Oh dear! Another AIDS story

That season is upon us again, when we focus our attention on the plague that has devastated (or is threatening to?) mankind – Aids – in light of the World Aids Day on December 1.

Myself, together with other journalists will travel to the Central and Northern Malawi, entering communities to see just how much impact the disease has had on the people and how they battling to fight it.

This promises to be a very interesting trip, nay, adventure, given that it will be my first time in these areas. I’m not sure of the availability of computers and internet connections there so silence might reign on this blog for the next week if such are not available. If they are then, thank you to the Heavens above.

It’s a pity my phone was stolen – ruthlessly – by a gang that attacked me and my colleagues last month, otherwise i’d have put to test mobile blogging as they call it. All the same, i hope it will be a worthwhile trip and watch this space as i go deep to bring you another Aids story!

Flirting with empty hopes, joy

I would have said “It’s the shame old story” but that phrase is so tired right now putting it up here will just drain all the energy out of this thought. To the real thing then…

So, the Queens “have landed” and are “back in town” after what some have called an impressive tour in New Zealand at the World Netball Championships. As is the norm, they came back empty-handed.

It’s quite understandable that part of the nation is in buoyant mood following reports that the Malawi netball team is the IT in Africa and fifth in the world. But like i said yesterday, they did not bring the cup and do they really deserve any special mention for that?

My deepest fear for this country is that we’re encouraging mediocrity and and instilling a false sense of security in the minds of people or teams who are representing this country at various competitions or forums around the world by implicitly telling them that they can go out there but not do their very best and we’ll give them a Hero’s welcome when they return with nothing to show for their efforts!

Queen’s Linda Magombo in action

Let’s take a look at some of the cases that immediately come to mind – Wambali Mkandawire (Mobo Awards), Tay-Grin (Channel O Video Music Awards), Code Sangala (Big Brother Africa) and recently the Queens.

I wrote a piece for The Daily Times on Wambali’s misfortunes at the Mobos. He was undone by the organizers who flew him in but removed him from the category in which he was contesting. The point, though, is that his nomination raised a lot anticipation, with some citizens actually thinking that he was the next big thing. Companies joined in the fray and we all though the man was gonna bring the Award home. He didn’t.

Enter Tay-Grin, a hip hop musician. I interviewed him on the eve of the Channel o Awards and he was all hype and excited at the prospect of bringing at least one of the three awards he was nominated for. He didn’t bring any. This despite that the local press had given him so much attention and again, raised the anticipation of the citizenry.

Tay Grin on stage

And then there was Code. He spent an odd 77 days in the BBA house and brought nothing home. However, he was received with a hero’s welcome at Chileka International Airport, even being accorded to check through the VIP point at the airport. For what??? Spending time in a lame house and cheating on your pregnant girlfriend? My foot.

Code upon arrival at Chileka

But then, as someone once said, this is a country so starved of heroes and heroins so much if a six-month old baby drives a tractor today, we’d give it VIP status! Yet, the more we do this, the more we lower our benchmarks and our standards – if we have any.

The Queens’ case shos just how mediocre we are, appreciating a performance that did not bring us the ultimate prize. With the Flames back to winning ways – pardon me, the Flames never win – so with them winning matches, i won’t be surprised if a heroes’ welcome awaits them when they return.

A moment of beauty

Lake Malawi as seen from Nkopola Lodge, Mangochi.

In Malawi, they don’t bury their heads in shame

So, the Malawi National Examinations Board (Maneb) is gonna have to bring back Form 4 students to the desk after government ordered a re-write of five papers that were leaked. The Daily Truth revealed the leakage ages ago but the Maneb head Mathews Matemba stood his ground saying these were bogus papers. This is despite the fact that The Daily Truth even went as far as publishing two of the leaked papers.

I wonder what Matemba is thinking right now. But, i can tell you that he’s not thinking of resigning. In Malawi they don’t resign, they hang in there, face embarassment and still stick to their post. One of the people who have been “forgotten” is this MSCE saga is the Minister of Education, president Bingu wa Mutharika. As the minister responsible, Bingu should have resigned from his ministerial post because of the leakage. But this is Malawi. They don’t resign.

Remember that time when that doc, Goba managed to divert K5 million worth of hospital stuff? Heatherwick Ntaba was the minister of health then. What did he do? He hung in there, not bothered by the scandal happening right under his nose. But that’s not surprising, this is Malawi. They don’t resign.

Hail the Queens or Hell with the Queens?

For a nation that has had nothing to celebrate in recent times, the netball Queens’ – and i’m very reluctant to use this word – success in New Zealand is something worth cheering about. But, as we hail the Queens, led of course by none other than President Mutharika, we must also be careful not to get carried away with excitement.

To begin with, the fact that we finished 5th and not 1st means that we are not the IT in netball. Yes, we’re ranked 1st in Africa but just how much competition do we have on the continent to really make us proud to be the leader of the pack? What we must look at is continuing from where the current crop of players have ‘achieved.’ I shudder to think that celebrated player, Mary Waya still has another Championship in her to go for.

Yet, she best encapsulates the model netball player we need to be encouraging. Waya started playing the game at the tender age of 11. How many 11 year-olds are we encouraging today to play netball? It takes time to mould talent and nurture skill. Our schools also need to promote the sport and encourage young girls to join in.

If we don’t do that i’m sure the next time a Championship occurs, we’ll be saying “Hell with the Queens!”

James Phiri: A chase after the wind, a waste of intellect

I really wonder what the fuss about James Phiri is. Growing up in a little town called Mutare in Zimbabwe, i had a primary school classmate called James Phiri. Like me, his parents were from here in Malawi but went to settle in Zim. James and i were never really close. I was the good-boy kinda kid and James was just the opposite – always up to mischief. But we ended up getting along because since he was 3 years older than me and more muscular, i found myself needing his protection as my good-naturedness easily transformed into susceptbility to bullies. Needless to say, I got James protection – on the condition that we shared my lunch pack and pocket money of course.

I had forgotten about James Phiri until one decided to show up and challenge Bakili Muluzi off the 2009 General elections. Ever since he came on the scene, James Phiri – like my Zim James – has been the talk of the town. Yet, he is nothing more than a fictitious character that was created by incredulous people in the country. I have no doubt that Bakili Muluzi created a case against himself so as to divert the attention of the populace and seek the High Court’s endorsement to run for president again.

Unfortunately, until James Phiri is exposed, the plan may work since he has already filed an affidavit claiming his legitimacy to run. Yet, that is by far not the thing that has exposed our gullibility. The thing is, Malawians fell hook, line and sinker for the James Phiri thing. the worst part is that it has taken the local media such a long time to realize that they were being taken for ride!

But also, the strategists behind the James Phiri saga – if at all it’s that – have exposed themselves as intellects who, unfortunately, are misdirecting their mental fibre to something that brings no reward at all. And that’s a peculiarly Malawian problem, especially in Malawian politics. We don’t have top thinkers and smooth strategists. And for this reason, we’ll always be quick to chase after the wind, following nonentities like James Phiri, wasting our intellect and newspaper space in the process.