When DCs are equal to LDCs

Dear Editor,

Gira Emmanuel

Are you guys just kidding or simply teasing? Power outages in Developed Countries? I need some clarification here. For four weeks now I have been tracking this thing of power outages and sometimes do not believe my eyes when reading your daily headlines. Well, you should help me answer this question. Is it possible that we can have power outages in developed counties, the origin of civilisation and technological advancement or you are being fictitious? It was unbelievable to read that it is spreading from one country to another, like our African wild fire; from one bush to another clearing shrubs, chasing birds and killing animals with heavy legs. Well, the only difference is that, African wild fire burns the bushes and creates heat and light, but the power outages in the so called developed countries are causing blackouts and leaving patients waiting for surgery cold. 

When I think of Rostow´s theory of modernisation and try to imagine the countries in question, I would quickly think of high level of industrialisation; efficiency in service delivery and effectiveness of governments in managing issues.  I immediately feel affronted to admit that, power outages can go on and on for weeks, affecting service delivery; transport, health, industries, education, business and government administration and nothing serious has so far been done. I would expect this to happen here in my country, a less developed country (LDC); where blackouts are not news and normal, where traffic lights are replaced by police men who open their arms to show the drivers where to go; where a midwife uses paraffin-fuelled lantern to deliver babies; where the rich classes and sensitive government offices have standby generators to counter outages. 

Do our brothers in Developed Countries (DCs) sell all the generators they manufacture to us in LDCs

and keep nothing emergency? Why can’t such institutions like hospitals, public transport lighting systems and government offices do like we do here in the LDCs. How effective then are the DC governments and service providers like electricity distribution companies, if I may ask?

However, it is not too late to correct the illusions assumptions about efficiency in DCs. With my experience, the theory of efficiency is universally inefficient, even in brand new cars. I remember one day, together with twelve high school friends, we were travelling in a pick-up double cabin, and brand new one expected to be very efficient mechanically. But efficiency was inefficient, we bumped on small pothole and at once, we saw the back tire from my side faster than the car. The driver however used his expertise and saved us. On stopping, we realized that the new bolts were cut. It was a new machine after all, we did not have extra bolts for emergency. From a group of sympathizers, an old man said to us, young men, “Emergency is emergency”. So DCs just know, whether it is a DC or LDC emergency is emergency, emergency is universal, powers are bound to go off; put an emergency response facility, train some traffic police officers to take over when traffic lights become confused, retain some lanterns in schools, so that students can have light, and government officers, do some handwriting, so that you do not worry about the unsaved soft copies, and keep the post office operational, so that mails can be delivered in the absence of the internet.