50 years down the line... the more things change, the more they remain the same...

Edwin John Dingle in his book, Across China on Foot (1911) once stated: “To travel in China is easy. To walk across China, over roads acknowledgedly worse than are met with in any civilized country in the two hemispheres, and having accommodation unequalled for crudeness and insanitation, is not easy.” In his understanding of the matter, he was crude to state the difference between rhetorical declarations and pragmatic experiences. I have noted the most cherished golden lesson missing among our politicians is the distinction between rhetorical promises and realistic declarations that can be achieved. Many a times, I feel like I have just woken up to another déjà vu experience when events unfold interestingly on the political drama stage and the old adage by a renowned editor of Le Figaro, Jean Baptiste Alphonse Farr, to which he was a frequent contributor, once wrote a satirical statement: “plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose" translated to be “the more things change the more they remain the same”, gives us a sort of ‘merry-go-round carrousel kind of replays’ of political dramas. I would like to take the strain of resurfacing these kind of political replays in our Malawian political drama stage. Surprisingly, we seem to pay no attention at these scenes and do not seem to notice the ‘reverberations’ on our nascent democratic dispensation. This article will highlight a few political ‘replays’ of our current regimes in light to the understanding of the statement by Jean Baptiste Alphonse Karr.

First replay is seen in government’s quick acknowledgement of practising austerity measures in one scene, and yet throwing an excessively costly banquets on another side scene. During the People’s Party regime, the president surprised the nation with a historic public announcement that the state was not in a better financial positioning to usher the 48^th Anniversary Celebrations, subject to dry government coffers. Barely two weeks later, the nation got a rude awakening to the news that the former president, Joyce Banda, threw herself 100-day celebrations in different venues on different days costing an estimate MK120 million of taxpayers money, of which the state house press office rebutted that the funds originated from ‘well-wishers’. A similar déjà vu occurred just some few weeks ago surprisingly with the confidence-raising news of a presidential stay-away from the AU summit to serve funds for the nations. However, the budget of the 50^th Anniversary in Malawi pegged exorbitantly at a staggering MK158 million, defeats the purpose raised in the earlier statement. One will only hope that the current scenario does not cascade into an all rampant over-expenditure which does not serve the nation’s pride and prestige as was demonstrated in the earlier scenarios, where ‘purportedly government dry coffers’ were reserved to entertain a personal agenda of celebrating 100 days in office.

Second replay in this fantastic political film is the loudmouthed political party chatterboxes with a distorted enthusiasm to exercise liberty and challenge the political opponent with the most fiercely wrapped brawl. The current scenario in Malawi Congress Party is not novice in the Malawian political cinema, probably what would be novice about it would be the calibre of the practitioner herself. It is neither strange on the political drama stage nor unprecedented in the oldest political party itself. The MCP of old had Mayi Hilda Manjankhosi who lambasted at all political adversaries of the party to the point that they would dread with their tails in between the legs, fearing the unknown. The party that took over the reigns of power in 1994, had their own loudmouthed governor in the name of Paul Kachimbwinda, who wore an iconic mantle of ‘Ninja’ credited to his invincibility in the game of political verbal swordplay. The others who tread the same path include Davis Kapito, Patricia Kaliati, Ken Msonda and the current Jessie Kabwila. It may seemingly sound like I have branded them with the same label and I am committing a categorical fallacy of hasty generalization, but wait a minute. These loudmouthed spokespersons had their distinctive features, but one outstanding feature shared by them all is the emotive outbursts which is uncharacteristic for political development. Emotive outburst is the slander spoken in consideration of one’s standing without a weigh on the balance and without substantive evidence. It is not my desire that I should launch into the nitty-gritty of my argument, but without apology, I have noted the emotive outbursts launched without substantive evidence, or in philosophy, I would put it that I have noted three serious fallacies committed which include argumentum ad hominem (attack on the personality), argumentum ad metum (appeal to fear) and argumentum ad odium (appeal to hatred).

