Boris Johnson thinks 'that country Africa' could do with some British values – he must have forgotten about colonialism

Along with this typically off-the-wall jokes (such as his choice to describe Britain as a “great jiving funkapolitan melting pot”), offensive statements are perhaps one of the only things we can rely on our new Foreign Secretary to deliver

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson is welcomed by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Ankara, Turkey, 27 September, 2016 (EPA)

In the latest addition to his seemingly never-ending foot-in-mouth routine, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson made yet another blunder to an audience of millions at the annual Tory Party Conference in Birmingham last night.

Short-sighted enough to reignite doubts about his ability to strengthen already waning relations between Britain and a number of nations across the globe, Johnson’s mistaken use of the phrase “that country” in reference to Africa, the second-largest continent in the world, speaks to his habit of routinely issuing offensive remarks about Africa and the citizens that make up its 54 countries.

Johnson, who just this year suggested that President Barack Obama’s Kenyan heritage and presumed “ancestral dislike of the empire” were reason enough to suspect him of being a covert saboteur of Britain’s future in the run-up to the EU referendum, and in 2002 remarked that “the best fate for Africa would be if the old colonial powers or their citizens scrambled once again in her direction on the understanding that this time they will not be asked to feel guilty”, seems insistent on proving his overwhelming incompetence to the world.

Doubling down on imperialist rhetoric as his speech this week progressed, Johnson also proudly proclaimed that “the values of global Britain are needed more than ever” along with suggesting that its “beliefs” are responsible for continuing to “lift the world out of poverty”.

While I find that far from surprising as far as right-leaning British sentiments go, remarks like these, long uncovered to be little more than attempts to ensure the retention of Britain’s status as a global “soft power”, do very little to remove the stain of Britain’s colonial past from the memories of nations that were once (and in some cases, still are) openly exploited.

David Cameron’s 2014 call for the widespread enforcement of “British values” in schools, was read by many, particularly those from communities that are still reeling from the effects of Britain’s compulsion to bestow its moral system on the world, as dog-whistle politics – an attempt to suggest that standards such as democracy, the rule of law, and mutual respect for and tolerance of those with difference faiths and beliefs and those without faith are unique to British society.

Typically odd statements aside (such as his choice to describe Britain as a “great jiving funkapolitan melting pot”), clearly offensive sentiments are perhaps one of the only things we can rely on our new Foreign Secretary to deliver.

Lest no one forget, the former journalist openly referred to members of the Commonwealth as “flag-waving piccaninies” with “watermelon smiles” in The Telegraph in 2002, and this year was forced to address his “rich thesaurus” of slip-ups during a news conference with US Secretary of State John Kerry following his appointment.

While news of Johnson’s remarks may seem tame in comparison to curiously similarly blond-mopped Republican nominee Donald Trump and his seemingly endless xenophobia, it is a worry that politicians like Johnson are rarely taken to task when it comes to routinely espousing damaging statements about foreign nations and practices.

Despite remaining one of the world’s economic and political superpowers, morally innocent Britain is not, and rather than continuing to relay the oft-trodden romantic narrative of Britain as a benevolent global protector, it is high time this government acknowledged the fact that accountability reads much more sincere than wildly exaggerated claims about our unflinching success as a nation. It wouldn’t hurt to be absolutely sure Africa is a continent, rather than a country, the first time round either.