World Cup 2010 and the Africans

[mduwa]

This month, as football-mad Africans focus their attention towards what is happening in Angola, something rather alarming if not sickening is emerging from the South African front.

Africans, we learn, don’t appear to be particularly bothered about the historical event soon to be staged in their own door step. This apparently, is evidenced by less than dismal sale of tickets to Africans expected to travel to SA for the event.

South Africa is the host country for this year’s World cup tournament. The tournament takes place in an African country. The whole world will be turning their attention to Africa as a whole and South Africa in particular. It is historical as the Africa’s first.

So why then this apathy from the Africans?

It will be foolhardy for me to even try to rationalise let alone explain Africans’ mentality here. But one thing is disturbingly clear; the legacy of colonialism lives on. And I’m not affirming this lightly either.

Consider this. It has been reported that the sale of tickets to the matches in which South Africa is involved have so far attracted the lowest sale of tickets of all previous sales for a host nation. That in itself is bad enough. Worse still is the fact that South Africans themselves have bought more tickets for England matches than their own South African team matches.

Now try and make sense of that!

I am attempted to think that possibly the white population of South Africa went in droves to buy tickets for England matches. But blacks outnumber whites by at least 10 to 1 in South Africa!

Is it not true also that the whites who stayed in South Africa declared unconditional love for South Africa? Rainbow nation, we were told, one for all and all for one, you understand?

So where has it all gone horribly wrong?

If the loyalty of whites in South Africa lies with England, their motherland, where is that of the Africans?

Sympathetically, some have tried to explain the whole debacle by blaming it all on the cost of tickets being too high. Too high, at about £10 a ticket? I don’t think so, somehow. Africans do spend loads more money on unnecessary things such as airtime for the new status symbol, the mobile phone, than Europeans do.

I know for a fact that a lot of misguided Africans, deep in African villages, blindly identify themselves with European teams. And in contrast, their attitude towards their own home bred African teams differs from lethargic to downright hatred. The fact that for most, their only true contact with these foreign teams is through TV, doesn’t make any difference.

Is there any wonder then that there is such a rush of uncontrolled outflow of African talent to Europe? That Africans haven’t noticed that there are African teams in World cup 2010? That this is possibly the only opportunity for most to actually see a World cup tournament in action?

I will hate to think that such sentiments indeed explain everything. However,
if you are one of those people who support the likes of Man U and abhor the likes of Yanga or Simba and you fill insulted by this article, maybe it is high time you reassess your priorities.

This is African World cup, for God’s sake. Till when are we going to lick ass and worship everything foreign? Till when are we going to see Tarzan as the saviour of Africans in the ancestral bush? Till when are Africans going to take ownership of their own destiny?

Obviously, not in my lifetime. How pathetic, how very, very pathetic.

Africans in general, have a moral duty to make this tournament a success. Who knows when this opportunity will come African way again? If ever?

Lets pray for a miracle happening between now and July, that a surge of tickets buyers will flock to SA and support African teams. I say support African teams, any African team, and not to go there to glee in the fact that another African team has been knocked out of the tournament in round one.

Lets’ pray. All together now, Amen

 

[Bongolander]

"Consider this. It has been reported that the sale of tickets to the matches in which South Africa is involved have so far attracted the lowest sale of tickets of all previous sales for a host nation. That in itself is bad enough. Worse still is the fact that South Africans themselves have bought more tickets for England matches than their own South African team matches".

Why should i waste my money and time for disapointement? If England will satisfy me, then i will be more than willing to spend my buck. You can call football itself colonial legacy, same as dressing a suit and tie, and the thing is we Africas still do it and have made these things our own.

Kombe la dunia litaendelea tu na kutakuwa na mamilioni ya maneno ya kejeli dharau na porojo, na matatizo kidogo but still it will be staged. successfuly. Hatuna pesa nyingi kama watu wa Ulaya au Marekani kwenda SA kuangalia mechi hizo, au waSA wenye hawana pesa nyingi kama wa ulaya.

 

[Kigogo]

"Consider this. It has been reported that the sale of tickets to the matches in which South Africa is involved have so far attracted the lowest sale of tickets of all previous sales for a host nation. That in itself is bad enough. Worse still is the fact that South Africans themselves have bought more tickets for England matches than their own South African team matches".

Why should i waste my money and time for disapointement? If England will satisfy me, then i will be more than willing to spend my buck. You can call football itself colonial legacy, same as dressing a suit and tie, and the thing is we Africas still do it and have made these things our own.

Kombe la dunia litaendelea tu na kutakuwa na mamilioni ya maneno ya kejeli dharau na porojo, na matatizo kidogo but still it will be staged. successfuly. Hatuna pesa nyingi kama watu wa Ulaya au Marekani kwenda SA kuangalia mechi hizo, au waSA wenye hawana pesa nyingi kama wa ulaya.

mkuu kuwa na pesa nyingi ndo vipi?sidhani kama watu wa ulaya wanakuja kuangalia kombe la dunia kwa kuwa wana pesa nyingi..no ni mipango ya muda mrefu inamfanya mtu aweze ku save na kuja kuangalia kombe la dunia.personally nimefanya saving for 5 months and now i have my ticket for 2 semis and final games in SA but kipato changu ni cha chini na ni mtanzania wa kawaida sana

 

[Bongolander]

mkuu kuwa na pesa nyingi ndo vipi?sidhani kama watu wa ulaya wanakuja kuangalia kombe la dunia kwa kuwa wana pesa nyingi..no ni mipango ya muda mrefu inamfanya mtu aweze ku save na kuja kuangalia kombe la dunia.personally nimefanya saving for 5 months and now i have my ticket for 2 semis and final games in SA but kipato changu ni cha chini na ni mtanzania wa kawaida sana

Mkuu ndio kuwa na pesa kwenyewe. Mimi kila siku sijui kesho naitakula nini, sijui kama naweza hata kupanga cha wiki ijayo. Kama nikiweza kuhakikisha kuwa naweza kula kwa mwaka mzima naweza kuanza kufikiri kuhusu kitu kama hicho.