African Charity

My Fellow Friends,

Soliciting for board members for an exciting African charity.

I am Winifred Ayuk, from Cameroon- Africa and an MBA alumna of a renowned American University.

Currently I am actively involved on the Mediterranean crisis. I want to use this as an opportunity for the African plight to be fully understood and hopefully could serve as a turning point for the African situation.

The height, breaking point, limit and climax of all this is the silence from African officials and influential figures over the years as more and more Africans continue losing their lives on this route. These include our ambassadors in western Europe, all the African bishops and Cardinals for they lived and studied in Italy for a minimum of five years, his excellency, Koffi Annan etc. These exposed, knowledgeable and prominent leaders have chosen silence over action from saving their own from drowning despite the fact that Europeans had been rescuing Africans all this while in that water, thus teaching us by example. And the saddest of this all is that the African communities in the United States and Europe who have learned and known better in their new land, than those at home had failed to copy from our foreign counterparts who stand up on issues against their home governments for not responding to the needs of their people. It makes me ask the question if those that went would have stood up as well. I don't know. The most important arm of any government are the citizens. Also there is a controversy within the African communities abroad as to whether this is government responsibility or the personal choices of the people. Here, a whole civilization has to be re-educated.

The continent is ignorant of this issue as government responsibility as well for none of the African opposition parties took on this despite the fact that all the nations have opposition parties since the nineties. They would have loved to, in order to score points by hitting on this very hard if only they knew. Therefore many of the presidents don't even know this is government responsibility.

Here is a short story of how we are used to fending for ourselves in Africa, forgetting about the existence of government. The infant son of an African lady was abducted by her foreign partner to his native country. She decided to go to the ends of the earth all on her own in search of her son and finally re-united with him when he was already a teenager.( I withhold both nationalities to avoid unnecessary backlashes here.)If she had reported this to authority and appropriate action taken this would have been resolved in no time.
And still on not knowing roles and functions of governments, Cameroonian parliament had never made a law since its existence. And a lot more on legislative bodies of African governments.

Not everyone in a nation must be educated or knowledgeable for that nation to have a high welfare standard. After all how many Europeans were in Africa that Africans are all still looking back at the 60s and the 70s as the greatest years of the continents for things functioned as a result of remnants of colonialism.
Unfortunately in Africa, the 10% with full knowledge of government, public service and governing have always failed in uplifting, educating and enlightening the continent. Instead they are focused only on their jobs, pay stubs and titles without the slighted act of service and compassion for their fellow citizens.
The moment i stepped into the western world i said we don't make use of education and we don't apply knowledge. Another African also said we don't know how to make use of knowledge and another one said the value of anything you do here depends on the impact it has on the society. In Africa we have used education solely for job purpose. And this is where our problems lie. With a hundred trillion dollars in Africa, and let everyone in Africa get a Ph.d, with the current trend, don't expect any change in the continent.
Now you understand why I need your utmost support for this journey.

As a private citizen due to some constraints, I was unable to stand on this until now. whereas we had Africans whose duty required them to respond to this instantly but they failed. My first move on this was to contact my alma mater February of last year due to its outstanding service to humanity and also striving to use education and faith to bridge the gap between the poor and the rich, pleading for intervention on our governments on the Mediterranean crisis for up to that point even though thousands of African had lost their lives on that route and thousands buried on European shore lines, no African leader/government had addressed it. Because of my plea a relationship was created with the University of Buea in Cameroon. A trip was planned for the end of last year which did not take place but hopefully will be fulfilled this fall.

When I learned the Pope was to address the United Nations last year, I went to Rome and led a demonstration for the Pope, Italian Government and European Parliament to bring our voices on September of 2015 to the United Nations, 'Intervention on African governments on their silence and inaction on the Mediterranean crisis.' Also i led another demonstration here during the last United Nations General Assembly on same issue.

Now I have decided to respond to the request of some friends who have encouraged me due to my involvement on this issue and how I have been listened to, to start a Charity/Foundation. And because this charity will be standing on the backs of those lying on the bed of the Mediterranean sea, there is going to be no bla bla bla.
It took quite some time for me to come up with the GOAL;

To raise funds for American Universities and other institution of higher learning to start carrying out projects and putting programs in place across sub Saharan nations for that is how i have seen depressions (such as the Irish, Italian, German, and the United States) taken care of. And also to deliver motivational speeches in our schools with specific examples of successes and failures, on what real leadership is about, as well as roles and functions of government.

Pope Francis in Mexico urges listeners to struggle to make Mexico " a land of opportunities where there will be no need to emigrate in order to dream" And this is what this charity is all about. And he also called on the Mexican bishops to be very vocal on the drug cartel issue.

What exchange program is more than being an Ambassador? When they get up there with all the experience, knowledge, opportunities, influence and authority choose to be silent and inactive on all issues. This is how much time and resources have been wasted on Africa. This behavior of our front liners and decision makers in the mist of such crisis speaks volumes for it goes beyond this and explains why Africa is where it is. The only act of patriotism we know in Africa is to fight for independence and freedom and after that one cares. If we cannot stand up when people are dying, the unfortunate reality is we are unfit to govern ourselves. Join me in seeing to it that this is squarely addressed.

