By Chombe Teshome
One should not need to sink into Falmanaa Sabaa’s psychobabble to surmise the tribal intellectual swamp the author of the piece grows out of. His piece “Is Oromo Fiduciary to Habesha and often demanded to confess its political strategy?” is a bigoted spew. It isn’t enlightenment Dr. Falmanaa has labored to imprint on us, but stereotype, scapegoat, and distilled ethnic hate toward other Ethiopians. It would have been mind boggling, in this age and time, to find such a thoroughly hateful article written by a white nationalist, but to find a black bigoted Oromo, coming to the forefront should stop us in our tracks and seize our undivided collective attention. Throughout the article, the author employs discriminatory categorizations to target Ethiopians who happen to disagree with his narrow nationalistic view of Ethiopia. The only Ethiopians spared from Dr.Falmanaa’s hateful harangue are those nationalists who he thought might be willing to put aside their Ethiopian fedora at his will. All other unabashed Ethiopians, regardless of their origin of nationality, have been treated as the enemy of Oromo.
Dr Falmanaa has reserved his special venom for Ethiopians he called “hybrid PanEthiopians” and for the Oromo Ethiopians who stood for an inclusive united and democratic Ethiopia. The latter, according to Falmanaa, are not independent thinkers but the victims of the former manipulative nature. Through Dr. Falmanaa’s bigoted lens these pan Ethiopian are schemers who possess the superhuman ability to manipulate, con, and pull the proverbial wool over unsuspected Oromo eyes; thus, he warns, they must be considered the mortal enemies to the birth of Oromo Nation. Everything they do or undo, miraculously, he was able to trace and find it in their innate hybrid nature. The more one examines Falmanaa’s article, these hybrid Pan Ethiopians seems to exhibit all the hallmarks of the Nazi characterization of Jews: selfish, divisive, and manipulative of natives. At the end of his article, Dr Sabba gives a nod and wink as to how to deal with these PanEthiopians.
Dr Falmanaa has expounded further that although the forefathers of these so-called hybrids were servants of Amharas, these particular PanEthiopians are innately inclined to be radically more Pan Ethiopian than even Amharas themselves. Like the house slaves of the Antebellum America south who had been entrusted by white slave masters, these PanEthiopians are suspected of supporting and protecting their Amhara masters. Luckily for Dr Falmanaa these phantom Amhara masters simply don’t exist except in the figment of the good Dr’s imagination. His pseudo-psychoanalysis never seems to relent in attacking these “hybrid-Ethiopians “that he considers a threat. He mercilessly stripped them of all heroes they considered to have had and calls them cowards. Even the positive sacrifices they made to improve the lives of landless Ethiopians is suspect in Dr. Falmanaa eyes because the slogan they marched under was “land to the tillers” as opposed to his preferred slogan “land to natives”. Mind you, in either case the beneficiaries of the reforms were one and the same people of Ethiopia who were not owners of the land they labored. The sacrifice Pan Ethiopians made to make the peasant the owner of their own land was not good enough for him to give them credit for.
The reason the kind of Tsegay Arrarsa, Falmanaa Sabaa (Phd) (probably the pen name for the former) and Leben Wako came out lashing because, notwithstanding their radical separatist propaganda, Oromos and other Ethiopian nationalities across the land have come together to form new partnerships, build bridges and support each other in their struggle for a democratic and just Ethiopia. This organic brotherhood and sisterhood relationship didn’t bode well for narrow minded nationalists who have been clamoring to aggrandize themselves as a leader of the Oromo. While the artificial wall that has been built by TPLF started crumbling, these hate monger secessionists felt that their cherished ideal construct of a separate Oromia had been unceremoniously neutered.
Contrary to the wish of these radical separatist, many self-assertive leaders of the Oromo-Ethiopians have come to occupy the political stage bringing their vision of a United and just Ethiopia. After a lifelong struggle for Oromo people, these leaders have come to the realization, that no single nation will be free while other Ethiopians are under the yoke of oppression. These bold, visionary leaders have galvanized the hope that the half century long suffering of Ethiopian people finally can be curtailed. This unity of purpose among Ethiopians has sent shivers down the radical secessionist’ spine. This reality has completely unhinged Falmanna Sabaa which prompted him to dictate to his ilk how to deal with these Oromo-Ethiopians who happen not to share his vision “take your torch, find them out and discharge them away.” This terroristic threat didn’t come from a terrorist organization per se, but from a so-called PhD holder hiding behind a computer.
To counter the amalgamation of purpose among Ethiopian intellectuals of different hues, these radical secessionists have to come up with a categorization of Ethiopians by blood and by region. Just as the dead South African Apartheid system had categorized races by their cooperation in maintaining the racist system, Falmanna Sabba categorizes Pan-Ethiopians by their amenability to the aspirations of the Oromo secessionist agenda. According to this narrow Oromo nationalist, Amharas in the north part of Ethiopia can be cajoled into partnership as long as they accept without question, to relegate Ethiopian nationalism to the back burner. Obviously, for Falamann Sabaa cooperation is a one way street. He will get what he wants, and the remaining Ethiopians will help him lift up the fulcrum and cheerfully dismantle Ethiopia.
The heartfelt gratitude by Falamann Sabba to Leben wako of London was a desperate attempt to hang on to his pipe dream. Falamanna Sabba’s shameful cockiness and wishful thinking are also on full display when he expresses his wish that at some point TPLF to come to its senses and wrap, pack and deliver Oromia on a silver platter to separatist Oromos. At the risk of being called rude Dr Falamnn needs to face the cold truth; Ethiopia is built and defended by all Ethiopians. Even the wackiest TPLFties are not insane enough to abandon Ethiopia and shut the door behind themselves. The earlier this truth dawns on Dr Falamann the better.
The handful of radical Oromo separatist coming out and advocating openly for the dismemberment of Ethiopia, and talk of deAmahrizaton of Ethiopia is the least of Ethiopians worry. Actually, it is a blessing in disguise. Before, we didn’t have the foggiest Idea how deadly these radical Oromo separatist agenda had been, but now we do. We have to listen to them carefully, and ask those who habitually doublespeak to make a clear statement about their intentions. Most PanEthiopians ask for clarification because individuals that crowd the airwaves make statements that are contradictory in nature. They cannot be for and against at the same time. When these contradictions are brought up for them to explain, they feign anger as to how we can pose this kind of question? These learned men need to bring themselves out of cognitive dissonance they comfortably reside. A statement I am both for separate Oromia and Ethiopian unity is a sophistry of unparalleled kind.
No one has attempted to change the radical Oroms stand on Ethiopia or demanded they submit to Ethiopian nationalism. However, what they have been asked time and time again was that to stop vacillating between the two and make their stand on Ethiopia unity clear. Since few of these radicals dominate a handful stations and websites, that must have given them delusions of grandeur that they are on the cusp of determining the fate of more than 100000000 Ethiopians. It wouldn’t be long before they find out the futility of their pomposity. Either with them or without them Ethiopians from all nationalities and all walk of life will forge ahead to establish a democratic and just Ethiopia.