"For many post colonial states in Africa, land reforms constituted part of a general wave of radical economic readjustment after colonial rule. Many of them considered land reform as part of the decolonization process. These reforms were founded on the need to extract resources from what Craig Richardson calls a “less deserving” rich minority and distributing them to a “more deserving” poor majority" (Tongkeh Joseph Fowale).
It was thought that land as a resource is a basic resource for economic advancement and accordingly a redistribution of land was necessary and important as a strategy. In neighboring South Africa President Mbeki in 2005 expressed willingness to revisit the “willing-seller, willing-buyer” principle of land redistribution. They thought that this property brought value and was the key that controlled wealth generation and social advancement.
Historian Walter Rodney gave full support for land reforms throughout Africa. “Exploitation of Land and Labor”, Rodney says “is essential for human social advance, but only on assumption that the product is made available in the area where the exploitation takes place." He, too, thought that economic advancement rested and lay in owning land and redistribution of land was essential and supported land reforms.
Their obsession with land reforms that revolved around taking land from people who became rich through the land ownership for purposes of redistribution to the poor landless was born out of their blind spot to factors that create value and wealth. Partly and unfortunately, they saw it as part of a decolonization process. They also lost view of the more important facts and factors that serve to create value from land, namely:-
6. Failing the above, land can become idle in a few years.
History has also shown that ancestral land become smaller and smaller in size, as it becomes subdivided as inheritance to members of the new generations until it become plots that cannot be worked economically. Such natural redistribution of land over generations ought to have shed some logical light on Walter Rodney and the land reformers. Tragically they were myopic with regard to flight of human capital which is experience, knowledge and expertise and access to markets, and the power of capital flight that can go along with its owners.
Such land reforms that end up in redistribution to a large number of poor people and also results in human and capital flight can shatter the agrarian economy of a nation and can shatter it to a point that is indeed crippling.
In neighboring Namibia, where settlers still had a firm group on the land after independence, President Sam Nujoma announced his intention in 2004 to expropriate 192 “absentee land-lord” farms owned mainly by German and South African nationals. This announcement added momentum to boost Mugabe’s reforms. The groups that opposed Mugabe’s reforms were the commercial farmers (both blacks and whites) and their employees all of whom were adversely affected by Mugabe’s reforms. Commercial farms are big enough to employ people to carry out a diverse range of activities while redistributed small farms and farm plots means loss of jobs for these employees. That, on a large scale, can put an economy into a tailspin. Craig Richardson, one of the opponents of Mugabe’s reforms, defined Zimbabwe in 2005 as being “in an economic tailspin…shrinking faster than any other country on earth that was not at war.” The gears could not be reversed as by then, Mugabe had transformed his reforms into an emotional political tool. Many white farmers left for England.
Mugabe thought he had successfully galvanized poor people into people power that would translate support for him in politics. He forced it on the nation and against a just law with a mind of steel. He reckoned that it was a wave he could ride on. Such reckoning is quite endemic in political leaders in third world countries. He failed, from the start, to realize that commercial farms are critical in supporting an agrarian economy and breaking them would break the economy. He had no strategies that would use the economic resource to create an excellent and quality education system that can transform, over time, an agrarian economy into a knowledge-driven with a vibrant biotech industry as well. His mind was too suffocated and claustrophobic to nurture this type of mindset, as it never occurred to him that value can be created by knowledge and intellectual property that can generate far greater wealth and in ways that can reshape the demographic structure and economic and social advancement while it kept its commercial farms relevant to the nation’s economy.
His strategy was land reforms through redistribution of land that broke up commercial farms into uneconomical plots held by poor people rather than keep an unwavering focus on economic reforms by facilitating change in the human capital through excellent education that would empower people with knowledge and expertise and enable them to plug in to the global markets. Small plots of land given to poor people are not part of such an enabling factor in contrast to empowerment through a sound education system.
Sooner or later, all reforms that serve only as political tools tend to explode in the face or become boomerangs. It must never ever be forgotten one cannot alter the flight path of shrapnel after the explosion and equally it is difficult to alter the flight paths of boomerangs when they miss their targets. Big tools have big problems and so all large and titanic ships are difficult to steer away from an approaching iceberg. Soft issues that have solidified like water into ice can tear and cut the steel in politics. Likewise, Mugabe’s clarion calls that “Zimbabweans must come” as he “pleads with them to return home to help rebuild the shattered country” has met with boos and are unlikely to return to help build an economy traumatized by his land reforms.
