SACRIFICE IS WHAT WE NEED!

For many decades now, Tanzanians have been so badly longing for development. Every day we have been pointing out China as a good example of a fellow who happened to overtake us in progress right in front of our eyes.

It is said that when we got independence, China and Tanzania were on the same page as regards to economic development. But ironically, today how the world applauds China is completely different as to how it talks of our beautiful country, rich of natural resources.

While the former is now (almost) number one economic threat to a giant nation like United States of America, Tanzania is heading towards a peripheral; perhaps a symbol of those below the datum line and one of the biggest beggars to the United States and other powers of the like.

We seem not to be pleased with that and we try to ask some questions like, what is wrong with us? What can we do to get out of this snare?

But I really doubt whether we ask ourselves the right questions. If we are honest about the questions we are asking, or if we are really tired of being in this situation and that we really want to get out of it! Why do we still remain stunted? Our development is malnourished; it’s like a human being with a big head that does not correspond to the rest of the anatomy.

If you have ever hunted (as if I have) especially by using snares, you will agree with me that a trapped bird or animal does not just sit around relaxing, waiting to be taken. They always do something!

Now let’s talk about us, Tanzanians, can we really say that we are doing something to get us out of this ‘poverty snare’?

Besides, it seems it is a virtue in this country where husbands and fathers, who to a large extent are the main supporters of families, go drunk in the early morning hours and their kids get kicked of school for not paying tuition fee or school contribution. Yet we still dream of getting rid of the nick name ‘poor/third world country’ where her people live by less than a dollar per day.

It is in this country that employers take up people not because they qualify for the position but just because they are their nephews and nieces, as a result our production continues to derail day after day because of incompetency, while the corporate and government employers continue to lie to themselves about opening doors for economic competition with the East African federation and the globe at large.

This is the country that officials receive bribes to cover up an injustice case that eventually hurts the nation and absolutely nobody seems to care about it at all!

On the other hand, I am reminded of the story I read in a newspaper about one Asian leader who tossed himself from a mountain after learning that his fellow government officials found fraudulent evidence on a project he was assigned to administer. The step taken by the ex-president of South Korea is a deed which I find to display a high extent of personal consciousness over a public interest.

There are so many living examples that contradict our insincere desire to move forward towards the development we ‘sing’ of everyday.

The April 19 - 25th, 2010 East African Newspaper on its front story reported; “Tanzania has lost $ 8.9 billion over the past four decades through the illicit means – meaning that it leads the list of East African states that have lost billions of dollars to money laundering, tax evasion, government graft and other illegal operations, according to a report by a US-based financial watchdog group.” (Emphasis by the writer)

In another May 31- June 6, 2010 of The East African issue, the Newspaper again reported on its front page story; “Tanzania’s Ministry of Finance is in talks with local commercial banks to borrow up to $ 250 million to cover a deficit left by a recent withdrawal of support by donors” ( Emphasis by the writer)

Although the withdrawal of support by donors has not yet been officially confirmed as the result of carelessly spending of the government, but to a large extent it is believed so. The withdrawal from donors and the government’s scandal to lead in the list of East African states for money ‘terrorism’ is such a disgrace and stretches even further the hope for progress. On top of that it raises more questions as to when and what would be the remedy to the challenges of all three; political, social and economic spheres of the country.

I have to admit that I cannot be confident enough to mention that through my meditation of our bitter situation I found this or that to be a perfect start for addressing our problems. But as the saying goes ‘charity begins at home’! I myself as a journalist-to-be by profession, realizing the crucial role that this profession had, has and will continue to play in changing the society, have thought through and come up with some check notes for us practitioners as we determine to bring out what is good out of society.

Centuries ago, British historian, Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay, realizing the role of the media in changing the society, baptized the media as the Fourth Estate. In a society like ours, as Jenerali Ulimwengu once described it, “The Chief is always right, it’s his advisors who mislead him,” a slip of the government in its function is very possible and not-very-easy of the majority led to check in with it is a reality, the media is the only tool that can play a watchdog function.

