By Peter Wanyony

It is one of geopolitics’ polite fictions that Africans are treated “as equals” on the world stage.

Two weeks ago, China’s new president Xi Jinping, dropped by Tanzania for his second overseas visit as head of state. This was not quite expected because the new president had been sworn in a mere ten days earlier.

However, the symbolism on display in Tanzania was instructive. President Xi gave a speech at a Chinese-built conference centre in Dar es Salaam, having travelled there on a Chinese-built road. Dar wags claim that at the speech, only the audience was not made in China. But who knows?

Low quality

Tanzania has abundant mineral resources — gas, oil, gold, iron, phosphates, coal, diamonds, name it. It also abuts the Democratic Republic of Congo, another country freakishly endowed with mineral wealth that the Chinese are itching to get their hands on.

It is little wonder that the roads and railways that China is building all over Africa always lead to either a new or existing port. Look, for instance, in Kenya, the Chinese cannot wait to help us build our new port in Lamu, while in Tanzania, they have already signed a contract to build a US $10 billion (Sh8.7 trillion) port at Bagamoyo.

Villagers with a not-so-faded grasp of East African history will remember that Bagamoyo was the loading point for East African slaves headed for the Arab world, and America back in the 1800s. The town’s name came from the Kiswahili for “lose hope” — bwaga moyo.

Plastic

That this emotive place should be the site for China’s new mega-port is a parallel that our east-facing leaders should ponder.

Kenya and Africa import trinkets and low-value and, generally, low quality goods from China, things that any self-respecting Banana Republic wouldn’t be caught buying from someone else.

We buy tomato paste, textiles, furniture, electronics, plastic goods, and even toothpicks from China. Toothpicks! This abundant availability of cheap manufactured goods from China has lulled Africa into a mental stupor, one which we are so comfortable with that when told to clean up our act by our budget-supporting donors, our response has become a knee-jerk “we will go to China”.

 

Labourers

Tomorrow, we swear in our new leadership — naturally, in the Chinese-built Moi International Sports Centre (MISC), Kasarani. Africa’s relationship with China is best summed up by the story of that mega-arena.

Unfortunately, whereas Western powers would generally transfer their skills and technology to locals in such projects, the Chinese do not. They import everything they need to use, from materials to trucks to labourers, even down to nannies, apparently.

When they complete the project and leave, the locals know nothing about how it was built and how to maintain it. It is little surprise then that, when the MISC fell into disrepair, we had to turn to the Chinese to maintain it for us. It was the same for the Tanzania-Zambia railway, the famous Tazara.

Our new president and his deputy are well advised to lead us East with caution. Whether Chinese or European, an overlord is an oppressor.