Michel Ngue Awane

His theory of the colonial subconscious

Michel Ngue-Awane argues that although African countries won the physical battle against the colonial powers’ occupation, they are still struggling to liberate their minds. A history of subtle and systematic indoctrination of their subconscious, through programmes put in place to control them, left its shadow, with African people unable to take action to change their status quo. A history of tales has fooled Africans to believe their situation could change simply by the wave of a magic wand.

‘The Colonial Subconscious’ -a theory that many of the current struggles faced by Africans people are exacerbated unconsciously by themselves, due to their lack of actions to change systems that were put in place to control them. By keeping and working with these systems, they perpetuate their self-annihilation, living as dependants individuals under siege- and encourages readers to reflect on their own lives and sense of self. By identifying these repressed ideologies the individual can confront the negative shackles and enter a positive stage of self-actualisation. This releases the subconscious and invites in new experiences and opportunities leaving the individual able to take firm, positive action and full control over their destiny. Only after individuals in Africa have improved and honoured themselves, can they collectively rise above all prejudices and stereotypes ensuring freedom, peace and prosperity for future generations.

Views on education

Michel Ngue-Awane thinks that education plays a key role in the fabric of the society and argues that individuals will never discover their true purpose in life if they fail to understand their inner self. Education should therefore help individuals to know who they truly are so that they can pursuit their own agenda in life, but when they fail to understand this, they end up studying and living other people’s life.

He conclude that Africa cannot change or develop if their respective governments don’t change their current education system. The current education system in every African country is not relevant to their situation, context and needs, therefore not suitable for Africans. Africans according to Michel Ngue-Awane will remain servants, living on "borrowed-self" as long as they continue with the colonial education system. True education should be geared toward identifying one’s potentials and needs, and developing programmes that will help to meet those needs. He believe that Africa can lead the world if Africans discover their true identity and follow it.

View on poverty

For Michel Ngue-Awane, poverty is a mental state and yet again, he suggests that a poor person in reality doesn't want to be poor, however, he has programmed his subconscious mind to accept poverty as a situation that cannot be overcome. Until he breaks this mental barrier, he will never defeat poverty. He thinks that most African people are poor because they are still mentally and psychologically bound, having been trained to accept poverty as normal, see and consider themselves as poor people. This situation is exacerbated and maintained by aid programmes. Accepting and living on aid is yet another mechanism to perpetuate poverty.that makes life easier and comfortable however, poor people’s subconscious mind accepts it. They attribute the causes of poverty to someone else but themselves. Unconsciously poor people-

In reality human nature rejects poverty and lack and long for things particularly African people- have decided to remain poor, but they don't know this and no one dare to tell them the truth, instead, they are pushed deeper into this condition through all sorts of so-called "poverty alleviating programmes". They are constantly distracted to find the causes of poverty elsewhere instead of looking inwardly to discover their source of wealth. People who have discovered this principle are in fact free and wealthy.

Without understanding the causes of poverty which are inherent to each individual, Africa will never become rich and free.

View on Democracy and Development

A country cannot claim to be developed when it is unable to feed its population. In Africa, there is almost everything African people need to meet their needs. Rivers and streams abound, but Africans still depend on the mercy of rain for their subsistence farming. Without a clear road map for their development, Africa will never move an inch.

For Michel Ngue-Awane, state of development is where citizens can have a share in the nation’s wealth, and where they can easily meet their needs for food, shelter, health, production and reproduction without a lot of difficulties. True development is when citizens can easily have the means to buy or access experiences they desire. For example, with money, they can buy the experiences of good food, good holiday, good hospital treatment, decent accommodation etc.

These experiences do not necessarily require an elected government or regular change in governments to be expressed. In fact some changes in government can hinder these experiences and limit people’s possibilities to thrive. What people really want is the type of governments that encourage creativity, investment, freedom of undertakings, freedom of entrepreneurship, and freedom of ambitions, whether it is an elected government or not. Africans should therefore adopt the type of government that is suitable for their respective nations, instead of importing concepts that make no difference to their citizens’ lives.

Our mind-set determines our conditions and this is why Michel argues that we can change governments every year, but without a change of mind-set, Africa will remain poor and under-developed.

He conclude that a government is as rich as its citizens and if the citizens are poor, the country will be poor.

Quotes from his book

“The Neolithic man did not live or rely on international aid.”

“We need to help people to acquire the ability to think positively, to think of possibilities and to self-value. We need to train them to think in terms of what they want to be and of possibilities”

“We create our conditions by our thoughts process and we can only change them through our thoughts process.”

“Impossibility is a self-imposed limitation”

“A government is as rich as its people because it makes money from citizens and if citizens are poor, the country will be poor”.

“Resources abound in the world and many are those not yet discovered, when their needs arise, we will discover them”.