JUNETEENTH

On 1st January 1863, the 16th president of United States of America president Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation proclamation that declared the end of slavery in all the Confederate territories. Nonetheless, two years and six months later, slavery was still alive and well in some Confederate territories. Texas was the last Confederate territory reached by the Union army. This happened on 19th June 1865 which is popularly known as Juneteenth when Union Army General Gordon Granger announced General Order No.3 in Galveston, Texas.
Worse still, slavery continued in the border States like Kentucky and Delaware until the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution on 6th December 1865 that abolished slavery entirely in the United States ending the distinction between slave and free states.
On Thursday 17th June 2021 which is 156 years later, the 46th president of United States president Joseph Robinette Biden signed the S.475 JUNETEENTH NATIONAL INDEPENDENCE DAY ACT into law designating the Juneteenth National Independence Day as a legal public holiday.
All the same, my force of conscious reason begs to ask one intriguing question: How free are we 156 years after the abolishment of slavery? In the very words of the the 32nd first lady of the United States, madam Anna Eleanor Roosevelt: No one can make you feel inferior without your consent,' i am persuaded to believe that; superiority and inferiority complex perception is entirely a personal choice. That's why I totally agree with the words of Bob Marley: 'Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds.' These very challenging words are inked in the lyrics of his 1980 reggae song namely: Redemption Song.

The fact that the greatest wars are won or lost in your mind validates my claim that: The greatest rewarding act of freedom is fleeing self from mental slavery. Anything that your mind perceives impossible is totally unattainable in your life.
Although physical freedom is an important aspect in a human being's life, failing to free yourself from a mediocre mindset is the worst form of slavery. That's why I believe that: In the occurence of failure, the chains that buckle our mind are more strong than the shackles that fastens our hands. Success in life is entrenched in your ability to emancipate yourself from a mediocre mindset. That's why failure isn't aiming high and missing but aiming low and hitting. 

International Day of the African Child

It was Wednesday the 16th day of June 1976 which is exactly 45 years ago today. The place was South West Town popularly known as SOWETO in South Africa.
A while ago, the apartheid government of South Africa had passed a decree to impose  Afrikaans (the Boer language) as the medium of instruction in half the subjects in middle school and high school. This malicious intentions from the oppressive apartheid government wasn't far from what Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon did to the four Hebrews boys (Daniel, Hananiah, Michael and Azariah) when he tried to lure them into worshipping the idol gods of the Babylonians. As unfortunate as it might be, when someone wants to rule over you, he deludes you into believing that your language and culture is inferior thus the need to impose his language on you.
Nonetheless, black students perceived imposing Afrikaans on them as an insult because this was the language of the inhuman apartheid government.
That Wednesday morning, about 20,000 unarmed school students from all over Soweto marched towards Orlando soccer stadium where a peaceful rally had to take place. En route to the stadium, they were confronted by heavily armed police who upon a futile attempt to disperse the black students decided to fire life bullets.
That's when hell broke loose. Although some students decided to run for their dear lives, some students retaliated by pelting the police with stones. 
Even though the apartheid government never came clean to the number of students who were killed, it's certain that more than 700 hundred students lost their dear lives. This extremely dreadful atrocity which is popularly known as SOWETO UPRISING  saw the inception of a YOUTH DAY HOLIDAY in South Africa and 15 years later on 16th June 1991, Organization of Africa Unity (OAU) present day Africa Union (AU) initiated the International day of the African child in honor of the 700+ students who lost their dear lives during the Soweto uprising plus their colleagues who survived the massacre.
Apart from commemorating the Soweto uprising of 1976, the International day of the African child raises awareness of the dire needs that African children are facing to this day in quest for quality education.
With a new theme every year, this year's theme of the International day of the African child is: 30 years after the adoption of the charter, accelerate the implementation of Agenda 2040 for an Africa fit for children. Agenda 2040 is a 25 years aspiration that consists of ten items. It was initiated by Africa Committee of Experts on Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) on 2016 with 2040 being the expected year of full achievement.
Among other things, the paramount objective of the agenda is to restore the dignity of the African child through assessing the achievements and challenges faced towards the effective implementation of the African Children’s Charter.
As we commemorate the international day of the African child for the 30th time, we must not forget the 2014 theme which was: child-friendly, quality, free, and compulsory education for all children in Africa. 

