The East African Community governments are rebelling, slowly but surely. Starting from the day Nabongo Mumia sold his Kingdom to the British empire for a bicycle, it has always been common wisdom that anyone can promise Africans heaven in the hereafter for their resources NOW! Something seems to have broken, the EAC governments are banning used clothes and shoes. The USA on its part is up in arms, its not able to understand why these 'Shitty" countries don't want their dirty underpants!

Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association (SMART); rightfully states that AGOA members or ”beneficiaries” should ”work towards eliminating barriers to the United States trade and investment” and promote “economic policies to reduce poverty in the USA”. The question is why is this an African problem? The membership of SMART itself is not diverse. I can authoritatively say AGOA is the US President's tool to keep the African market wide open for USA large corporations without offering anything to Africa. It a blatant disrespect to Africans, black people and those of African origin because it's thought they will never see through the smoke and mirrors.

First, the USA government does not have any leverage on the access into the American market, they can block you but cannot get you in! In essence, the ”trade” between African governments and the USA government in the AGOA arrangement is not apples and apples - the African governments trade ”absolute access to their markets” for ” permission to talk to USA corporate buyers” who have no obligation to grant even the ”meeting” and if they do, no guarantee of purchase. Take the simple case of Kenyan grown cut flowers. It's true that they are AGOA eligible, it's true that the industry is perpetually coming to flower shows in Miami but nobody seems to ask why only Colombia flowers are in the supermarket and convenience stores! Kenyans sold their ”textile industry ” for a ”maybe cut flower market”, just like Nabongo Mumia sold his Kingdom for a bicycle. It is time that kind of trades stopped and I am glad the East African community governments are finally smelling the coffee. The case of tea is special because of both forward and backward

Anyone who ”abuses” your parent has no respect or regard for you, hence all Americans of African descent have a duty to themselves to ensure that programs targeting Africa are mutually beneficial and not condescending. There is no African beneficiary to AGOA as it is currently constructed that is why there is never a fight in Congress during its extension.