Ethiopian Intellectuals should be asked to serve their Country
By: Dr Teodros Kiros
There is nothing special about intellectuals. The term intellectual simply denotes someone who is fascinated with ideas. Sometimes the ideas are clear, purposeful and meaningful. Sometimes they are not. When they are not so meaningful, the intellectual still remains fascinated with them, for their own sake, very much like the artist who does are for art's sake.
By this definition then any body who is fascinated with ideas is an intellectual. But there are wrinkles to the definition. The intellectual is further distinguished from the ordinary person who gets fascinated by ideas because the intellectual strides a further step and separates himself from the average person by elevating his ideas into esoteric specialties, so that he could claim that only he has the appropriate tools with which to decipher those difficult ideas.
Thus some intellectuals specialize in the natural sciences. Others excel in the humanities broadly understood. Many develop expertise in the social Sciences.
During this crucial time of the transformation of knowledge from common sense to the modern disciplines, the ordinary intellectual and his fascination with ideas is left behind. The knowers are separated from the non-knowers.
Surely, the members of the current regime in Ethiopia have sacrificed body and soul to liberate Ethiopia from the Derg. Ethiopians remain grateful for that. While fighting for seventeen years in the rugged plateaus of Ethiopia, they have developed expertise in the art of war. They fought heroically to give us a new, and in the beginning, a radically democratic regime. Many Ethiopians fondly remember their arrival on the Ethiopian scene. Ethiopians from all walks of life stretched their arms to welcome them. Many began to dream again. Many have deferred their dreams since.
One can say that the leaders' fascination with the art of war qualifies them as intellectuals in their own right. The defense of the country and the appropriate knowledge of that enterprise is their domain. This knowledge has rightly qualified some of them for leadership positions. That is appropriate.
But that qualification is radically different from the qualifications needed to run a country by attending to the nation's multifaceted needs, in the complex era of Globalization. There are underused and extremely able intellectuals who should feel those positions.
Administering Ethiopia is different from defending it.
The administration of Ethiopia, in contrast to defending it belongs to the domain of intellectuals and their ever-complex specialties. The desiderata for these positions call for different criteria. The criteria should exclusively be merit combined with integrity. Again, Ethiopia is blessed with an impressive availability of a highly qualified intelligencia rightly fascinated with highly technical disciplines, ranging from economists to natural scientists.
Most of our leaders unfortunately do not have the requisite knowledge to man our huge bureaucracy, for a fault not their own. Most were busy defending the country, as masters of the art of war, no easy undertaking.
The services of this sleepy intelligencia could be solicited through annual conference that the Prime Minster could convene; at which places experts in all fields could present their ideas without fear. They could forward programs about where Ethiopia should go. The Prime Minister could use these occasions to learn and not compete with those who really know, unless their ideas are unfeasible, irrelevant, then the Prime Minister and his advisors could present their objections through the force of the better argument, free of domination. Establishing such a public forum is one of the central pillars of radical democracy. Indeed, it is the most important value that genuine democracies celebrate. Modern Ethiopia too needs this precious value.
Ethiopian intellectuals spread all over the world must be invited to return home and serve their country. All the appropriate accommodations should be put in place for them to participate in an Ethiopian " Renaissance".
The time is now or never.
[Opinions in this article are solely that of the writer.]