As the saying always goes you can fool me once but not twice. Leaders from the African continents should not allow the Chinese government to trap the continent in a way that many perceived as second colonization. The essence of the history of our continent suggests that before the westerners were able to colonize our ancestors, they started as the current Chinese Government has already started doing in African. The Chinese government has started slowly controlling some Africa governments taking over governments by means of the loans the Chinese government is offering them.

The Chinese government believes that the time is right for China to move fast and take over the African continent. The Chinese are offering loans with strings attached for their nation’s interest over the African nation, that they are supposed to be helping as they officially have claimed. Currently the Chinese government is offering loans to a majority of the African countries for infrastructures but the contracts are being awarded to only Chinese contractors. This also means for the Chinese government the creation of employment for its citizens both home and outside China. What the Chinese government is doing with these African leaders is this: they influence them by any means necessary to their national interest. They say they can provide cheap labor to do research for their natural resources at cheaper prices but that is a lie. They have been using this system to get their way to steal our natural resource for their nation’s economic interest at the expense of many African countries.

Recently, I read an article from the New York Times, in which the author clearly stated how the Chinese government was able to bribe, and aid the current and the former, president of Namibia. They offered the children of these presidents and some higher-ups officials’ family members scholarship to study in China free of charge while the masses are suffering. Now these behaviors from the Chinese government are making people wonder if the Chinese government is only interested in going after African natural resources? The incompatible deeds from the Chinese authorities and their dubious tactics of supporting the Sudanese government on Dafuore crisis said all. They have actually turned their blind eye to the propensity and self- aggrandizement of their political interests against the African nation’s national interest. In Namibia the Chinese companies are the only ones awarded the government contracts and private projects while the citizens are jobless. Now the Chinese state-owned company has the sole rights to research for uranium and other minerals in prime prospecting areas in Namibia and other African countries.

However, the Chinese are posed to overtake the Japanese as the second largest economic giant behind the United State of America as the Chinese influence around the global world is growing faster than many people have expected. Lately, the Chinese government invited some heads of State from the African countries to convene an economic summit in China. During the summit the Chinese government pledged to the African leaders to increase their financial assistance to ten billion dollars for the next three years for infrastructure development. The Chinese government is trying to prove to the world that the endurance and commitment they shared to improve the African continent with their economic package is real. This is an absolute fabrication. The Chinese needs African natural resources to develop their country. China’s population is over one billion. They have not been able to develop their national economy as the western nations. African leaders must be aware that the Chinese needs African resources to develop their nation as a western nation, like France, Britain, Spain, Germany and Portuguese did against the African continents stealing our resource to develop their nation and treat us like sycophants and criminals. This promise from the Chinese government has economic stings attached, which favor the Chinese government interest. Already there are many African countries that have sign business contracts with China. These leaders should realize that any contract agreement signed between them must be transparent. The national interest of our African continent should be above their corrupt and greedy deeds. We all know there are some crooked officials in some African countries, who will always put their criminal egocentric interest above the national interest. Africans need to open their eyes to China’s trap. As I’m speaking right now a majority of our west cost African fishman are suffering due to the Chinese fishing boats illegal activities in our waters. Our leaders have kept their mouth shut acting nothing like nothing has happened. I won’t keep my mouth shut for another second.

From: Nana Kofi Amankwah (New York)