History tells us that the very early tool of the independence fighters of many African countries used newspapers such as VOICE OF TANU (1954, WEST AFRICAN PILOT, ACCRA EVENING NEWS and MUIGMITHANIA the means said to had been very persuasive and uniting Africans for the fight of their independence. The role which its fruit is so evident that today every African country is politically free.

The power of the media can no way be sufficiently discussed in this brief summary, but examples such as that of revealing of RADAR, EPA and RICHMOND scandals, just to mention a few, are living testimonies of how if proficiently the media is used, can result into astounding domino effect, yes, even changing our pitiful situation. But how is the media situation itself?

A status of a media practitioner in Tanzania on the other side is not that of noble at all. The nicknames given to them such as machinga and kanjanja tells it all the exact perception that the people (whom could have trusted this vehicle for their redemption) have towards journalists.

They view them as the people who have lost their dignity and findings such as the submission of about 210 cases between 1997 and 2007 to the Arbitration Committee of the Media Council of Tanzania, the jailing of one of the prominent reporter in 1990’s accused of corruption and that of Jelly Murro alleged of corruption which is still on proceedings the proof of the status of the journalism legacy in the country.

Though the socialism ideology has in many cases been praised as the basis our unity, udugu and ujamaa it has also been a ‘veil of blunders’ in our society. I have always been wondering if one can testify a lie of his/her fellow students to have been done an assignment which he/she didn’t do just in the name of ‘friendship’, when will this person develop a gut of revealing evils by a society’s leader in the presence of a bribe worthy three years most Tanzania young journalists are paid?

Dr. Bernadine Mfumbusa asserts that ‘A habit is a settled or regula tendency or practice, which overtime becomes automatic. It is something that is acquired…. Journalists are expected to cultivate habits such as verifying facts before publication, ascertaining names of sources, editing news stories, and never telling a lie’

On the other hand a veteran DailyNews newspaper journalist Gabby Mgaya in his article ‘Journaists should be journalist’ at the column ‘FOURTH ESTATE’, Monday, May 31, 2010 adds that ‘….a good journalist (among many other factors he mentioned) is expected to be knowledgeable. This entails a lot of reading and listening – and analyzing issues…..’ A factor which in a 10 (most) journalist rarely 5 posses it. An incident that creates doubts if these journalists can really efficiently perform their duties.

While this fourth estate puts itself on self-check it is also important to turn to the spearheads of development, mostly government leaders. This side, as discussed earlier have some serious illness that they too need to work on, especially when they are brought fourth issues by the public through media that they need to work on.

I agree pretty much with Wangari Maathai, the 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate in his article ‘International Criminal Court belongs to us Africa’ in a May 24-30, 2010 The East African newspaper that; “….. if Africans are not ashamed of crimes (and even corruption) against their own people, neither the ICC nor any other governments can help them.”
As I mentioned area, while the culture of ‘Ujamaa’ and that of ‘Wazee’ has built us in so many ways, it has also destroyed us in so many ways. Most of our government leaders have not been ready to expose or deal sufficiently with their fellow or previous leaders when it comes to a need for legal measures to be taken for whatever evils they have done while in their positions.

In some countries, there are even laws that do not allow the outgoing leader to be taken to court for whatever blunder they have done when they were in the offices. Media in this case have done quite notable good job in revealing their evils, but the government seem to have not been taking the matters serious.

It is true that this kind of huge changes can not very easily made. Because a true salvation requires a sacrifice. As for the Christians’ belief of Christ’s sacrificial death for the salvation of the sinners, so is how I believe that for a true ‘salvation’ of our social-political and economic situation which will give birth to the true development we long and dream for, a sacrifice has to be made.

A sacrifice of even our dear ones who in one way or another have greatly contributed to our success, instead if we truly long for the salvation of our today and next generation, we shouldn’t be cowards but rather darers to face this development snare that have for decades shackled us.