Tanzania’s retired leaders rank poorly in East Africa in writing their memoirs, a quick survey by The Citizen
newspaper has established. They are not alone. Also on the list are
prominent people in the business community, whose struggle from zero to
hero is worth documenting.
But, in 50 years of independence, not a single one
– with the possible exception of former Finance minister Edwin Mtei –
has told his or her story for posterity. At a time when gender equity is
a global agenda, who would not want to read an inspirational account of
the life of Dr Asha-Rose Migiro, the immediate former UN Deputy
Secretary-General? What of Ms Anne Makinda, the first female speaker in
the male-dominated National Assembly?
There is also Dr Gertrude Mongella, the first
president of the Pan-African Parliament. In 1995, she shot to fame as UN
assistant secretary-general and secretary-general for the Fourth World
Conference on Women in Beijing. From 1996 to 1997, she was UN
under-secretary and special envoy of the UN secretary-general on women’s
issues and development. An illustrious and eventful career
notwithstanding, she has yet to put an autobiography on the market.
Writing a memoir is pretty much standard practice
these days. In the West, it is an unwritten law that presidents, prime
ministers, national assembly speakers, corporate executives, artistes,
athletes and successful businessmen and women document their ups and
downs—even detailing crucial events even well before they become public
figures.
Since they are personal accounts, memoirs have
become the easiest and most accurate source of information about public
figures and their success and failure. The genre has also become a path
to quick bucks, especially for celebrities.
Some authors use memoirs as an opportunity to set
right issues in their lives and perhaps controversies that were
misrepresented or opinions they could not air while holding certain
positions. The books have, in one way or another, become their means to
exercise their right of reply, in turn guaranteeing the public the right
to know.
The absence of these recollections, according to analysts interviewed by The Citizen, denies the current and coming generations the right to hear it directly from the horse’s mouth.
Ali Hassan Mwinyi succeeded Tanzania’s first
president and founding father of the nation, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage
Nyerere, in 1985. He served his two-term presidency and left in 1995
after the first general election held under the multi-party system,
which Benjamin Mkapa won to become the third President.
Mr Mwinyi has yet to write the story of his
political and personal life, which remains a secret known only to him
and a few close allies. He is not alone. His successor, Mr Mkapa, has
also kept mum on his story since he left the presidency in 2005—and this
despite his background in journalism.
Though his close associates believe his
recollections are worth penning, the former president has chosen to
follow the path of his predecessors, including his mentor Mwalimu
Nyerere.
Riding the multi-party system
The list of prime ministers of the United Republic
of Tanzania between 1985 and 2008 includes Mr Cleopa Msuya, Mr Joseph
Warioba, Mr Frederick Sumaye, Mr John Malecela, Dr Salim Ahmed Salim and
Mr Edward Lowassa. They also have not given us a single political or
personal memoir since they left office.
A quick survey by The Citizen reliably
established that some of these leaders have great stories to tell. Why
they have chosen the code of silence is the billion-dollar question. Mr
Mwinyi’s tenure, for example, was clouded by challenges ranging from
acute shortages of basic commodities, the push for both political and
economic reforms, and radicalism and strikes at the University of Dar es
Salaam. All these took place against the backdrop of the shadow of his
predecessor, Mwalimu Nyerere, who continued to command great respect
within and outside Tanzania.
Between 1990 and 1995, Mr Mwinyi rode the wave of
the multi-party system, which was officially introduced in the country
in 1992. He also faced rebel MPs from the ruling party, popularly known
as G55, who demanded a Tanganyika government within the Union, forcing
Mwalimu to step in to silence the dissenters.
He was also forced in the 1990s to shut down the
University of Dar es Salaam after a series of strikes that targeted him
personally, with some radical students calling him names.
Living in the shadow of Mwalimu was Mr Mwinyi’s
biggest challenge. Mwalimu frequently launched thinly-veiled attacks on
Mr Mwinyi’s leadership, accusing it of corruption and failing to defend
the union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar.
But also spearheading the first general election
under the multi-party system, in which the then popular opposition
leader Augustine Mrema enjoyed strong support from enthusiastic voters
compared to Mr Mkapa in 1995, was another big challenge for President
Mwinyi.
However, after leaving State House, Mr Mwinyi did
not write any memoir on his 10-year presidency as well as the day-to-day
challenges he faced as head of state and, above all, the
behind-the-scenes situation during his leadership.
Mr Mkapa is among the presidents who weathered
many political storms, ranging from taking a near-bankrupt country to
the MV Bukoba disaster in May 1996. There was also a moment of pain and
mourning when the father of the nation died in London on October 14,
1999.
