One African voice amongst a billion » Social Media

From Activist to President: Why Youssou Ndour shouldn’t be President of Senegal

marieme — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:30:43 +0000

Don’t get me wrong, I like Youssou Ndour. I have met him. I think he is a man of high calibre with extensive influence in Senegal and an international profile. His music has spoken to an entire generation and been heard around the world. He has never hesitated to raise his voice about social injustice and matters that touch the Senegalese grassroots. He is an entrepreneur who has invested in his country, creating jobs. In short, Youssou plays a positive role in Senegalese society.

But after weeks of speculation, I was surprised and disappointed to hear him announce on his own TV station his decision to stand for president of Senegal. It’s not that I think his apparent ambition is bad in itself. But I think that his candidacy is unlikely to succeed. And if it did, I do not think he is the right candidate for the job. If he won, his role would become more difficult, more overtly political – in the bad sense. He is far more valuable to Senegal as an activist than as an officially elected politician.

Civil society in Senegal is weak. It lacks direction and is full of nostalgia for the post-colonial renaissance of “l’Afrique noire”. People dream of change but there are few credible actors of change. Senegalese politics is a corrupt and shambolic family-run affair, with 173 parties jostling for power and influence. Certain political leaders don’t even understand their own manifestos, some of which are written in France and sent to them. Senegalese society is also dominated by a deeply entrenched class system, in which a small number of wealthy families and religious leaders carry great influence. The wider population, in particular the younger generation, are also weary of self-serving politicians and their unkept promises. The sad fact is that the country is divided and has never fully recovered since the departure of Léopold Sédar Senghor thirty years ago.

The class system is one of the biggest obstacles Youssou Ndour would need to overcome. Growing up as a young girl in Dakar, I used to see him regularly when he visited my Aunt Fatou Sall’s home. She was a wealthy and influential woman in Senegal and a fan of Youssou’s music. Her faith in him prompted her to contribute financially to his career. Many of his songs pay tribute to my family in Senegal. This patronage and that of other tightly-linked “good-blood” families in the past is a problem today; he needs their support but they will see him as opportunistic and greedy – not to mention under-qualified – and their backing would in any case weaken his independence and therefore his credibility.

The same goes for the religious leaders. No candidate is credible without their support. But to obtain it he would inevitably corrupt himself.

Then there is the Diaspora. Money talks in Senegal, and the Mourides and Tidjanes brotherhoods contribute around 1.4 BILLION US$ to the Senegalese economy each year. And they have also supported his career in the past.

And finally he would need to attract the younger generation. They are being inspired by developments elsewhere in the world – the Occupy movement and the Arab Spring in particular – and are beginning to flex their muscles by demonstrating, and not just on social media like Facebook and Twitter. Their support would be essential, but it would not sit easily with that of the old elites.

One thing that all these forces have in common is a doubt about his qualifications to do the job. Senegalese people were disappointed yesterday by his interview on TV5, when he failed to elaborate clearly on his policies. This is a legitimate concern and one he tries to address in his declaration. But a failure to lay out coherent policies will quickly sink his chances.

I believe his desire to stand has sound motivations, but I am not sure if his celebrity status will enable him to attract enough votes to win. Also, his need for support from entrenched secular elites, religious conservatives and the young would force him into fatal compromises. Finally, there are legitimate doubts within the Senegalese middle class and the youth about his ability to do the job.

Youssou Ndour is a unique figure in Senegalese culture. Most activists in Senegal are penniless and relatively powerless, but Youssou Ndour has the ear of many; a musician with entrepreneurial acumen, activism in his heart and mind, and positions on the advisory boards of various platforms for change and African development that enable him to influence policy while retaining political independence. Senegal wants and needs him. But he is far more valuable to his country in the role of a prominent and politically independent activist than as a president. I hope he will stand down.

