20 million people live on the brink of starvation, I fail to understand the logic behind having Chinese-built airports springing up like mushrooms to cater the needs of the country's top 1%, while the bottom 99% is made to bear the brunt of national debt, whose benefits they never received. Keeping majority of the population illiterate prevents the people from knowing and demanding their rights to education, healthcare and social services. For such people, an airport is a luxury not a necessity.

The Eritrean vision is to have a majority middle-class population by producing a well-educated workforce. We're laying the foundation vital for socio-economic development by utilizing our own human and material resources. That's what China, Singapore and other self-reliant nations did to reach their dreams of becoming great economic powers. They built roads before they built airports. They educated their people before they put them to work. Some 60 years ago, a Chinese premier visiting Singapore marveled in awe as he watched young Singaporeans assembling transistor radios, digital calculators and watches, as well as many other electronic equipment, jobs that require an educated workforce. The premier returned to China and made education the top priority of his government's policy and, as we all know it, the rest is history.

But that's not to say there weren't a few Chinese who saw new airports in debt-ridden Philippines and wondered why they couldn't have the same in China. Today, however, China is one of the major aid donors to the heavily-indebted Philippines. It's priority, priority, priority!

I cannot claim to be an expert, but I don't think China waited until it got a majority middle-class soceity before embarking on development. China, even today does not have a majority middle-calss society.

It is one thing to promote social justice (which is basic Eritrean tenet), but another thing to hold development hostage to it. We cannot wait until the last person in the last corner of the country has joined the middle-class before embarking on modernising society. There are people in far off Eritrea who do not have basic hospital services, but that doesn't mean it was wrong to build Orota hospital. And there are people some where in Eritrea who live in tents, was it then misguided priority to build Asmara Palace Hotel or Naqfa House or the different housing projects until every one of these got a proper shelter.

This is not a new debate, there were people who argued it was wrong to send man to the moon, while there were hungry people on earth. We have to multi-task, there has to be a balance between ideology and pragmatic solutions.

Otherwise, it would be like saying government officials shouldn't wear suit until every Eritrean has got decent clothing. Not even in Jesus country would this be practical.

[eritrea]

I cannot claim to be an expert, but I don't think China waited until it got a majority middle-class soceity before embarking on development. China, even today does not have a majority middle-calss society.

It is one thing to promote social justice (which is basic Eritrean tenet), but another thing to hold development hostage to it. We cannot wait until the last person in the last corner of the country has joined the middle-class before embarking on modernising society. There are people in far off Eritrea who do not have basic hospital services, but that doesn't mean it was wrong to build Orota hospital. And there are people some where in Eritrea who live in tents, was it then misguided priority to build Asmara Palace Hotel or Naqfa House or the different housing projects until every one of these got a proper shelter.

This is not a new debate, there were people who argued it was wrong to send man to the moon, while there were hungry people on earth. We have to multi-task, there has to be a balance between ideology and pragmatic solutions.

Otherwise, it would be like saying government officials shouldn't wear suit until every Eritrean has got decent clothing. Not even in Jesus country would this be practical.

I can't tell you how proud you made me today because you showed your inner desire and wish for you country and people and officially aknowledged what your soul having been knocking you all this time. 30 years of honeymoon and the time of being taken forgrantted is over any more.

[Deqi-Arawit]

Isiaias visited Jimma and Asosa and on the news videos we could see that Asosa and Jimma airports seemed to be more modern than Asmara airport. There is absolutely no excuse for this. Isaias has to work to transform and modernise Eritrea, and this means modern facilities everywhere including the cities. He has no time to waste in this and development projects in far-off regions are no substitutes for this.

From been Weizero Justina , you earned yourself a new title which is Ato Justo. And regardless how you address me or how you engage in any discussion with me in the future, you just have earned my respect. ኣገናዕ!!!!ካብዘን ሕልንአን ሽይጠን መጋበርያ ኮይነን ነቲ ሓቂ ሓሶት፣ ነቂ ቅኑዕ ጌጋ እዩ ዝብላ ኣኽላባት ሰማይ ከምዘይኮንካ ኣፍሊጥካ!

[Deqi-Arawit]

It's all about priorities. A father who tells his children that he cannot afford to send them to school, yet borrows money from the bank to finance some home improvement projects, hasn't set his priorities straight. The house may look decent from the outside, but inside there lives a family that needs saving from the darkness of illiteracy, and as the saying goes: "where there's illiteracy, there's always violence and chaos."

In a country where over 80,000 people continue to scavenge for food on a landfill site, and an estimated 20 million people live on the brink of starvation, I fail to understand the logic behind having Chinese-built airports springing up like mushrooms to cater the needs of the country's top 1%, while the bottom 99% is made to bear the brunt of national debt, whose benefits they never received. Keeping majority of the population illiterate prevents the people from knowing and demanding their rights to education, healthcare and social services. For such people, an airport is a luxury not a necessity.