Third replay is the controversial appointments of radio personalities whose previous records are indicative of uncompromising legacy. I would confidently suggest that if you are a radio announcer or a news-reporter and you wish to see your way to the State House Press Office, you need to play your cards in an uncompromisingly fashion and you will immediately obtain that ‘green card’. About 2 years ago, we saw one uncompromising radio personality from Capital FM, Brian Banda, a no-nonsense brainy announcer who braved to interview political heavyweights asking them nerve-racking questions had to be rewarded with a mouth-watering post in the Press Office at the State House. The event seemed to me to be a sequel to the recent appointment of one, Pilirani Phiri, renowned to be an equal of Brian Banda of Zodiak Broadcasting Corporation when it came to asking fearless questions to the powers that be. Pilirani Phiri was given a golden ring for his bravery and a medal for his audacity in the form of another post at the State House Press Office. With the turn of events, I can do nothing but predict or prophesy that the next audacious radio personality shall have his or her castle built in the sky, in the cocoon of a State House Press Office for sure.

Fourth trailer under repeat in this Malawian Political film is the job-creation. Of course, a couple of you guys are thinking: ‘Now what’s the heck with job creation, I thought job creation is good for our economy and decreases youth unemployment rate!’. Sure but this job creation is neither good for the nation’s economy nor does it decrease youth unemployment in the country. This job creation is a way to accrue state resources to the privileged few and a demonstration of lavish waste of public funds. For instance, during the UDF regime we had various posts of Ministers without portfolio, who had barely anything to do but swindle monies in the way they liked without being accountable to anyone. During the DPP era, we were shocked to the news of the inclusion of the First Lady in the Cabinet, who had the right to draw salaries, let alone allowances and other privileges, just like any other minister. During the PP regime we experienced another return of drama in terms of strange Ministerial portfolios such as Minister of Good Governance and currently we are to have a historic post of a lifetime in Southern Africa of a Former Speaker of Parliament, whose basic salary starts from a hefty MK1.5 million. And we seem to be assured of the resources by the parliament. How I only wished I had served in Parliament as a Speaker.

Fifth and last replay is the political dilly-dallying of the wheels of justice on our nation. The political blame game has reached its summit just at the time when all our eyes were set on the wheels of justice to start rolling towards the prosecution and conviction of cashgaters. It is not a fairly tale that the infamous cashgate scandal brought untold pain to the nation, and it is not prophetic to state that the recent change in regime is a resultant effect of the scandal. However, it would be a ‘spit-on-our-faces’ to let the cashgaters slip-away from our sight unscathed. The very truth of the scandal lies on the level of impunity manifested on the perpetrators, the loss of evidence for prosecuting the perpetrators, and much more the failure to recover huge sums of money that went down the drain from the scandal. By the way, what would be idealist is not the ‘axe on the necks’ of the cashgaters, but the ‘sack on their pockets’, meaning the recovery of the lost monies and reinstallation of public and donor confidence that the government will run the affairs of men without loopholes and thievery. This is characteristic to the other long-gone court cases and scandals which only left one victim, the Malawian taxpayers. These scandals include the MK1.4 billion scam on donor money, which to date has almost lost historical trace in our political films, despite reported facts that the treasury saw actual deficit to that tune, the Fieldyork book scandal that left purported offenders laughing their way to the bank, the MK61 billion scam that has been reduced to a musical-political campaign against a particular sect of political players with an aim of shielding one’s scandalous mishaps, and the sad to come to terms, Jetgate scandal, which only makes me believe on one fact echoed by a couple of my peers that to some extent, ‘Malawians are foolish indeed’!

In conclusion, the more things change the more they repeat themselves. Mostly the trigger-happy party followers are caught in the dance without a lesson to draw from the music they dance to, only to join another of a similar dance with the same dancing skill. It is for these facts that it becomes conceivably far to me that I will ever become a politician.

Twenty Fourteen is here... Political Party Cards have started rolling... Decision year... 50th Anniversary...

Preamble....

At the dawn of the year, 2014... we were ushered into a decision year, a year that signals the clocking of 50 years of independence in Malawi and a year that has seen Malawi awaiting it since the demise of the Late President Professor Bingu Wa Mutharika.

Political game in this year is promising to be unprecedented and fingers are crossed on what the outcome shall be come May 20th. The year promises many political heavyweights in different brands. Much more with the fact that since the fateful September 23rd night, cashgate scandal has been the limelight for most political debates and cannot be thrown under the carpet. The year sounds uncharacteristically packed with surprises as we turn off the pages towards the decision date - election day. There seems to be 'too much to swallow' on the offer for a political mind, and we need to accept one fact, that the year will determine political winners and losers, will separate men from boys politically. I would like to offer some analyses of the year and ensure that I drive home what I presume should be the vision of the nation towards the next half-a-century beyond 2014.

