There are no conspiracies for the African people. Only tragedies. If John F Kennedy had been assassinated in an African country, there would have been no conspiracy but probably hundreds of thousands lying dead, viciously hacked down by their own. The conspiracies will not stop, so they hardly matter. What matters is how Africans perceive themselves. It is time to stop being victims. Africans must understand that they are masters of their destiny if they are going to stop the cycle of violence that continues to make a mockery of and an embarrassment to all Africans worldwide.

I am calling for an Africa-wide citizens' movement: Citizens of the renaissance. Citizens of the renaissance will start this evolutionary revolution by teaching Africans to demand no less than a bare minimum. What is the bare minimum? A few every day examples come to mind:  I pay my rates and therefore demand that the municipality empties the dust bin outside my house. I pay school fees and demand that the school teacher turns up, teaches my child and marks his work. I pay taxes and consequently demand that the government builds roads, schools, hospitals and delivers clean drinking water to me.

These are bare minimums that the citizen of the renaissance must not take for granted to the point where the Minister of Energy will go on air to explain and apologise for a power cut. A power cut that lasts half an hour must outrage the citizenry to such an extent that it makes headline news in the national press and the evening prime time news. We must not be taken for granted by our leaders.To accept any less is to tell service providers that it is ok for them to fail to deliver. The renaissance citizen will abhor the very idea that potholes, power cuts and the absence of clean drinking water are his lot.

In the case of crimes that go against the norms and values of any society, the citizen of the renaissance must mobilise and march in the street (escorted by law enforcement agents) to demonstrate their displeasure at such behaviour. In France for instance, when a Jewish grave is desecrated by skinheads, thousands of people, including political leaders, march in the streets to show their disapproval.

The Jews refused to be victims for the rest of their destiny and they actively nurture the painful memory of the holocaust to keep focused on the need for a nation of their own. African leaders take advantage of us because we tend to be fatalistic, leaving it all to divine intervention and fate. Well, divine intervention and fate are at the beck and call of those who take control.

Africans should look for leaders who will actively encourage the citizen to rebel against them should they trample underfoot the constitution, corporate governance ethics or whatever rules they have sworn to protect. Civic education must be part of the curriculum from primary school to university level, teaching concepts ranging from the separation of powers, human rights to philosophy. This will set our people to understand that every human being has a right to disagree without being violent and that we can defend the right for others to disagree with us. Our people will live on clear principle and abhor violence, corruption and any form of abuse. Africa needs leaders who will live for a positive sustainable legacy for their country and continent.There is more to be gained when we all win than when we tear each other apart as in Kenya today.

Our intellectuals should focus on driving the next big African idea, the next big breakthrough in technology as Nokia has done for Finland, Toyota for Japan and human capital for Singapore, instead of dwelling on conspiracy theories. We have the power of choice and it is by focusing on the right choices that we will turn the corner that will allow Africa to begin to taxi and then take off. We will then become the leaders in solar energy, herbal medicines, blue pill and diamond processing technologies, among hundreds of endeavors of life.

We must choose, here and now, to take control of our destiny as a continent and as a people.  When that happens, there will be no more horror stories of machete wielding Africans hacking each other to death at the whim of a strong man or two because the people will guard their citizenship role and sense of legacy.

Citizens of the renaissance must embrace a new standard, a new expectation and a new set of values for Africa. The answer is in our minds and we can hold our heads up high on a continental level.Life rewards action. Let's act.

 By Albert Gumbo
Gumbo is the former MDC District Chair, Zimbabwe