Page 33 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 19

Economy

the fact that they were so obvious-
ly corrupt and willing to corrupt
society, but to retain them in some
shape or form. But why would soci-
ety do that?

When we speak of Ubuntu: “I am
because we are”, we must keep in
mind the aspect of personal respon-
sibility towards others for choices
that we make, or else we miss the
point. Each of these three situa-
tions are sufficient in themselves
to ensure that all manufacturing, all
marketing and sales initiatives, all
products (financial or otherwise),
all financial activities worldwide,
all government policy making are
reviewed to the greatest depths and
breadths possible, in order to ensure
that nothing like this ever happens
again. But, since we know that the
world is still heavily polluted in
terms of mindset and perspective,
and we know that companies still
lie about what the benefits of their
products are, that financial institu-
was denied a government bailout tions have in common? tions are more interested in profit
and shut its doors. JPMorgan Chase Personal choice. Individuals decided than ever before, and that govern-
bought the ruins of Bear Stearns on on an endeavor and committed to it, ments are complicit in all these
the cheap. or groups of people came together things, then we know that valuable
As for the biggest of the big banks, to cooperate and build towards a learnings are not being applied as we
including JPMorgan Chase, Gold- common goal. And they did. move forward from these crises.
man Sachs, Bank of America, and Personal motivation. Each one saw
Morgan Stanley, all were, famously, a potential benefit in the outcome Can we genuinely call that
“too big to fail.” They took the bail- of their chosen activity from which
out money, repaid it to the govern- they hoped to gain and that is what progress and advancement?
ment, and emerged bigger than ever kept them committed to pursuing But even if the world will not learn,
after the recession.” (From: https:// the outcome. Even when they saw should Afrika continue follow their
www.investopedia.com/articles/eco- things begin to go wrong. ways of persistent and deliberate
nomics/09/financial-crisis-review. Consequences. Out of each of blindness and culpability? No. Rath-
asp) these situations – and others like er, Afrika should choose pathways
them – there were costs to be paid. that make sense for longevity in
“The Bank of America… paid Either financial costs or lives lost or all spheres using cases such as the
roughly £11 billion in damages health, or livelihoods, or devastating three above, and the hundreds or
for its role in the 2008 subprime economic or environmental costs. thousands of others that have taken
mortgage crisis and financial crash.” Nothing was left untouched. Worse place around the world, and on the
(Source: https://www.scotsman. yet, the moral fabric of society was continent to chart a safe course
com/news/crime/who-paid-the- damaged by the continuing en- forward. We sit, as a continent, in a
largest-criminal-fine-in-history-and- dorsement of the existence of these position that offers us the perfect
why-3376815) companies, their products and their vantage point to be able to view
financial gain. A choice was made the cause-and-effect relationship
What do each of these situa- not to destroy them utterly, despite between global policy-making and
negative outcome. We can trace

WWW.MSINGIAFRIKAMAGAZINE.COM ISSUE 19 | JANUARY 2022 33