Even though some countries have already attained quality, free and mandatory education, in most nations, this aspiration seems far-fetched. Needless to say, education aspiration must be attained by all means if we are serious about the attainment of all the ten 2040 aspirations coined by ACERWC. 
  

It's a marriage not a business venture

Apart from missing heaven, the next worst thing that can happen to a Christian is to be in a bad marriage. Without a blink an eye, or a smidgen fear of contradiction whatsoever, I will confidently say, "besides companionship, marriage becomes irrelevant."
Unfortunately, in this day and age, most marriages if not all are just but a competition in a dire need to outdo each other especially on financial matters and the pecking order of life.
In the very words of Idris Elba, "ask a lady to define a man and she will define you a slave," to most young and nubile ladies in pursuit of marriage, these words are not far from the truth. Times without number i've asked numerous ladies on the qualities that a gentleman pursuing them for marriage must hold. To my greatest surprise, eight out of ten ends up using the very famous phrase among most bachelorettes: 'A financially stable man.'
It's extremely unfortunate that we have a generation of young ladies who have totally disregarded integrity and morality in place of money and material possessions. Although it's a bitter pill to shallow, the truth of the matter is; any lady who believes that her success will become a reality out of marrying a rich gentleman is a lady who is unknowingly stuck in identity crisis and is far from finding her purpose in life. 

In this day and age, most people fail to find their purpose in life simply because of the centuries old misconception that ties success to financial achievement.
Just like the old English adage, 'fire is a good servant but a bad master,' from the force of my conscious reason, I do believe that; money too is a good servant but a bad master. Please be advised that your chances of urging otherwise are extremely slim due to the dire consequences that comes as a result of dissenting with the word of God. In his first epistle to his mentee Timothy, apostle Paul inked these words; 'For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.' 1 Timothy 6:10
Kindly let me address nubile ladies who think that they're ready for marriage. The sole reason to why these scriptures, (The LORD God also said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make for him a suitable helper.” Genesis 2:18) are recorded in the book of Genesis which literally means beginning is because, as a responsible lady, you are supposed to be a suitable helper to your husband right from the beginning. Becoming a suitable helper is the only way your husband can become what most present day ladies are looking for: 'A financially stable man.'
Marriage is neither a business enterprise nor an investment. If you're an intrigant wife who is in a marriage to carry out surreptitious monetary achievements, you are not better than a fraudster.
In inarguably true that, any person who is money hungry is also a selfish person. In other words, a lover of money or material possessions is also a narcissist. This is the spouse who will never ever care about you as long as he or she is okay.
For a great marriage to happen, both the husband and the wife must be okay not one of them and no argument about that whatsoever. Having understood that truth, my school of conscious thought compels me into saying: "If your spouse's problem is not your problem, your marriage is a problem." Although it's very ironical to be okay while your spouse is not, to a self-centric person, this isn't much of a bother. As long as he or she is okay, nothing else matters.

On the other hand, it's extremely imperative for every gentleman to always keep this in mind that: 'Any lady who is not a suitable helper can never ever make a great wife.'
Apart from being selfish, a lover of money and material possessions is a proud and a conceited individual who holds an insatiable sense of entitlement. When the bible says that the love of money is the source of all evil, the fundamental of all these evils is pride, conceit, selfishness, self-importance, greed, jealousy, pathological lying and an insatiable sense of entitlement.
Narcissist are the people who operate under the entitlement mindset namely: Me, Myself and I. As long as he or she is okay, nothing else matters. And if you have any good thing, to a narcissist, it's never good enough unless it belongs to him or and her not to mention that, to a narcissist too much is never enough. No amount of love, money or possessions can satisfy a self-centric person. In other words, selfish people are unlovable not only because they can't love back but also because you can't love them good enough. 

The fact that a lover of money and material possessions is also an intrigant means that; if you're married by such a person, developing yourselves in life as a couple will be totally impossible. From opening and operating secret bank accounts to making secret investments, an intrigant spouse does it all. A self-centric wife hold an extremely biased mentality that; her money belongs to her alone but her husband's money is their money. 