Political Maturity...
The mode of politics practised in the nation is antagonistic and irrelevant, if we are to assess the results of the same and its time the political game became mature.. Politics in the country takes advantage of the majority poor and thrives in the ignorant rural populations. Such politics is devoid of fact and policy measures that can take this country into the distant prosperous future. Political vision is so undefined. Since most of the political parties have not yet released their manifestos, one wonders, on what premises, shall voters use to vote for 'this' political party or candidate. There seem to be other huge problems with the political game in Malawi. Political legacies which have refused to die and have been passed on from one political echelons to another. The political actors remain unchanged while political names and political brands keep changing. The unfixing political support of 'the government of the day' has been a song which in spite of the criticisms have characterised most political prostitutes. Our members of parliament learn a lesson only after their term is almost served and relegate the information at the back of their minds, once another term begins. Political leaders have no vision for the country, they usually thrive on their predecessors plans and goals. Our strategy papers remain colourful on paper and vanish unrealised because of lack of political will. Such a political game has left the government bureaucracy directionless, turning the technocrats into vultures of the public purse. The nation doesn't seem to pose any threat, even to our neighbours and as the fight against corruption remains rhetoric than practical, leaving the powerless fishes down the hook responsible for the whole game...

Political maturity is needed and an overhaul in the political system is what the citizens of the nation need the most. The political decisions keep affecting us all, as such we cannot comfortably divorce our engagement in the political matters of the country. What the country needs is a refreshing political game and an unambitious political plan that would unearth the best of this nation. What we need is a political 'John Chilembwe' leader of some sort, who would embrace the interests of the poor 80% Malawians and utilize the little resources the nation has been blessed by. Political game should be founded on policy not partisanship. This is a stance, not many political scientists, would agree with. But policy-based political game would minimize political 'ratting' in the august house thereby minimize the violation of section 65 and ensure that political opportunists, whose mental agenda is 'serving the government of the day', are defined for who they are. We need visionary manifestos, surprisingly political parties have refused to sell their ideas to the electorate but have come forth to disburse 'handouts'. The mentality of 'giveaways' in the country, is what has syphoned the government resources, as after the handouts have run dry, one would want to replenish or payback. Political game in Malawi has mimicked a business investment, where returns must outweigh capital. If I would want to contest for an MP of my area, I would have to raise funds for my campaign which is calculable by publicity plus logistics plus handouts... I would assume the constituents to be 'dogs' who would wave their tails the moment I release a piece of meat or something... The political game of handouts has thrived in the country due to lack of principles... the citizenry and leadership alike are empty of principles for humanity, thus we want free gifts to choose a 'choice political leader'. Leadership is not defined by the quality and quantity of gift on offer, just as we cannot define a good husband from a 3Cs criteria (Cash, Car and Cellphone/Circumcision). The choice leader for the nation, it is sad to say, will not be the one who gives us fish, it will be the one who trains us how to fish. We need principled leadership and policy direction in this nation. The political game must therefore change into a developmental political game, if at all we intent to be a developmental state...

A better nation...
This country has what it takes to flourish and rate itself to what it wants to be. Malawi is a sleeping giant with all resources it needs. For instance, I bang my head to think that the nation has adequate water resources, yet the country fails to carter supply for its two million six hundred thousand urban dwellers... the country fails to turn the greenbelt project rhetoric into reality and become a bread basket for the Sub-Saharan Africa... The nation still falters in hydro-electricity supply for its business sector, despite the ever-flowing river Shire and the never-ending stories of floods in the Lower Shire... The nation boasts to possess brains and people of brilliant acumen, graduates of our prestigious universities, whose national contribution remain insignificant, sad to say... I believe most of these graduates are let down by the form of leadership and legacy that is choking our nation... I believe that the nation has been let down by the nature of its leadership... Our leaders have, in as far as governance is concerned, been shortsighted to serve two 'five year' terms superfluously seeking wealth and amassing inter-generational riches... The state of the nation is a clear statement that patriotism ends on the inauguration podium and what takes centre stage beyond inauguration is self-interest... A better nation is only realised when self-less individuals, vested with a national vision take leadership positions, when the citizenry turns on a hardworking attitude and expect to see change from the grass root levels to the political helm of government. The results of this mentality are obvious. Egypt and DRC offers classical examples of consequences of leadership where leaders are obsessed with self-wealth accummulation. In Egypt, Hosni Mubarak amassed wealth to the tune of US$70 Billion, yet the rural and urban masses lamented on poor public policy, the same was for DRC, where Joseph Mobutu Sese seko had wealth worth US$ 4 Billion... In fact one publisher stated that African leaders have been more wealthy than the leaders of the west developed countries, citing that the total net worth of ALL US presidents is US $ 2.7 billion according to a report compiled in The Atlantic written by editors of 24/7 Wall Street, a Delaware based financial news tabloid. But surprisingly most African leaders have soared above this wealth with significant margins... For instance, General Sani Abacha possessed wealth worth US $ 20 billion, Felix Houphouet-Boigny of Cote d’Ivoire possessed wealth of US $6 billion and another Nigerian leaders, General Ibrahim Babangida was worth US $5 billion.