The Eritrean vision is to have a majority middle-class population by producing a well-educated workforce. We're laying the foundation vital for socio-economic development by utilizing our own human and material resources. That's what China, Singapore and other self-reliant nations did to reach their dreams of becoming great economic powers. They built roads before they built airports. They educated their people before they put them to work. Some 60 years ago, a Chinese premier visiting Singapore marveled in awe as he watched young Singaporeans assembling transistor radios, digital calculators and watches, as well as many other electronic equipment, jobs that require an educated workforce. The premier returned to China and made education the top priority of his government's policy and, as we all know it, the rest is history.

But that's not to say there weren't a few Chinese who saw new airports in debt-ridden Philippines and wondered why they couldn't have the same in China. Today, however, China is one of the major aid donors to the heavily-indebted Philippines. It's priority, priority, priority!

Revolution, Fiyameta and all the dozens of your alias can't convince the audience that 2+2 is =6. Nonetheless, for courteously reason, his eminence Uncle Deqi-Arawit is going to teach you some valuable lesson free of charge. A bank or any other financial institutions don't offer you loans unless there is a collateral or they are certain that you are going repay their loan with interest. Furthermore, if Eritrea was debt free as you are insinuating to be, your argument might be viewed as legit , but Eritrea, proportionally speaking has more debt than Ethiopia. This is data from 2018.

Ethiopia GDP is 84.6 billion USD [2018]
Eritrea GDP is 2.6 billion USD [2018]

Ethiopia debt 43,97 billion USD which is 61.04% of its GDP
Eritrea debt is 3,53 billion USD which is 174.31% of its GDP

Debt per capita
Eritrea = 690 USD
Ethiopia = 449 USD

As you can see, The debt of Eritrea is 174.31% of its GDP, while the debt of Ethiopia is 61.04% and every single Eritrean has 241 Dollar more debt than his Ethiopian counterpart. The question is, We don't have like those fancy looking Chinese build airports as you claimed and we are more indebted than our Ethiopian counterparts, Where is the money?

[Sabur]

Right on the Money Deqi-Arawit:

These are the fancy looking buildings of our beloved city Asmara. Courtesy of wedi medhin berad Isayas Plan, the destruction of Eritrea and the Eritrean People.

Cinema Capitol -Asmara Eritrea's Capital City:






Savoya Hotel Massawa - Eritrea's Main Port City:

Revolution, Fiyameta and all the dozens of your alias can't convince the audience that 2+2 is =6. Nonetheless, for courteously reason, his eminence Uncle Deqi-Arawit is going to teach you some valuable lesson free of charge. A bank or any other financial institutions don't offer you loans unless there is a collateral or they are certain that you are going repay their loan with interest. Furthermore, if Eritrea was debt free as you are insinuating to be, your argument might be viewed as legit , but Eritrea, proportionally speaking has more debt than Ethiopia. This is data from 2018.

Ethiopia GDP is 84.6 billion USD [2018]
Eritrea GDP is 2.6 billion USD [2018]

Ethiopia debt 43,97 billion USD which is 61.04% of its GDP
Eritrea debt is 3,53 billion USD which is 174.31% of its GDP

Debt per capita
Eritrea = 690 USD
Ethiopia = 449 USD

As you can see, The debt of Eritrea is 174.31% of its GDP, while the debt of Ethiopia is 61.04% and every single Eritrean has 241 Dollar more debt than his Ethiopian counterpart. The question is, We don't have like those fancy looking Chinese build airports as you claimed and we are more indebted than our Ethiopian counterparts, Where is the money?

It's all about priorities. A father who tells his children that he cannot afford to send them to school, yet borrows money from the bank to finance some home improvement projects, hasn't set his priorities straight. The house may look decent from the outside, but inside there lives a family that needs saving from the darkness of illiteracy, and as the saying goes: "where there's illiteracy, there's always violence and chaos."

In a country where over 80,000 people continue to scavenge for food on a landfill site, and an estimated 20 million people live on the brink of starvation, I fail to understand the logic behind having Chinese-built airports springing up like mushrooms to cater the needs of the country's top 1%, while the bottom 99% is made to bear the brunt of national debt, whose benefits they never received. Keeping majority of the population illiterate prevents the people from knowing and demanding their rights to education, healthcare and social services. For such people, an airport is a luxury not a necessity.