Weathering political storms
Mr Mkapa narrowly survived a road accident in
Mwanza in October 1995 while campaigning for a second term in office,
when a defective bus lost control and almost hit his car. Thirty eight
died in the bizarre accident, the majority of them people who had lined
the Mwanza-Musoma road to see Mr Mkapa’s entourage.
He also faced a bloody demonstration in Zanzibar
on January 27, 2001, that was organised by Civic United Front (CUF) to
protest the victory of former Zanzibar President Amani Abeid Karume.
Dozens of people were killed and hundreds fled to Somalia and elsewhere.
From his schooldays to his rise to the country’s
top job, Mr Mkapa weathered many political storms but his story is also
buried in the sand just like that of his predecessor. And then there
were his days as the managing editor of the government-owned Daily News and when he was foreign affairs minister, eventually landing in State House.
Also in the league of former prime ministers is Mr
Edward Lowassa, whose political career collapsed dramatically when he
was forced to resign in February 2008 after he was implicated by the
Parliamentary Committee that investigated a multi-million dollar power
supply tender popularly known as Richmond.
His resignation created what President Kikwete
described as a political storm. Mr Lowassa was one of the players who
had a crucial role in securing President Kikwete’s victory in the 2005
election. Some analysts believe Mr Lowassa’s role in the Richmond tender
and the political accountability that came with it is worth a book
because the scandal not only rocked the nation but also created sharp
divisions in the Kikwete regime.
Five years down the road, the scandal still haunts
politicians within the ruling party, with some of Mr Lowassa’s rivals
planning to use it as a political card to deny him CCM’s nomination for
the top job. But Mr Lowassa has also chosen “the code of silence”.
And then there is Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, who
concluded his term of office as secretary-general of the Organisation of
African Unity on September 17, 2001, after serving an unprecedented
three terms covering 12 years.
Dr Salim, who came close to clinching the position
of United Nations secretary-general in the 1980s but was blocked by the
United States of America, was the prime minister of Tanzania between
1984 and 1985.
Dr Salim was elected secretary-general of the OAU
on July 27, 1989, and formally took over on September 19, 1989. Prior to
his election, Dr Salim held public office in Tanzania, where he served
in various capacities for 27 years. He served as deputy prime minister
and minister of Defence and National Service from 1985 until his
election to the helm of the OAU secretariat.
Political party cadres
From independence in 1961, this country has gone
through numerous momentous happenings. Mwalimu left a number of books
but not a memoir. But why are these distinguished men and women not
writing their memoirs and what is the implication of this silence?
Former PM Sumaye agrees that former leaders who were entrusted with huge
responsibilities in national and international platforms should open up
to their fellow citizens through memoirs.
“People have the right to know and there is a lot
they can learn from us,” he said. “I am seriously thinking about it. I
will definitely write an autobiography but I have not started yet.”
Mr Lowassa said he was out of the country and could not comment about the issue. And Mr Warioba also had no comment.
But academicians say this intentional silence is a
manifestation of the culture of patronage in the national body politic
and public fabric. They argue that party allegiance, as opposed to
merit, is the main requirement for the movers and shakers. “Legitimate
achievers all over the world would want to share their stories,” said
Prof Melchior Mlambite of the Saint Augustine University. “Most of our
leaders did not climb the ladder after debating issues but because they
are staunch cadres of some political party.”
Tanzania is a country of oral literature and not readers and that includes leaders and wananchi,
with few exceptions. Even most of the men and women who get leadership
positions succeed mainly because they are pragmatic and not
philosophical intellectuals, argued Dr Kitila Mkumbo, dean of Dar es
Salaam University College of Education. “The implication is that we end
up with a mediocre society where major decisions are made based on cheap
word of mouth.”
Mr Ali Mufuruki, chairman and chief executive
officer of Infotech Investment, described the silence of Tanzania’s
leaders as odd. “Citizens are always curious but there is nothing to
quench that curiosity,” he said.
The only high profile Tanzanian who has written
and published an autobiography is former Bank of Tanzania Governor Edwin
Mtei. His book is titled FromGoat-Herd to Governor. A senior lecturer from the University of Dar es Salaam who did not want to be named told The Citizen,
“You write a biography if you have a story to tell…some of our leaders
have no story that can interest readers. They didn’t struggle to be
where they are…they were just elevated by some powerful forces and lack a
story to sell to publishers.
A retired civil servant who once worked as an aide to President Nyerere told The Citizen,
“The problem is time and perhaps lack of a will to do so, but all of
these retired leaders and prominent people have a story to tell.”
He added: “Whether they were hand-picked or
deserved their positions is not an issue…the big issue is that they
still have a big story worth telling to current and future generations.”
SOURCE: AFRICA REVIEW
SOURCE: AFRICA REVIEW
