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  • Comments on E. C. Eze's "Between History and the Gods:Reason, Morality, and Politics in Today's Africa"
  • Zekeh S. Gbotokuma (bio)

There is no better way to start this piece than by acknowledging E. C. Eze's invaluable contribution to philosophy in general, and to African philosophy in particular. His transition to, and membership in, the other world has created a void and a vacancy that will be impossible to fill. As a fellow African from the Democratic Republic of Congo, I take pride in the fact that this rising academic star from Nigeria spent part of his education years in Kinshasa, DRC. So I am humbled and honored by Africa Today's request that I write these comments, which I would like to treat as my tribute to Dr. Eze, whose American dream was ended by death. His commitment to African philosophy was rooted in his experience of living in more than one African country, as well as in his experience in the African diaspora. He fully understood the meanings of "publish or perish" and the Latin saying Verbum volat, scripta manent "the word flies away, written things remain." May he be remembered forever through his Afrocentric publications, and may he repose in peace!

In the twenty-first century, African philosophers and scholars should have overcome the twentieth century's fear of not being taken seriously simply because of the Eurocentric belief that there was or is no such thing as African philosophy. I am referring to the old arguments around Placide Tempels's Bantu Philosophy, which dominated most debates about philosophy in Africa for most of the last century. Many Africans and Westerners have managed to make a name for themselves through their belief of disbelief in ethnophilosophy. Dr. Eze did so by showing, through his spoken and written words, that African and philosophy are not diametrically opposed terms; however, like many of us who have been exposed to, and affected by, the legacy of disbelief about African philosophy, he could hardly ignore old stereotypes about African philosophy and the unnecessary dichotomy between cultural philosophy and so-called professional philosophy—Western philosophy. Many Afrosophical manuscripts have gone unpublished simply because they are not "philosophical" enough. African thinkers must declare their independence from Eurocentrism and feel free to philosophize using any data, including African experiences. The cultural and the philosophical [End Page 95] are not necessarily contradictory terms; cultural realities can be the basis and the object of philosophical thinking. That is why sage philosophy, also called ethnophilosophy, exists and has been recognized. That is why African and pan-Africanist thinkers should consider using their languages and cultures as the raw materials for social, political, and philosophical thinking. I shall limit my comments to Dr. Eze's sections on South African metaphors, Nigerian realities, and reason and unreason in the humanities.

South African Metaphors

Dr. Eze's "Between History and the Gods" shows, among several positive things, that South African metaphors are as powerful and as philosophically sound as American Pragmatism, or French Existentialism, or German Idealism. The focus on, and the critique of, ubuntu in a post-apartheid South Africa has become a driving force in today's African social and political philosophy. When négritude, pan-Africanism, ujamaa, and authenticité have been moribund or in a state of agony and survival, ubuntu has a better chance to enjoy longevity. This is because of its focus on humanity in general, rather than on ethnicity or gender. Despite its weaknesses, which are pointed out in the article, it could be used to tackle and prevent some of Africa's and the world's problems, from the Rwandan and Darfur genocides to underdevelopment, conflicts, the AIDS pandemic, and globalization. It is the most philosophically interesting concept in the section on South African metaphors. I wish it were developed a little bit more and thereby popularized.

Nigerian Realities

To engage in ethnophilosophy—the philosophy of culture—is not to be uncritical about negative practices. The relativization of theft and bribery sets a dangerous precedent for African countries, in which excessive corruption and the lack of accountability have constituted a serious handicap for sustainable development.

"One Nigeria" as a philosophy...

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