Today, Zimbabwe currency comprises of billion and trillion dollars as a direct result of hyperinflation which is the highest in world history. Its turmoil in the economy is further afflicted by the world's highest rate of inflation which now greatly hampers its progress although the country has reserves of metallurgical-grade chromite and other commercial mineral deposits of coal, asbestos, copper, nickel, gold, platinum and iron ore. It currently has the lowest GDP real growth rate in an independent country, deteriorating from one of Africa's strongest economies to the world's worst.
The Mugabe Reforms stand as a lesson in strategy-making and in attempting to transform national economy by going against people and resources that generated wealth and employment that very quickly deteriorated and shattered by forging reforms into a political tool instead of developing other tools to broaden the economy. Now that political tool is broken and shattered like brittle cast iron.
Many years ago, the Former Prime Minister of Malaysia, spoke about the “crutch-mentality” and that it was unhealthy but had no concrete weaning strategies and approaches that would transform the people suffering from such a mentality so that the crutches can be done away with while the transformation would produce resilient people who can participate in the natural competition fostered by the ideals of democracy and contribute more effectively to boost the economic vibrancy in ways that it helps build the nation and promote progress and prosperity to be enjoyed by all people. In the face of the Wall Street meltdown that sent waves of tsunami across the globe resulting in drop in consumer spending, rising unemployment due to loss of jobs attributable to the corresponding shrinking in exports and a decline in world trade that put a tailspin resulting in contracting GDP, the incumbent Prime Minister, a graduate in industrial economics, has taken bold steps to free and liberalize the economy that grew with robust direct foreign investment and a strong entrepreneurial culture in the past. From these twin factors the national revenues grew that helped to flourish its brick and mortar development and the many facilities and programs that aimed to redistribute wealth.
Amid some concerns, of course based on the fallacious belief that such liberalization “would affect the position of the Malays” the Deputy Prime Minister stated that these concerns arise from a misconception that must be corrected” and stressed that “the party would never abandon its responsibility to champion the cause of the Malays” reminding them that “the special privileges of the Malays as enshrined in the Federal Constitution will continue to be protected …”
He said, “There are some quarters who allege that the present leadership is no longer interested to defend the rights of the Malays. We are opening too much space to the extent that the Bumiputeras are not in a position to face the competition.” The competition will always be there. Competition forces responses and the ability to respond. It is a positive force while protection can be negative in its effects. It is a privilege to face competition and to learn in a competitive environment and it is a privilege to churn out success by facing competition.
It is detracting to say, as some quarters allege, that Bumiputeras are not in a position to face competition. There are many who have faced competition and created success. Besides, there is the strategy of enabling factors that prepare people for competition and develop human capital for success and to learn from failures which are nothing less than stepping stones to success. On the hand, there is possible nurturing of allegations that the Bumiputeras are not in a position to face competition and the corresponding political tool that seeks to defend the policy of redistribution of wealth and never to abandon the party’s responsibility to champion the cause of the Malays. Naturally, the Deputy Prime Minister, in his wisdom asked an appropriate and thought-provoking question that is positive in its fundamental essence – “For how long must the Bumiputeras depend on aid and not make any effort to be self-reliant just because of the protection by the government to them?” (ref:NST, July 19, 2009). A more stimulating question that may spur some meaningful affirmative action that is beneficial to the economy of the nation is –“Does constitutional or legal protection help as an enabling factor to face competition, as competition is always present in some form?” That is something for the leaders to deliberate on if it registers positively in the neocortex instead of sinking into the inner depths that only produces reflexive reactions.
Datuk Dr Agoes Salim says,”What is more important is to bring people together,” which may be a basis in the 1M concept being furiously promoted by the Prime Minister as he reflects on times gone by when “we felt that we were Malayans” and “we socialized much better then” as “we did not think in terms of race in the way people do now”. He is of the opinion that we need to bring people back together and work together rather than push anything too hard that it alienates people. And to prevent the feeling that a nation was breaking down, “we came up with the Rukun Negara” to “bring people back together – unite them”. “You don’t have to have a common language if you have the same jiwa (heart, spirit, devotion, devotion)” and so the first part of the Rukun Negara is about the objectives of the nation. Unfortunately, we did practically nothing to promote an understanding of Rukun Negara.” (Datuk Dr Agoes Salim, NST, Tuesday May 12, 2009).
And Datuk Dr. Agoes succinctly states one important objective of a new policy when he said – “We wanted to restructure the economy so that the Malays would come out of the rural agriculture sector into the commercial sector.” That was then, in the context of an agrarian economy that prevailed after independence. Today, it can be modified in line with the many and rapid changes in the world that has become a knowledge economy driven by change, innovation, paradigm-shifts and research as well as by continuous improvements. And of course, competency in science and mathematics are enabling factors while proficiency in the English language remains the most critical tool that can prevent people from languishing or perishing in their cocoons. Putting people into the comfort of cocoons is easy but afterwards to get them to fly out requires a metamorphosis.