The Eritrean vision is to have a majority middle-class population by producing a well-educated workforce. We're laying the foundation vital for socio-economic development by utilizing our own human and material resources. That's what China, Singapore and other self-reliant nations did to reach their dreams of becoming great economic powers. They built roads before they built airports. They educated their people before they put them to work. Some 60 years ago, a Chinese premier visiting Singapore marveled in awe as he watched young Singaporeans assembling transistor radios, digital calculators and watches, as well as many other electronic equipment, jobs that require an educated workforce. The premier returned to China and made education the top priority of his government's policy and, as we all know it, the rest is history.

But that's not to say there weren't a few Chinese who saw new airports in debt-ridden Philippines and wondered why they couldn't have the same in China. Today, however, China is one of the major aid donors to the heavily-indebted Philippines. It's priority, priority, priority!

[Fiyameta]

It's all about priorities. A father who tells his children that he cannot afford to send them to school, yet borrows money from the bank to finance some home improvement projects, hasn't set his priorities straight. The house may look decent from the outside, but inside there lives a family that needs saving from the darkness of illiteracy, and as the saying goes: "where there's illiteracy, there's always violence and chaos."

In a country where over 80,000 people continue to scavenge for food on a landfill site, and an estimated 20 million people live on the brink of starvation, I fail to understand the logic behind having Chinese-built airports springing up like mushrooms to cater the needs of the country's top 1%, while the bottom 99% is made to bear the brunt of national debt, whose benefits they never received. Keeping majority of the population illiterate prevents the people from knowing and demanding their rights to education, healthcare and social services. For such people, an airport is a luxury not a necessity.

The Eritrean vision is to have a majority middle-class population by producing a well-educated workforce. We're laying the foundation vital for socio-economic development by utilizing our own human and material resources. That's what China, Singapore and other self-reliant nations did to reach their dreams of becoming great economic powers. They built roads before they built airports. They educated their people before they put them to work. Some 60 years ago, a Chinese premier visiting Singapore marveled in awe as he watched young Singaporeans assembling transistor radios, digital calculators and watches, as well as many other electronic equipment, jobs that require an educated workforce. The premier returned to China and made education the top priority of his government's policy and, as we all know it, the rest is history.

But that's not to say there weren't a few Chinese who saw new airports in debt-ridden Philippines and wondered why they couldn't have the same in China. Today, however, China is one of the major aid donors to the heavily-indebted Philippines. It's priority, priority, priority!

I cannot claim to be an expert, but I don't think China waited until it got a majority middle-class soceity before embarking on development. China, even today does not have a majority middle-calss society.

It is one thing to promote social justice (which is basic Eritrean tenet), but another thing to hold development hostage to it. We cannot wait until the last person in the last corner of the country has joined the middle-class before embarking on modernising society. There are people in far off Eritrea who do not have basic hospital services, but that doesn't mean it was wrong to build Orota hospital. And there are people some where in Eritrea who live in tents, was it then misguided priority to build Asmara Palace Hotel or Naqfa House or the different housing projects until every one of these got a proper shelter.

This is not a new debate, there were people who argued it was wrong to send man to the moon, while there were hungry people on earth. We have to multi-task, there has to be a balance between ideology and pragmatic solutions.

Otherwise, it would be like saying government officials shouldn't wear suit until every Eritrean has got decent clothing. Not even in Jesus country would this be practical.

I remember listening to a foreign aid worker in Ethiopia expressing her frustrations over lack of paved roads in the country to be able to quickly deliver life-saving emergency supplies to drought affected regions. Then the donor nations came up with a modern solution to the age-old problem in the country, and they built new airports to be used for flights air dropping bags of emergency relief supplies onto food-starved, inaccessible drought-stricken regions, in a chaotic scene perfect for a Kodak moment, as desperately hungry people were seen running to collect the bags, in a struggle for existence ruled by the survival of the fittest. It's cool to have new airports, but it shouldn't come at the expense of the hungry people, is all that I'm saying.

To add insult to an injury, the donor nations included the name of their "aid darling" country onto the English Dictionary as an example for famine, as opposed to an example for modern airports, lending credence to the fact that, "he who feeds you, has earned the right to humiliate you." Of course, building roads could have spared the aid darling country all that humiliation, but with its self image placed at the center of its economic reforms the hands that could have used to build the roads are stretched out for food-aid, and the legs are running to retrieve the aid packages dropped from the air.

Most crisis in Africa are created by image conscious leaders worried sick about how people in developed countries perceive them than how their own people perceive them. And as a consequence, they put the cart before the horse when it comes to their economic policies, and when things go wrong, as they often do in the continent, they borrow billions of dollars to spend on Washington image cleaners and mainstream media covering up their incompetence, rather than solving the age-old problems themselves using pragmatic approach, once and for all. Acknowledging the value in every human life should be a core part of economic development and reform policies. The road to poverty is paved with aid dollars and debt, but the road less traveled to success is paved with hard-work, patience and perseverance. You see what I mean?