A couple of years ago, we published the words of President J.J. Rawlings of Ghana on Betrayal. Let’s take a trip down memory lane to revisit that article published here on Afrolegends in 2020, where Rawlings talks about African identity, betrayal and much more. As Amilcar Cabral said, “Let no one tell us that Nkrumah died of a cancer to the throat or some other disease; no, Nkrumah has been killed by the cancer of betrayal …“; the cancer of betrayal is a true gangrene to progress in Africa, how many leaders has it claimed?
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In the video below, you will hear J.J. Rawlings talk about the issues always discussed on this blog: the loss of the African soul to westernization, the danger of traitors within the ranks, and more importantly the dangers of globalization. People should really pay attention to all he has to say about betrayal, African identity, and also about the manipulations of the people by the triumvirate that is the multinationals, the media, and the intelligence.
On betrayal, Jerry Rawlings said, “Something that is worse than an enemy is a traitor.” This is very reminiscent of the speech Amilcar Cabral gave at the funeral of Ghana’s first president Kwame Nkrumah on May 13, 1972, which I translated to English here on Afrolegends, “The Cancer of Betrayal” by Amilcar Cabral. J.J. adds, “As bad as an enemy can be, … something worse than an enemy is a traitor.”
On African identity, Rawlings affirmed, “In the process of trying to modernize, we [Africans] have ended up being westernized. … When I wanted to even name my children African names, heroic names, … the catholic church said no… they will have to be catholic names … [which] are European names.“… “I have a right to my identity, don’t take away my identity!“
“Christianize me if you may, but don’t westernize me!” He talks about the issues of African identity, which is powerfully shown in the poem ‘My Name’ by Magoleng wa Selepe.
On globalization, “The world is manipulated by the multinational corporations, the media, and the intelligence apparatus, … they work as a triumvirate and they are neatly sandwiched… in between the governed people and the governors… the sooner we begin to return, restore, some sense of morality in business ethics, in politics, in the media, intelligence apparatus, …” apply the same morality to all, especially when talking about globalization, applying the same moral standards to all.
African Heritage 
It disturbs my very soul. The stripping away of everything that God Himself has given unto us as men and women of immense intelligence and beauty. Who have we wronged to foster such hatred and bitterness towards and upon us? I think that we are more like God than the world would care to admit. Mankind fears that which they cannot readily understand or explain. Even an enslaved human never forgets that they were created to be free!
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Thanks for sharing Ellen. Your question is very deep. I am not sure that there is an answer to it, but the first step is for us to rise up, and stand up for ourselves in spite of any adversity.
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I recall when I went Ghana, I was surprised by how many people were wearing western attire; polo shits, skinny jeans, etc. The tour group I went with wore African attire daily. I wonder how long it’ll before all of Africa becomes completely westernized, if someone doesn’t reverse this trend.
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It is so true… that is why Thomas Sankara of Burkina Faso had set a day, Friday, to wear national attire, the Faso dan Fani – https://afrolegends.com/2015/12/17/faso-dan-fani-woven-cloth-of-the-homeland/
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