Remembering Komla Dumor, a Great Ambassador for Ghana



BBC World Service/Flickr

We lost Nelson Mandela and Prof Ewurama Addy recently, and now we've lost iconic BBC world service presenter Komla Dumor, aged 41. His death was received with shock in Ghana, Africa and other parts of the world. He discharged his journalistic duties with enthusiasm, style and excellence to the admiration of all. Komla was an inspirational figure and ultimate role model for many young Ghanaians, so his death was painful indeed.

I've never met or interacted with Mr Dumor. Everything I know about him was derived from his work on radio, TV and online. Back in our university dorms at Legon, where Joy FM super morning show was a staple, we relied on the incisive questions and analyses of Komla and his colleagues to gain understanding of the everyday issues of Ghana and beyond. The kind of broadcasting practised by the likes of Komla Dumor, Kwaku Sakyi-Addo, and Stan Dogbe at the time was hard to come by in Ghana. Watching Komla Dumor play leading roles at BBC through Focus on Africa, World News, FIFA World Cup and Nelson Mandela funeral coverage was a source of pride for me as a Ghanaian. He eruditely discharged his duties to wide acclaim, again demonstrating that Africans can excel in any endeavour when given the opportunity. It is therefore not surprising that Komla is widely celebrated by all who know him and his work, amidst the grief of his passing. Ghana's online community has been forthcoming with fitting tributes, which Jemila Abdulai and I compiled together for BloggingGhana. Read our compilation on bloggingghana.org.

 Komla Dumor's success was achieved through hard work and perseverance. This is an important lesson for all ambitious young people: experiencing failures and trials on the journey of life is akin to the refinement process gold goes through in fire. You can only get better! Komla gave similar insights through his talk on "going global" during Springboard 2013 road show (Koforidua).

Did you ever meet Komla Dumor or follow his work? What is the most important lesson that you picked up from his life? Komla, dzudzɔ le nutifafa me!

African Spring Not the Best Way Forward

Picture Credit: Project Syndicate

The Arab Spring: pro-democracy uprisings currently sweeping the Middle East and North Africa. 

This wave of "revolutions" was said to be sparked by the self-immolation of now famed Mohammed Bouazizi,  who was crashed by the seizure of his fruit cart and ill-treatment by a municipal official in his native Sidi Bouzid, after his computer science degree could not bring his many dreams to life in Tunisia. According to experts, his sad story angered many, fuelling protests on the streets of Sidi Bouzid, Tunis and elsewhere in the North African country. Almost suddenly, Tunisians' eyes were opened to the prevailing ambiance of corruption, social stagnation and dictatorship, which pushed Mohammed to end his young life. The protests boiled on and persisted, against hardline measures by security officials, until the erstwhile president, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, a man who has been at the summit of power for 23 years, stepped down. The heroics of the Tunisian people were told, replayed and propagated by the powerful Western media, Al-Jazeera and social media. Soon citizens of countries in the region: Egypt, Libya, Jordan, Syria, Morrocco, among others started their own protests, giving birth to what academics and journalists called the Arab Spring.

Granted that conditions similar to what precipitated the Arab spring persist in Africa, south of the Sahara, the question has been posed by the BBC in its Africa Debate "is an African spring necessary?" Is an "African spring" looming on the 2012 horizon?

My honest answer is no. The violence, deaths and destructions resulting from protests are not what Africa needs at this moment. In fact, Africa has had its fair share of coups and realignments in its social order, some of which it has not recovered from yet. Malawian academic Jimmy Kainja expresses this thought better:

African Spring in the exact fashion of the Arab Spring would signify a step backwards - not a step forward.

In fact, it would make a mockery of all that the majority of African countries achieved in the late 1980s and the early 1990s - when they did away with dictators and presidents-for-life in favour of multiparty democracies.

It is commonly held that "a problem, once identified is half solved." What needs to be done in Africa is refinement of our democratic systems so as to get them to work in the way we want. In many African countries, government goes and government comes, but still the people see no change. Protests and wars, resulting in deaths, injuries and destruction of valuable national assets will not bring immediate solutions to our socio-economic problems. I don't see the change whatever government any uprising raises will bring. However, if we continue setting up governance structures, going after corrupt officials, voting out incompetent governments, cutting down on discrimination in its many forms, building patriotic consciousness and collaborating meaningfully with the larger world, we stand a better chance at progress.

And while angry citizens are calming down, looking for alternate paths towards socio-economic development and fulfillment, those in authority should be reminded that whatever offices they occupy should be in the service of the people. It will take only time for pent-up feelings and frustrations of deprived souls to reach that critical mass to explode Arab spring style. Institutional renewal should be catalysed immediately through governance reforms that would bring efficiency and results to the people. 

Youth development, starting with our educational systems, should be at the centre of any strategy to pave the way forward. The youth themselves are taking many initiatives to bring change to their communities and beyond. Their efforts must be supported through the creation of jobs, scholarship opportunities, skills training, funding among others. The youth are our future, they hold the key to the Africa we want to see. The blood of the likes of Mohammed should not be on our heads.