THE AFRICAN MAN

So from a distance, I heard two of my male colleagues discussing. I wasn't really interested until I grasped that they were talking mainly about the female gender. I mean I am a woman and I was keen on hearing what they had to say so I listened like I wasn't listening. One of them happens to be married now and the other is still very much single although hinting marriage.

The single one started by telling the married one about how his brother that stays with him invited his girlfriend to come over and spend sometime with them. He was disappointed about the fact that the girl would sleep and then her boyfriend would go and cook and serve her breakfast in bed after all it was suppose to be the other way round. He stated that the girl was very lazy and couldn't even as much as sweep the house and keep everywhere clean since she is a Woman. He however went on to state that when his own girlfriend came, she would wake up as early as four to prepare food for them before they wake up. She would clean and cook before they would wake up and she was greatly missed when she left. The married one then went on to say that when he was single, he had a friend who called that she was coming over to spend the day with him. I was indeed amazed by what he did after that call ended. This my married colleague said he went ahead to scatter his entire house, locked the house and left the house dropping the key for the girl in a place safe. He went on stating that when he got home, the entire place was properly arranged and when asked by the girl why he left his house scattered, his answer was that was why she was there to arrange it.

I listened cautiously and all I got was how a woman was either good or bad based on how domesticated she was. The African society itself has been largely dominated with the stereotype mentality where a man is meant to provide and the woman is meant to cook and clean. Don't get be wrong, I support the theory of division of labor but I hate stereotype. I hate the mentality of a man must do this and a woman must do that. Relationships in African have become more about obligations than friendship and companionship. What happened to helping each other, supporting each other, doing things together. I thought that was the basic idea of marriage but a lot African men instead want to be a king and subdue a woman. They are scared of women with money, women with power and women with confidence.

Things have to change, they have to be better. A lot I have to say but I think I will continue in my subsequent post. Be nice guys