As you can see for yourself we don't need structures in Africa but leadership in order to make it function. And hopefully this 'charity' will create many great internships for American students. And also because I need a racially diverse board of active and enthusiastic individuals I took to the Internet to recruit members rather than the easy way out of turning to friends, relatives and neighbors. You are all welcome!

There seem to be a lot of mixture going on in Europe with the migrant situation but there are great demarcations. Unlike Middle East, Africa is not at war. And that is why i was excited when I stumbled on the symposium last fall hosted by Rutgers University NJ. The theme was, 'Africa, Mediterranean and Europe'. This has been there for about eighteen years now. Movement on this route got deadly from 2008 on daily basis when the Italian government and Libyan government jointly agreed to start pushing back the boats. These had been the two main ports of entry into Europe and exit from Africa. The boats started dodging from patrol ships thus navigating routes they were not familiar with.

And here are the conditions of those boats: It takes nothing less than two days and two nights to get to the closest Italian southern port, no overhead roof- rain, sun, wind they are there. How many times women give birth in these boats? Almost all the time. In all of these trips are always children, some as small as under age five, What of sanitation? Night time no electricity, Each time a boat arrives the ambulance is there for many had fallen sick on board, Passengers per boat, hundreds. Average boat per week, minimum of two. These played out in front of African officials for about eight years before Europe decided to start defending their boarders, there is also Middle East, Mediterranean, Europe which is just about two years old. This is partly as a result of the Arab spring of 2011 which also led to the bombing of Libya and the overthrown of President Gaddafi's government. And until middle East joined on this route in late 2014 more than 90% of the migrants were sub saharans.

Columbian medical students went to Tanzania sometime ago to assist with the situation of aids, and saw that they had to go beyond charity. They started putting a program in place to prevent Tanzanian Doctors from leaving the country. Putting a program in place is government involvement. So I am not crazy by wanting American higher institutions of learning to install programs in our governments. And what is the significance of this? For someone to walk into your nation and start putting a program for you. More so they went there for something else. This is to say our governments don't have a direction and don't know what they are doing. Change in Africa can never come from within Africa but from outside Africa. President Obama said in his audacity of hope that rules should be set for us to follow.

Everyone is welcome. And believe me (like Donald Trump says) our governments will appreciate your efforts.

Once we take off with about three million dollars which I have a great fund raising strategy for in no time, and demonstrate in the first African nation our intentions, I hope to convince big international bodies to divert funds to Africa into this 'foundation'/'charity' and also to get the African governments get their money into this fund for projects to be carried out for them. Last year the overwhelming population of migrants into Europe forced EU to call on those leading nations in Africa where the migrants were coming from and offered 1.8bn Euro to help stop citizens from leaving for Europe. Why force someone to take care of a problem they've not acknowledged? And what is the result? More deaths had been registered on this sea this year than last year despite the fact that Middle Easterners have been hugely blocked by Turkey from going through due to another negotiation with European Union. So what happened to the 1.8bn Euro given to these African nations? I bet you more than half of that money is already in private accounts in foreign banks. They did not need it, they did not ask for it and they didn't know what to do with it. American students would have had a lot to show in Africa for 1.8bn Euro.

Before Europe was thrown into confusion with the influx of migrants from middle east in late 2014, Lega Nord (3rd largest right-winged party) in Italy, had closed benefits centers in its jurisdictions. That Italy should go and help Africans but in Africa. This makes a lot of sense. I will like to work in close collaboration with such party once we demonstrate our capabilities while Europe continues to handle the rest of the migrant crisis. That is how enthusiastic and optimistic I am about this project. Nothing is impossible.

Mr. Bill Gates said China and India are getting out of poverty at a faster rate than anyone else in the world because they are copying from the west. Africa also has to copy from the west.

How I have been listened to so far without the slightest challenged, from my alma mater that created a relationship with a Cameroonian university to the Italian police precinct in Rome that issued a demonstration permit instantly causing a shock wave through the other foreign communities in Rome, that an individual will walk in and out of the precinct with a permit, to the Vatican that showed keen interest on the idea of the demonstration and made copies of the documents that were involved and told me where to tell the Police inspector ( whom they knew by name) as an appropriate site for a demonstration for the pope, to the Camboniani Missionaries hosting many of the migrants who did not hesitate in putting this notice up on their board, as well as the excitement and encouragement I got from the African community as I distributed the fliers across some Italian towns and cities. The overall message I got from my reception In Italy was, everyone is waiting for one of us (African ) to spearhead something like this.

This demonstration took place on Piazza Santi Apostoli on 5th September 2015 between 10am -2pm Supervised by the Italian police force. Resources were set up for about five hundred demonstrators. Unfortunately turnout was low. And at the end we submitted our request to the three bodies it was meant for guided by the police force.

President Putin said he likes America, for the openness of the system has made it possible for the talents of all its citizens to be tapped into. This is similar to what I had always said of America, ' In America anyone can make a difference.' And also following the election of President Obama as President of the United States, Honorable Fini, an Italian political leader said that, its only in America someone will get into politics for just four years and become a president. And it's for this reason I decided to base the charity in the United States instead of Europe where most of the calamities are occurring and where I am also a resident. GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!

I hope this sounds exciting and something you will like to be a part of. Feel free to contact me at anytime. And when we meet expect to see the documents of these events I have talked of. Until then stay blessed.

Winifred Ayuk