Opinion
Analysis
Bishop’s
remarks welcomed
Last week the Auxiliary Bishop of Dar es Salaam Diocese (Roman Catholic)
Methodius Kilaini made remarks on the kind of leaders Tanzanian deserves in the
forthcoming general elections.
Among other things, the bishop called upon Tanzanians to pray to God so that the
country is rewarded with good leaders.
Kilaini was officiating Adoration of the Cross – a Good Friday function in which
Christians kiss the cross and adore Christ who was crucified on it. The function
was held at national level at Magomeni Catholic Church in Dar es Salaam.
In his speech the bishop applauded the current leadership, adding that the next
elections should not produce betrayers of the country.
We acknowledge the bishop’s remarks because they are timely; more importantly
very few spiritual leaders dare to openly talk about political issue before the
congregation.
We think that it is important for religious leaders to come forward and
propagate peace particularly at this time when the country is in waiting for the
next government.
With our experience of multi party system in the country since 1995 we have seen
many incidents of political violence as perpetrated by political zealots. They
attempted to tarnish the good image which the country has created since its
independence.
Based on that experience Tanzanians should learn from past mistakes and always
vow not to repeat them. Incidents of January 26 and 27 in 2001 in Zanzibar were
gruesome, and it is innocent people who suffered the consequences.
It is our sincere hope that the coming elections will be peaceful, free and
fair. Most Tanzanians have gained more insight into the multi party system and
value the fact that the system is considered to be a more democratic way of
expressing people’s desire to choose leaders of their choice.
Where are
women in education?
These days, someone in the US has had the courage to remark that, despite equal
opportunities, the proportion of women who make top scientists is minute, and
that of women who make top mathematicians infinitesimal. May we first comment
that, most importantly, there are some women who do make it. The exception
proves (i.e. tests) the rule, as the man said, and one can conclude that no one
should be prohibited from attempting their ambition on the grounds: “You can’t
do that, you’re a woman!”
A headmaster in Britain observed that any woman will make some sort of a
teacher, but few men are gifted in that respect, even less to become a nursery
school teacher, yet those of us who have lived long have seen some men make
excellent nursery school teachers. In his wisdom, the Lord God has genetically
programmed us in certain directions according to our gender, yet, to show that
anything’s possible, given certain individuals a talent that normally belongs to
the opposite sex. Scientific experiments conducted with children who are newborn
but able to focus their eyes, have shown that, given two models, male children
respond more to a mechanical robot, whilst females show more interest in a human
face. This is in the large majority, a gender preference. Yet, girls who love
messing about with car engines, or boys who are sensitive to and fascinated by
human relationships should not be assessed as potential homosexuals or freaks –
they are beings who have received a special gift, a small percentage of the
human race.
To someone from Europe, what is astonishing in Tanzania is the lack of apparent
power that women have – well, appearances can be deceptive. But in hospitals
I’ve seen women nurses behaving with a tyranny and arrogance that denotes those
frustrated from power for too long. In certain parastatal organizations I’ve
seen how authority has devolved onto the shoulders of the female secretary,
because the manager is always off drinking tea in town with his pals. In the old
days when sugar, rice, margarine could be got only from the RTC, those of us in
the know used to court the secretary, the manager didn’t even know what was
going on.
However, a negative outcome of the excessive prestige given to males in this
country has been the staffing of secondary schools predominantly by men. It’s
almost a pattern, male secondary teacher married to female primary school
teacher. Well, bully for the younger students, but what about the Forms I-VI,
being in the hands of those of whom the majority are not genetically primed for
teaching? It’s true that, culturally, men do most of the talking here, but do
they know how to listen, and do most of them care whether their words are
falling upon understanding ears? I can tell you, from sad experience, of schools
where teachers simply don’t bother to turn up to lessons, they find teaching an
utter bore … these are men, of course. To improve secondary teaching in this
country, the government must aim at getting more women in that profession. When
a male teacher is good, then he’s really good, but men in the majority ought to
stick to what’s their cup of tea; mechanical engineering, abstract planning,
banking, architecture, politics and other equally frivolous pursuits … and leave
the education of the next generation in the hands of those who are competent –
WOMEN!
back
to headline
Ex-presidents deserve respect
By Evarist Kagaruki
Zambia’s bad experience with regard to the way the two successive
governments have treated the country’s past presidents since the first
multiparty elections in 1991, certainly paints an awfully ugly picture of the
continent of Africa and is a big embarrassment to all Africans. A culture of
sorts seems to have taken root in the copper-rich southern African country,
whereby former Heads of State are not accorded the respect they deserve.
Immediately after assuming power, former president Frederik Chiluba and his
party – the Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) – started harassing and
humiliating Zambia’s founding father, Dr. Kenneth Kaunda. They withdrew his
security personnel and other privileges befitting a retired president. Worse
still, on Christmas day of 1997, Kaunda was arrested and detained without trial
at the Kabwe maximum-security prison on far-fetched accusations of involvement
in an abortive coup by junior army officers a few months earlier. He was
released following Mwalimu Nyerere’s intervention!
In between these two big incidents of humiliation, there were several other
cases of harassment that Kaunda was subjected to. Some of them were intended
only to embarrass him. But by harassing and humiliating a retired president of
Kaunda’s political stature, Chiluba was actually sending a wrong signal to all
presidential incumbents that humiliation awaited them if (or when) they ceased
to be in power. No wonder some incumbent presidents have been scheming to have
the constitution changed so that they may rule “indefinitely”!
As if paying for his past “sins”, Chiluba himself became a victim of the
politics of witchhunting as soon as he left office. His successor (and long-time
friend) president Levy Mwanawasa arraigned him in court and charged him with
corruption – a charge Chiluba has strongly denied.
In the last three years, Chiluba has suffered serious haemorrhage in political
influence and psychological torture never experienced before by any retired
African president.
Recently there were press reports that Chiluba’s underwear had been displayed in
public by the government to embarrass him. This, by any stretch of the
imagination, is crass! Such humiliation is un-African and reflects badly on
Mwanawasa’s leadership.
Chiluba says the underclothing was part of a consignment of his personal
belongings which were transferred to a certain godown for storage (due to lack
of space at his residence) when he vacated State House. One wonders how a
responsible government could do that to a retired president! How could
Mwanawasa’s government stoop so low? How could Chiluba’s underwear help in the
investigations of the corruption allegations against him?
Pundits think that by exhibiting Chiluba’s underpants, the government was
turning a big issue (corruption) into a cruel joke! And, they are right.
Zambians would, I think, only be interested to know, for instance, how much
wealth the ex-president had allegedly “amassed’ or how many millions (or
billions) of Kwachas he “stashed away” in foreign bank accounts during his
presidency, and how justice is taking its course. These are the things a serious
investigation into the alleged corruption must focus on. People are not
interested to know how much underwear, or how many shoes or suits Chiluba
possessed when he was president.
It is, no doubt, a good thing if ex-presidents who engaged in corruption during
their tenure are investigated and brought to justice. But that should be done
with dignity. Harassing and humiliating them in public either at the expediency
of politics or simply because of personal vendetta, disgraces the people of the
countries concerned and debases the presidency.
Zambia’s mistreatment of its previous two Heads of State sets a very bad example
and points poignantly to the need for African governments to evolve a culture
whereby former leaders would be treated with due respect even when charges of
corruption or abuse of office were brought up against them. Tanzania, whose
track record of respecting its retired presidents is exemplary, qualifies to act
as a guide in this issue.