KDPM

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Just Remove the Roadblocks!

Okot p'Bitek


Commenting recently on a recommendation that was given by the Report of the New Commission On the Skills of the American Workforce which asked that American students from less priviledged/high risk neighbourhoods be given more resources to enable them receive quality education and compete with the other American students, one good person surprised me by retorting sarcastically "just give them a bunch of money and new parents!"

The bottom line for the ordinary person can only be summarized by the main character in Okot p’Bitek’s poem, Song of an African Woman. Addressing her man, she says: "I have only one request. I do not ask for money, although I have need for it. I do not ask for meat, although I could do with some. I have only one request. And all I ask is that you remove the roadblock from my path!" In other words, people will not be excited by grand gestures, although they could do with some. What they want is for every government to remove the roadblocks planted in their path.

1 comment:

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