Concluding Remarks...
The year 2014 would be a year to remember if the nation chooses to lament on what has been achieved over the last 50 years and decides to improve... it shall be a year to remember should the electorate take to the polls with a better, visionary political choice leader and political party. It shall be a year to remember should our government structures be overhauled and a new mentality of patriotism and nation-building shake the thinking of our bureaucrats. It will definitely be a year to remember should the political game change to reflect a political game consistent with characters of a developmental state...

Cashgate Scandal and Masquerades blunders...

Anticipation...

There has been a high anticipation by every Malawian that the Budget Director of the Ministry of Finance holds the key which would lead to disclose the main architects of the Cashgate scandal. Obviously, I thought that the man who had gone close to death would not fail to find the audacity of disclosing who, where, and how this infamous scandal rose after the foiled assassination on that fateful September night.

 

Puzzling...

Unfortunately, for me and the rest of the tax-payers had been given a raw deal when they realised that the one we had originally thought held the keys, only sounded confused and seemingly puzzled at how his fate could be connected to the scandal.

 

Maybe the scandal was a miraculous phenomenon bound to occur after that fateful night, and plausibly maybe most Malawians committed a fallacy of 'post-hoc ergo propter hoc', meaning - after the thing, therefore because of the thing. But as fast as I hoped that many distinguished Malawians were caught in such an ignominious fallacy, I was presented with a surprise that this 'hero' thought the whole scandal, whose overwhelming evidence surfaced every other day after his attack, was nothing but an illusionary cyber-attack. This statement may have come to the defence of the investigations on unexplained wealth, I suggest, yet the same statement is a pin pointer that his presentation was coached.

 

In the first place, I would like to believe that he only had to make such a statement as he was away from events unfolding at home. But would we expect such a man, to come forth and explain to the many sane Malawians that what the think they perceive is unreal and what the think is unreal, real? I wonder what logical connections would Mphwiyo produce to further elaborate how cyber attacks have reached these levels of hoaxing massive plunder of public funds to the tune of 20 Billion Kwacha, which Malawians trusted their government with. Would such a statement not embarrass the donors under the Common Approach to Budget Support (CABS) as whiz-kids and foolishly acting on mere cyber-attacks in instead of making judgement on facts.

 

I think much as I would desire to defend Mphwiyo, but more than three fingers are pointing back at him. It was obvious that he displayed a rhetorical showdown against a club of hand clappers who may not have walked the corridors of prestigious universities that the Director had once galloped. But the issue is not about rhetorical swordplay nor is the matter about intellectual acumen, the issue is about accountability and transparency. The issue is about the waste of government resources meant for the 14 million poor Malawians who are seeking answers from the government after the death of Mutharika and the revelation of his lavishness.

 

I believe that intellect and reason do not necessarily entail justice. The way the presentation was made, leaves a lot to be desired on whether Malawians had benefited anything from the presentation except that 'one man who is naturally gifted with intellect had been victimised for his success' innocently. Nothing to do with the plight of the nation's reserve being looted and nothing about how and why such access has been left unchecked until the fateful September night.

 

What Mphwiyo should know is that the speech will go back to haunt him, even as he tries to recuperate from the fatal wounds. It would have been brave of him to have capitalized the opportunity to outline the events that led to his shooting and where and how these events could have sparked the cashgate revelations. As much as the fallacy of post hoc ergo propter hoc is concerned, it was the expectation of all Malawians to distinctly disconnect his attack from the whole scandal that erupted like a box of pandemonium.

 

It was obvious that his fate led to the unearthing of the government syndicate, even though it remains uncertain on whether his fate was driven by the perpetrators or the cause of the revelation of the cashgate scandal. In fact, logically to infer that the fate led to the scandal, would be sound, but to state that the fate was the cause for the revelation of the cashgate scandal would be an overstatement. However, the very inconsistency of the speech by Mphwiyo raises eyebrows on whether what is circulated in the social media is true or not. In fact, his speech has only served to authenticate what rumours have all along been championing...

