The Torch: Women’s Day
Overweight and obesity, which are abnormal or excessive fat accumulation in the body, are not only dangerous to the health; they have other social consequences. Due to the recent increased intake of energy-dense foods, high in fat, globally, we expose ourselves to obesity. Worse still, with the latest technological advancement, human beings have become increasingly inactive. The changing modes of transportation and increasing urbanization do not help minimize obesity, as many rarely move physically. It complicates matters that many…
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As Sierra Leone prepares for the forthcoming general elections, scheduled in March, female genital mutilation (FGM) has become, ironically, an enticing piece of meat to grab votes from the poor electorate. While many countries in the world and aid agencies are busy discouraging girls from undergoing female genital mutilation, which has been proved medically to have many dangerous health repercussions, some politicians in Sierra Leone – especially candidates in the upcoming elections – are in fact, buying voters’ votes…
Africa is a continent of irony; religious practices are, indeed not far from this social reality. They are often simply entangled in the web of deceit and sarcasm. While the Western world brought Christianity to Africa, Africans are far more fanatical, zealous – and ironically, rigid – about religion than their Western counterparts. In most cases, African religious leaders interpret religious texts in such a shallow way that they do not give one a room for an alternative interpretation….
When Karl Marx, the German philosopher, and respected economist described religion as “the opium of the masses” in his book A Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right, published in 1843, he meant that religion had certain practical functions in society similar to the function of opium administered to a sick or injured person. The opium helps to minimize the immediate pain and suffering of the patient and provides them with pleasant illusions. At the same time,…
The worst injustice you can do to yourself is to allow others to define you. No doubt about it. The Ewe tribe of Benin, Ghana, Togo, Ivory Coast and Nigeria has a proverb, which says: “Until the lion has his or her own storyteller, the hunter will always have the best part of the story” As a child, I was encouraged by my parents to not allow people to speak for me. Unfortunately, I neither understood nor appreciated the main…
While President Donald Trump’s infamous “S… hole countries” stigmatization is still causing a political tsunami in the USA and beyond, opinions are divided on who to blame for the derogation. Surprisingly, most of the African victims of the derogatory remarks are not terribly mad at the Mr. Trump. Our latest opinion poll shows that many Africans believe that there are some elements of truth in Donald trump’s dehumanizing classification; although such bluntness may be undiplomatic and undesirable for a president, talk…
The political metamorphosis in Zimbabwe took place unexpectedly. No single bullet was fired. No loss of life. Zimbabweans who had got used to, and for that matter, lived to accept the 37 years of the former President Robert Mugabe’s near-absolute rule, woke up to a new political reality. Robert Mugabe had been shown the political backdoor. On the other hand, his former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was forced into an exile in South Africa emerged as the new President…
If the recent political moves by Angola’s new President, João Lourenço are anything to go by, they clearly show that the new President is, in fact, not a puppet as many had believed. Single-handedly hand-picked by the former President Eduardo dos Santos, after 38 years in near absolute power, however, just five months after taking over the mantle of leadership from former President dos Santos, the actions of President João Lourenço have caused fear amongst the once untouchable Angolans,…