A marriage is not about what you can get, it's about what you can give. That's why I can confidently say: "When everyone meets to give, everyone receives."

Since selfishness and conceit is a vice whose formation goes back to the formative and developmental years of a person, it's almost impossible for a selfish person to change. If you are already married to a selfish conceited spouse, my recommendation is a spiritual deliverance. 

Noting that selfishness and conceit doesn't start when you get married, if you're dating a selfish person, kindly don't ignore that red flag lest you spend the rest of your life in total regret. I rest my case.

A Century after Tulsa Massacre

The year was 1921and the day was Wednesday 1st day of June. That's exactly 100 years ago or simply a century ago. By then, the state of Oklahoma was only 14 years old having gained its statehood on 16th November 1907 after the 780 presidential proclamation of president Theodore Roosevelt that abolished the Indian and Oklahoma territories making Oklahoma the 46th state of the United States of America.
The northeast oil rich town of Tulsa was developing in an alarming rate and by 1900, Greenwood district which was and still is predominantly African American had already been dubbed 'Negro wall street' due to the wealth amassed by the African Americans who were residents of Greenwood. 
With an estimated population of 10,000 African Americans living in Greenwood who were largely working-class blacks, Greenwood was not only perceived as a black freedom colony, it was also the richest African American community in the entire United States of America.
As fate would have it, on Wednesday 1st June 1921, the dreams and prosperity of American Americans who called Greenwood home were totally shattered during the racially motivated Tulsa massacre that saw 300 plus African Americans killed, over 5,000 left homeless and over 6.7 million dollars black wealth in form of businesses and real estates burned to ashes churches notwithstanding.

The community which was once the richest African American district became one of the poorest town in United States of America. To this day, a century later, Greenwood hasn't recovered from the deadliest United States massacre and justice or reparations are yet to be served.
From slavery to segregation, lynching, police shootings and police brutality, racial profiling, prejudice and racism, African American have experienced it all for more than 400 hundred years. And if you think that a century later after the Tulsa massacre that things have changed, I beg you to awake from your slumber.
Even though you might not be aware of the most ten deadliest racial massacres that have seen thousands of African Americans killed, it's too soon to forget the racially motivated Wednesday June 17th 2015 Charleston church massacre in the state of South Carolina that led to the killing of nine African Americans in the hands of a white supremacist.
In his first day in office, the 46th president of the United States of America president Joseph Robinette Biden signed an executive order condemning the wave of racism towards Asian Americans and Pacific Islander community in reference to the covid-19 pandemic. On Tuesday 18th May 2021, both chambers of Congress overwhelmingly and unanimously passed the Anti Asian Americans hate crimes bill which was signed into law by the president two days later on Thursday 20th May 2021. This was exactly four months into Joe Biden's presidency.
I totally agree that the overwhelming bipartisan congressional effort to halt the rise in bias crime that has recently sparked fear among the Asian Americans which was evident during the recent shooting on Tuesday 16th March 2021in Atlanta Georgia where six women of Asian descent were killed was neccessary. All the same, my conscious force of reason begs the question: When will both houses pass one (not two) among the two hundred plus of the Anti lynching bills that for years have been introduced on the floors of both houses?
The fact that I am a humanist who wholeheartedly believes in egalitarianism compels me into citing the irony on the Covid-19 Anti Asian Americans hate bill which has a reference of one year of racism towards Asian Americans against the 400 years of African Americans segregation, racial discrimination, lynching, prejudice, racial profiling and the like and to this day, no executive order has ever been signed or a law enacted for African Americans. 
With the knowledge that 4,742 people were lynched between 1882-1968, and more than 200 anti-lynching bills introduced to Congress since 1918 all of which have been voted down, it seems that the long awaited justice is far-fetched. Although I am not lost of the fact that on 19th December 2018 the United States Senate passed the anti-lynching bill, the 115th House of Representatives took no action on that bill. Later on February 26, 2020, the House of representatives passed a revised version of the bill namely: The Emmett Till Anti lynching Act, by a vote of 410–4. All the same, as of today, 100 years after the deadliest United States massacre (Tulsa massacre) no anti-lynching bill has been passed by both houses. 