 

The speech has appealed to sympathy and failed to offer facts. The speech was greeted with cheerleaders who were less critically and probing for the truth of the saga. What I think should have been included in the interrogation are these questions. Why would you conclude that your shooting was not related to cashgate when you have no evidence of the shooters and their intentions? How could you justify the innocence of people that have long been implicated in the scandal without offering evidence, and how can you defend your sentiments as not in contempt of court as such matters of cashgate remain under investigation...

 

The main question would be how would you be conclusive and expect us to overwrite all issues that have been disclosed as 'nonsensical' when you are not able yourself to present tangible evidence to these matters...

 

Conclusion...

It would be that politics has meddled again in a case that social justice is at stake. Painlessly, this justice will come out whether through the legally sanctioned courts of Malawi, or through the ballot paper. We cannot but notice some form of invisible hand trying to dictate what is to be said and what is not to be said... What would be of priority now is information not misinformation. What puzzles me is the fact that some people seem to underrate the impact of social media in Malawi, but I believe they shall be in for a surprise...

Partisanship and Parrotism

Politics in line with Malawian views...

I notice with gross unbelief how strangely political die-hards take political machination on social media and I do not fail to realise that the more issues are presented, the more empty their capacity to assess what is being presented gets exposed.

It is awkward to realise that debates on the capacity for a political figure to make handshakes and present themselves in distinguished houses become praiseworthy. I sometimes pose and assess the rationale behind such praise and probably justify whether there is a good cause for such praise...

Historically, Malawians are good at accolading praise to their heroes. When Kamuzu, whose profession was that of a medical doctor, came to Malawi, he quickly recognised that gap in our hearts, a gap that searches for something praiseworthy to praise. I do not get surprised to see how foreign football players thrive in our corners and how indefensible we argue to claim that such kind of athlete is indisputable... The sentiment of praise falls deep i our mental make-up and defines our happiness. We are often sentimental and irrevocable when we are in the heat of praise for some hero or anyone who could step in and demand it.

Politically, praise dominate all forums and rallies. An innocent leader would emerge with strategic goals and brilliant ideas for development, but no sooner than we know it, he will be submersed with inexhaustible praise which only serves to daunt him and realign his vision to fill the hearts of praise-givers and make them feel happy about it. All of our leaders, either in the dictatorial and democratic era have been immersed with all sorts of praise, warranted or unwarranted praise. the frenzy of praise is what blinds most Malawians and the connotation of praise is what upset others.

As a young mind, I have grown to realise that praise is a legacy that needs dealing with. Our development efforts have been partly hindered by lack of scrutiny which was substituted by praise in many angles of public policy. Just as one academic genius would at times fail to live to his or her standards, subject to failure to absorb the higher levels of praise from his or her colleagues, so have our politicians found it difficult to stick to their development goals resultant of over-expressive praise...

Praise in social media...

Much of the praise in our social media leaves a lot to be desired. It is what I would call unwarranted praised. It is presented with lack of objectivity and at times manipulated... It is aimed at creating distortion to the truth and disclaimers. What I observe from all these praises in our social media is blatant depravity of objectivity, and abject irrationality. For instance, someone is going to make a comment that some leader has arrived at some airport and it is newsworthy. Or someone will write that their political leader has called in a large number of people and another will contest with a seemingly larger number of audience. the battle rages on...

In other cases, praise come in forms of gimmicks... I would like to cite examples but I reserve a few that had been vibrating in the previous regimes... 'boma ilo'.... 'odi uko'....'wagwa nayo'....'tikumva kukoma'.... when something 'wonderful' has been done by a particular political party. Say a member has defected to your political party or your party has visited a certain hospital...

Surprisingly, when something negative has happened to your party, there is a suspicious silence, as though all hand clappers have vanished in thin air unnoticed. It is a game of 'I surface when something 'good' has happened, and I vanish when nothing 'good' or something 'bad' has happened. This is what demonstrates irrationality.

The missing gap....