Restructuring the economy, as Dr. Agoes Salim clearly states was about enabling Malays to participate in economic activities at all levels; it was not about redistribution of wealth. He correctly puts forth the most important enabling factor in human development in the simplest form when he said, “We wanted Malay participation at all levels of economic activity. We wanted to uplift the Malays without reducing the position of others. And this was supposed to be in a situation of growth. Not just sharing the existing cake but the cake must grow, so that these people also have the opportunity to grow.” This fundamental wisdom eluded Mugabe and missed its inherent resourcefulness. Any right thinking Malaysian can see the importance of the fact that no one community should fail as it affects and impacts consumer sending power that is essential to the circulation of money and the creation of wealth that in turn is a resource for nation building.
We cannot let groups of people fail in their participation the economic activities and ability to contribute to the creation of wealth and prosperity and that opportunity to grow comes with the natural competition. It is possible to work together for the common good and purpose of creating a democracy that works to bring people together without violating just principles and God-given equality that is always above the constitution though it may be enshrined in it, and that works to bring progress and prosperity for all people to enjoy and the Tunku (the first Prime Minister of Malaysia) was right in saying so and it can only be achieved through enabling factors as other tools, incorrect as they are, may miss the target and fly back as does a boomerang that misses its target. That is a law of nature, not a new political doctrine.
The ideals of democracy and democracy in its pure form always ensure that this participation in economic activities, without the need to impose on others or dominate comes to fruition in ways that benefits the participants as well as the economy. That is the power of democracy and its ideals in creating and supporting the development of a vibrant economy and supports its growth and expansion and its broadening as well. Yet, many leaders in the third world fear it and like Mugabe would rather believe in reforms that are purely redistributive in effect that end up hurting and traumatizing the national economy, killing free enterprise that finally shatters the national economy. Actions that start with the creation of political tools that violate the tenets of democracy can harm human endeavor that charms into free enterprise to fuel the economy. It robs the full potential of human capital that in very adverse reactions invariably curtails the economy, progress and development. It is a truth of human existence, not a philosophy.
The freeing of the Indian economy in 1990 by its liberal reforms unleashed the power of its human capital to become the powerhouse it is today. While the GDPs of most nations contracted in the post-Wall Street meltdown, the Indian economy continued to grow albeit at a slower pace. All Indians were exposed to the open competition of the global arena. That positive force helped create a vibrant and responsive private sector that has made leaping strides in biotechnology, technology, construction, IT, medicine, nutraceuticals, integrative medicine, space and defense technologies, film media etc etc. Within twenty years it has grown into a market that most people want to do business in and to access it. One needs the right tools. With the change, out from the cocoon came out new mindsets that created dynamic CEOs and researchers and managers.
So, is it any surprise or wonder that President Barack Obama “had a tough-love message for fellow African-Americans” recently, urging black parents to push their children to think beyond dreams of being sports stars or rap music performers”. In nature we know that eagles push their eaglets from their nests lodged in high places, after the secondary feathers (enabling factors) have appeared to force them to practice flying and those that will never be pushed never take off.
Obama, like the Deputy Prime Minister, “urged blacks to take greater responsibility for themselves and move away from reliance on governmental programs” (Reuters).
“We need a new mindset, a new set of attitudes – because one of the most durable and destructive legacies of discrimination is the way that we have internalized a sense of limitation: how so many in our country have come to expect so little of ourselves,” he said (Reuters). The fact of durable and destructive legacies of discrimination lies in its hideous capacity to become internalized. The longer the legacy, the stronger is the product of its internalization. A sense of limitation is crippling and hence the internal craving for crutches. There must be a push. Without the push, the crutch mentality stays. And with it, comes like a robber that robs one of the full human potential. One of the symptoms that begin to manifest is the phobia about competition.
So, the Deputy Prime Minister is quite right in directing his penetrating question - “For how long must the Bumiputeras depend on aid and not make any effort to be self-reliant just because of the protection by the government to them?” There must be urgings and proper pushing supported by enabling factors.
Obama noted that his own life could have taken a different path, had it not been for his mother’s urgings. “That mother of mine gave me love, she pushed me, and cared about my education,” he said (Reuters). Someone has to love, push and care. Without the push, there is no metamorphosis. Without the push, no eaglet will take to the sky and soar. Pushing is love. Competition is positive. Without competition there is no opportunity to grow. The enabling factor is to care about education. This care is not about putting degrees in the hands of students. It is about quality and excellence in education that empowers them and metamorphoses them with knowledge that lets them fly.
Copyright/Ip:beldeusingh
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