It goes without saying that; justice delayed is justice denied. Nonetheless, there is a dire need to keep fighting for justice as a way of correting the centuries old wrongs in order to sate the minds of African Americans with a physiological sense of liberty. 

Integrity Deficiency Syndrome (IDS)

Times without number I've said that integrity isn't a matter of intellect. You can get all the education you want to a point of having more degrees than a thermometer but without integrity, you will just be a learned or an educated fool who can never ever score anything on the real decisions of life that demands wisdom.
Kindly allow me to jog your memory by reminding you that; unlike intelligence which is dependent upon integrity, integrity is holistically independent. As a matter of fact, integrity can beget intelligence and not vice versa. In other words, wisdom can beget knowledge but knowledge can never beget wisdom.
The fact that wisdom is independent means that the decisions rendered out of wisdom are sound without a need for consultation. This is because wisdom isn't a terrestrial trait sort from a human being, it's a supreme power bestowed by God on a person as a consequence of fearing Him.
With wisdom comes great leadership and a sincere sense of humanitarianism where decision making isn't a matter of self-interest as it have been for the longest in our beloved nation. Having known that, we can reference this truth to the present day leadership in our motherland and notice how this fact concurs with the day to day self-centricity governance.
Somethings are a no brainer whatsoever. Calling back the members of parliament and the senators from a recess not to debate on the most pressing issues of saving Kenyans from the deadly covid-19 pandemic but to vote for an illegitimate bbi bill is inhumanity of the highest level.
To add salt into the injury, some of the so called leaders who argued on the illegality of the bill were in the frontline during the voting process. This reminded me of my high school days when we could constantly complain of weevils in our food as we ate that food to the last grain.
The inanity of our so called leaders on the burden that they are subjecting Kenyans to in a dire need to appease their kingpins and sate their self-interests is a clear indication of integrity deficiency syndrome.
While the academic certificates that saw them earn their positions of leadership might have costed them a number of years in school, (unless gotten from river road) the wisdom they desperately need in order to become great leaders is just a decision (to fear God) and a prayer away. In other words, Integrity Deficiency Syndrome might be chronic but not a terminal ailment. It's cure is just to fear the  Lord.
Our time immemorial mistake has been an assumption that educated individuals make great leaders. That's why we set a threshold of a bachelor's degree for anyone seeking for public leadership. Unfortunately, education can only contrive knowledge not wisdom, that's why we have so many educated fools. The primary source of wisdom is the fear of God. In his proverbial wisdom, king Solomon puts it this way: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10
While the law of the land requires a minimum of a bachelor's degree when vying for public leadership, as patriotic citizens, in the footsteps of our brothers and sisters the Malawians, kindly let's have a mandatory societal requirement with an agreement to start voting for God fearing candidates who holds a captivating track record on leadership from whatever background. That's the only way we can bar individuals suffering from Integrity Deficiency Syndrome (IDS) from occupying public leadership positions. 
My advice to our so called leaders if by any chance they care to listen is; when legislating or passing any bill, diligently observe egalitarianism because sooner than later the shoe might be on the other foot.