We ought to recognise that our leaders are a product of our very actions... one scholar once stated that...'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for the good men to do nothing'....Edmund Burke (1729 - 1797). The praise givers must learn to even suggest and assist their respective leaders when they go wrong... the infallibility clause does not exist in politics and so does it not in football. Much as we do not anticipate any football team to win all the time, so do we not expect any political party to always be right. It sounds like the fashionable attire of political masquerades who would in one regime be at the forefront in praise of the government of the day and switch to the next political party once it is inaugurated into power... Such is what other authors call 'Politics of Chameleon'... Politics in Malawi should be metamorphosed into critical politics, in which what will matter is not the individual person, but the political agenda... What will be primary is the tenancy to preserve the political values and guard against any form of contamination...

The debate gets deeper....

The call for preservation is not what Malawians need, but rather the call for participation. The more Malawians have been on the stands watching the events unfold the more they have shouldered the blame. What this 'praise-happy' sentimentalism stand for is downfall of the very beneficiaries of the praise, especially when it goes on unchecked. We ought to take a leaf from history that most of the leaders that enjoyed unrestrained praise left off their feet from the pedals and headed towards their end... One such leader was or first president, who under the blindfold of praise was guaranteed victory in the vote for referendum and the general elections a year later. Excessive praise left some of the leaders empty of ideas and meaningful direction on where the nation ought to go... I am certain that it is only when you leave the audition room and stand outside, is when you can appreciate the beauty of the song sang by the choir... Sometimes, praise givers ought to remain silent for a little while to appreciate whether their effort is generating desired results....

Concluding words...

It is bizarre to notice how praise is becoming fashionable and irrational. The more the tin makes some noise the empty it is. Praise is not bad, but praise with minimal or little substance is much as good as non-praise, after all it will not matter the quantity of praise a leader gets, what will always matter is the quality of his or her leadership style that guarantees ultimate praise...

Chilembwe's achievement should not be underestimated...

I would like to argue with those who have presented sentiments against Chilembwe’s heroism. The arguments they have made lack historical fact and substantial evidence. What is lamentable with most of those people is their failure to recognize honour where is it due. They are failing to articulate their working definition of heroism. Maybe should they present their workable definition of heroism we would argue along that line. Now let me present my argument through the following points.

1.       Dismissing Chilembwe’s heroism based on the fact that the uprising was futile is lamentable and unforgivable omission of historical facts. Heroes are not defined by the end-product of their efforts. Heroes are defined by the audacity to change the tide of thinking and conventional wisdom. Should that line of thinking prevail, then we are relegating the likes of Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Patrice Lumumba, Oliver Tambo, Geronimo, Che Guavara, and others who died before they realized what they were fighting for to non-heroes.

2.       Dismissing Chilembwe’s heroism on the pretext of his lack of military expertise and strategy is inconsiderate. Judging from the understanding that Chilembwe’s profession was in theology, it is expecting too much from the same to express military prowess and technical capacity in conducting coup-de-tats. John Chilembwe was compelled into a military combat in reaction to the ever-growing heat of tit-for-tat between his development efforts by the colonial regime. Those arguing in this line are not mindful of the contextual features that Chilembwe faced. He preached peace and got atrocities in return. His courage to fight back the cruelty of the colonial masters should not be rewarded by such shameful disrepute.

3.       To claim that Chilembwe lacked courage is an understatement. It suggests that writing the colonial masters singlehandledly a pastoral letter is a symptom of lack of courage, mobilizing community members to face the colonial masters and attack them is a sign of timidity. I beg to differ and probably you need to highlight the new definition of courage you are using.

4.       Lastly, to assess his contribution to the country, would demand an archeological-like fact-finding research, as the events took place in 1915, long before Kamuzu’z declaration of independence and abolition of federation, over 43 years afterwards, and long before our understanding and age of enlightenment when we can bravely and sarcastically dismiss Chilembwe’s heroism (over 98 years afterwards). It therefore becomes plausible to note that failure to keep oneself abreast with historical facts can lead one to make erroneous conclusions, as the facebook is awash of today. Chilembwe built a cotton factory, and tailoring school in his community, thus empowering Africans who were only supposed to work in cotton and tobacco fields as their lone profession. Chilembwe. After his attainment of a degree in the US, seeing the level of segregation in the states, wrote a pastoral letter indicating that: AFRICANS AS HUMANS ARE EQUAL! He further sent using his own resources two African students to the US to pursue further studies in the names of Fred Njilima, and Daniel Malikebu. Even your Member of Parliament has never done that.

I need an honest counterargument to this, but noting the failures of the uprising as a basis of dismissing Chilembwe’s heroism is a trigger-happy counterargument that lacks historical facts and a working definition.