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Africa in 140 characters

marieme — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 22:38:21 +0000

Africans are talking! Yes in 140 characters. Many have noticed the rise of Africans bloggers and interesting tweets about Africa recently. I love it! Why this is happening, asked Top Bloggers from the Twitter community… Well African has stories to tell I replied. For decades Africa story has interested millions of individuals. The real stories have not been told or 30% of them were reported inaccurately. For the African people, the oral tradition they are used to is linked to their way of life. Most African societies place great worth in oral tradition because it is a primary means of conveying culture. It is also a mode of transmitting feelings, and attitudes. For centuries, African people depended upon oral tradition to teach the listener’s important traditional values and morals pertaining to how to live. Oral tradition delivers explanations to the mysteries of the universe and the meaning of life on earth. In African religion, it is the guiding principle in which to make sense of the world. Oral tradition is non-written history, its spoken word only. Historically, most African societies did not have an invented alphabet. Before the invention of written language, and before the advent of widespread literacy, oral tradition was much more of a daily presence in people’s lives than it is in our world today. Nowadays, popular forms of storytelling in Western culture include movies, television and Social Media (Twitter, Facebook etc…)

West African storytelling, the Griots are the keepers of the culture, as their amazing memories and storytelling abilities allow them to keep alive the culture, history, and genealogies of their people.

We know that in Africa a voice was the vehicle in which knowledge was passed on from one generation to another. A single Voice unified a family, clan, or community. Enforcement of customs depended on voice. When a person died…his or her voice was no longer to be heard, it was as if a whole library had been destroyed. Voice is important in Africa. …Most African people did not invent an alphabet for the art of reading and writing. Therefore they could not keep written records of their history. Instead they passed on information form one generation to another, by word of mouth.

Not only Social media is encouraging African people to write, tell and share more stories that can be archived for the next generation it is also one of the vehicles of the Rebranding of Africa™.

I have seen the rise of excellent news site like AllFrica and Africa news.

Some of the African bloggers I have noticed in recent days are: @tmsruge @Ethnicsupplies, @directassist, @ajmunn @KengeGunya @HillsofAfrica @planyoursafari @thebestofzambia @schoelink @AcaciaAfrica @PinkSafaris @ontdeksafaris @InkosiAfrica @Mnashy, @mjamme

Keep blogging… @mjamme

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Tuttle Club in London

marieme — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:46:06 +0000

The Tuttle Club attendees really do have fun; I was one of them this morning and I did enjoy it. The Breakfast extended to lunch and took place at the InnPark- St James Park, I met really nice people with plenty of ideas. The ideas that can change our world; The Tuttle club was founded by Lloyd Davis who is a popular figure on the London Social Media Scene. Lloyd created the Tuttle club couples of years ago so people can get together, randomly, almost spontaneously, meet, discuss and share ideas. The meeting is very informal and its over a coffee or muffin, ideas flow literally instantaneously. People are relaxed, cool and friendly. Techno Bloggers, Journalist, techies, investors, PR experts, entrepreneurs and creator are amongst the attendees. Lloyds has created a new way of networking and clearly giving power to the people, the events is run by itself, “people get together and run it themselves literally” said Lloyd. They make their owns plans and choose a emplacement in London for meetings.

The Tuttle club is the modern networking, with thousand of networks out there; it has differentiated itself from the normal networking we are all use to.

The TedxTutle http://twitter.com/TEDxTuttle will take a place on the 17th of September 2009 and more events are planned in Europe. The First Tuttle club Africa will be announced very soon and will have its first event in Senegal.

Short Bio of Lloyd Davis.

Lloyd Davis is a popular figure on the London Social Media Scene. Lloyd has been blogging and podcasting since 2004 and with a diverse background that includes theatre, information management and public service he has acquired a unique, in-depth and practical understanding of how to use media and social networks on the web to build and sustain rich relationships online and off-.
In the last year, Lloyd has written and produced blog content for clients as diverse as BP, the World Health Care Congress and Surrey Primary Care Trust and worked regularly with Policy Unplugged as a Social Reporter at corporate and public un-conferences. Lloyd also has a talent for facilitating Open Space events holding workshops for ORG, Online Information and VNU’s Blogs and Social Media Forum.
Lloyd runs the London chapter of Social Media Club. He has recently spoken at Web2Open in Berlin, the 3rd London BarCamp and BarCampUKGovWeb. Lloyd is the also founder of the Tuttle Club, a community-based effort to create a physical space for people in Social Media to come together for social, learning and work activities.

Please Follow Tuttle and Llyod Davis

Thanks

Marieme

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