MOTHERHOOD

7.8 Billion and counting, that's the present day population of the world and every person is on earth through a mother. What a blessing. Mothers are extremely special human beings. Each mother deserves a Nobel prize for carrying a life in her and delivering that life secure and sound into this world.
It goes without saying; 'once a mother, always a mother.' The fact that women are nurturers by nature relates very well with their ability of motherhood. Although a man is gifted with physical strength, he is totally lacking on matters psychosocial abilities. That's the reason to why the bible says; 'it's not good for a man to live alone.' Genesis 2:18  Be it as it may, that's a story of another day.
With a population of 7.8 billion people in the world, everyone was born into this world by a woman. If childbirth was a preserve of men, more likely than not, the population of the world today would be one million or less. Men don't do well with any kind of pain. When the bible says that a woman is the weaker vessel, it means physically not psychologically or socially.
The fact that physical strength supports a very minimal percentage in matters human survival helps us understand why women have a longer life expectancy compared to men.
On the other hand, it's important to understand the origin of mother's day. Although the establishment of mother's day has multiple dates which goes back to the ancient times depending on the locality, the celebration of mother's day on every second Sunday of May was the idea of Anna Jarvis back in 1908 when she decided to celebrate her late mother in Grafton, West Virginia.
Nine years later in 1914, president Woodrow Wilson, the 28th U.S. president of the United States of America signed a measure officially establishing the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day. Unfortunately, by the time of her demise in 1948, Anna Jarvis had already denounced mother's day. Her reason to disown mother's day wasn't because she lived her entire life without a child, her claim was that the commercialization of mother's day made the occasion to lose its objective. She argued that mother's day had become a lucrative occasion rather than a day to celebrate mothers.
As you we observe the 113th mother's day come Sunday 9th May 2021, kindly make some efforts to visit or call your mom and remind her that she's a special person in your life. You don't necessarily have to break your bank account in surprising her with extortionate gifts, a phone call or a visit to remind her of how dear she is will be enough. All the same, if you're abundantly blessed monetary wise, go ahead and share your blessings with your mom and any other mother out there.
For the married men, make a point of calling your mother-in-law and wish her a happy mother's day as you thank her for birthing you a sweet wife. Likewise, to the married ladies, surprise your mother-in-law with a phone call and thank her for birthing you a handsome loving husband.
For anyone who has lost a mom, I am deeply sorry for the loss. Even though my words can never sate your loss, if you're a gentleman, don't hesitate to celebrate your wife who's the sweet mom of your children. For the ladies who have lost their mothers, you are at liberty to celebrate any mom who have changed your life in one way or another. If you're  a bachelor or a spinster and you don't have a biological mother, just make sure you celebrate any mom out there because every mom is your mother.
To all mothers I say: " HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY AND MANY MORE YEARS OF GREATNESS." YOU'RE INCREDIBLY WONDERFUL AND AMAZING LADIES."

Freedom: A matter of WHY not WHAT

I am yet to find out whether Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United states of America was a theologian or a biblical scholar. Be it as it may, my dilemma is based on his all-time veracious qoute: 'There is no limit to the amount of good you can do if you don't care who gets the credit.' His qoute corresponds with the scriptures recorded in the book of St Matthew 6:1, 'Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them.' 'If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.'
The worst occurrences that we have continued to experience to this day from most if not all activists is a dire need for recognition, fame, publicity and monetary gain in reference to humanitarianism.
It's very unfortunate that, in today's world, vast majority of the so called activists who identify themselves as humanists are self-indulgent individuals whose objective is only to feed their insatiable greed for fame and money, possessions notwithstanding.
Even though Paul wasn't a prophet, his true allegiance to God proffered his profound wisdom. My claim is evident through the wisdom loaded words he inked in his second letter to his mentee Timothy. 'But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. Stay away from such people.' 2nd Timothy 3:1-5
These scriptures begs the question: In whose terms did you respond to your calling of serving humanity? Most people who establish nonprofit organizations in the name of serving humanity respond to a calling if any on their own terms that are suitable to feed their greed of terrestrial achievements.
In the gospel of St John 8:32, 'You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.' The greatest decision that can usher you to a life of perpetual freedom and profound happiness is the choice of being true to self. It's inarguably true that you can deceive everyone but yourself.
I totally agree that you're an assiduous  person and a conscientious hardworking activist who have always been in the forefront on matters humanitarianism. You spend restless days and sleepless nights thinking of how you can positively change the lives of the underprivileged. Nonetheless, the question still remains: Why do you do all these things? What you do can only be right if you do it without an ill motive. With ulterior motive, all you do is in vain. Freedom is not a matter of WHAT you do, it's a matter of WHY you do it. Motive is equally better if not more better than the deed.
As you put in long hours in humanitarianism or in whatever ways you extend your helping hand to the needy, just be advised that; however sympathetic or empathetic your deeds might be, with ulterior motive, (s) your help can only accord you self-abasement in place of freedom.
In a dire quest for freedom and happiness, you must ask yourself this intriguing question; Am I chasing power, possessions and publicity in the name of fulfilling my purpose? After all is said and done, it's worth noting that: Legends are born out of ascendancy of nobility over ignobility and their legacy is eventually realized.