World Cup Aftermath

Andrew Layman:  PCB CEO

This is rather like the morning after the night before.   When I was a teacher and did a fair amount of counselling, I used to liken the ego to a bag or a balloon.   Adolescents are often very low on ego.   They are inclined to lack self-confidence and think ill of themselves.   They are concerned about their looks and their image, which accounts for the way in which they gaze at themselves in the mirror whenever the chance to do so presents itself.   Their lack of self-respect is often fuelled by the criticism that they tend to invite from parents and teachers.   The teenager that invites a string of praise is a rare specimen, for, in truth, many of these young people are morose, restless, rebellious and uncommunicative.   Parents feel that they have lost touch with them.   In terms of my analogy, their ego bags are empty.   To fill them, they look to their peers.   Being one of the group makes them feel worthwhile, while having a good time of an evening can ensure that the ego bag is filled to the brim.   At such time, they might drink, or take drugs, or engage in sex, or simply revel in doing things in a crowd where they are accepted and, apparently, valued.    Though fit to burst, the bag is filled with air and there is no substance to it.    As quickly as the bag has been inflated, it deflates by the next morning.    Adolescents need the ego bag to be filled with something more substantial that does not run out in a short time, but stays long enough for it to be augmented by more substance.  It is for this reason that young people need affirmation.   They need to be reminded constantly that they have quality and value.   In time, they will learn to pat themselves on the back, for we cannot always rely on others to compliment us.  Sometimes, we have to recognise our worth ourselves.

The aftermath of the World Cup finds the nation in a similar position, perhaps.   Much of the euphoria of the past month has been of the party variety – somewhat exaggerated joy and festivity, boosted significantly by the fact that we have been partying together.    It is as if normal life has been suspended, and together with it the realities of responsibility.  It is not only the scholars who have had to come down to earth and go back to school.    It occurs to me that politics has also been suspended for this time, and it has been refreshing that we have neither seen nor heard much of politicians while the soccer has been in the forefront of our national mind.   Our national ego, bursting with pride and revelling in superlatives, is already being deflated.    Signs of xenophobia have already appeared, while, if the truth be faced, many of the country’s poor have had no reason to celebrate at all.  The World Cup, even if it brought them the enjoyment of watching soccer matches (I wonder how many of our fellow citizens were denied that pleasure), did not bring food for hungry stomachs.   Even as we accept that the World Cup cost the nation a great deal of money and that this expenditure can be justified by the expected returns, we cannot escape the reality that the billions would have bought a great deal of food and facilitated better delivery in both health and education.  

We are already talking of the Olympics, as if the nation’s international image and internal welfare depend on such events.   What if we were to devote our energies and resources to education instead?   Research shows that the quality of our education is among the worst in Africa, despite the fact that we spend more on it than many other countries.   What would it do for our national pride if this were to be turned around in ten years?   What would we feel if the incidence of HIV and AIDS could be reduced to negligible proportions in that time?   Sadly, accomplishments of this nature might pass us by, since we are inclined to be as fickle with our national self confidence as adolescents.   We prefer the thrill of the party, rather than the satisfaction of achieving something of real, lasting value. 

But the skill and expertise that enabled our country to put this mammoth event together so successfully is still available to us and could be exploited by government to ensure that the legacy of the World Cup is not just a hangover, but a united, more prosperous and better-managed country.      

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