AFRICA: Personal fights turned national fights

Barack Obama’s historically trip to Kenya and African union headquarter in Addis Ababa mid last year was characterized by two major factors; homosexuality and denouncing the elite of long serving leaders. Even though, media coverage was focused on his statement on homosexuality little was covered on his denouncing of long serving leaders other than a short video clip of his address at the congress of African union. And from the applause's and laughter, it was evident the congress had heard the message loud and clear, but 8 months from that historically appearance and speech, Uganda is in the limelight for both pre and post elections chaos, that involve old rivals that seem to have just renewed they more than 10 years rivalry.

With echoes of celebration all around the continental, people are geared to choose leaders from all corners, but what factors really characterize African elections, it is personalized fights that are turned into national fights that divide Africans on ethnic, tribal and religious lines that can escalate into serious violence. In this edition we will look at the struggles of power between four figures that can be streted back to the 60s or 80s    

President Museveni and Besigye

And it’s no doubt that African elections are indeed chemical elections and politics of tear gas characterized by kungu-Fu and takwaedo on the rival opposition leaders by the police and military wings. And if the is one politician that has faced a lot of such situations is Besigye an opposition leader who has been once been beaten by state security like a common criminal without rights who claim Besigye incited violence. But what violence can he incite when most of his time as opposition leader have been characterized by house arrest, exile, endless court courts and assault to mention a few. Indeed what Besigye has and will experience comes as no shock to most Africans because opposition leaders dance to the same rhythm by incumbents overall the continental, but what makes Besigye’s case surprise is that he was once a personal doctor to the incumbent president Yoweri Museveni in the 1980s. this means the incumbent might has had a relationship in the past when they were both rebels, but what led to a harass relationship; it is a good business turned sour, leadership and democracy turned dictatorship or just a friendship that was ordained in hell. The answer to the latter, lies in the hands of the Ugandan people who love their country and look forward to a better tomorrow.    

And not long ago, a Museveni and Besigye show down was observed, no doubt Besigye deserves a Guinness Book of Record recognition for the ‘Most arrested before and after an election’, because that’s what he has experienced this year and I challenge the people of Uganda to question the intentions of their leading politicians because Uganda is bigger than personal battles turned national agendas.

President Kenyatta vs Odinga

One cannot understand why Kenyan politics is dominated by the Kenyatta’s and Odingas or tribal clashes between the luos and the kikuyu, but that can be answered with a close look at Kenya pre and post-independence. Before independence, the greatest tool the colonial masters used to prevent any uprising was to divide Africans on tribal lines and keep each tribe suspicious of the other, but after 1963 Kenyans were united and gained they independence in 19 December 1963 with Mzee Jomo Kenyatta as president while Jaramogi Oginga Odinga as vice president.

Now it is important to understand that both Kenyatta and Odinga were explosive figures that represented two powerful political tribes of the kikuyu and Luo that are sworn rivals but with Kenyatta and Odinga these two political tribes’ rivalry was put aside for the sake of freedom from the British. But this union was short-lived due to conflicting policies after the Kisumu massacre that created instability in the Luo community followed but the assassination of two prominent politicians which initially created more tensions.

With Odinga out in the cold as a fugitive opposition leader in the 1966 with his Kenyan people union (KPU) denouncing the government of Kenyatta heated exchange of words was the norm between them, which later led to Kenyan people union being banned and its leaders arrested in 1969 and Kenya became a’ de fecto’, single party state. Though the one party state statue was verified through amendment of the constitution by Kenyatta’s successor following his death in 1978. And this marked Jaramogi journey in the wilderness of the opposition which his son, Raila inherited after his death in 1994.

Curse or blessing the dominance of the two families has seen the Kenyatta’s being a major force while the Odingas are seeking to be a force, but will 2017 be a victorious year for the Odinga or maybe the curse of poor finishing will take effect. Raila like his father has criticized Kenyatta’s tactic in dealing with corruption, but is Raila and Besigye power-hungry attention seekers or they have the will of the people at heart.

Name	Country
President Salva Kiir vs Riek Machar President Uhuru Kenyatta vs Raila Odinga President Yoweri Museveni vs Besigye President  Alassane Outtara vs Laurent Gbagbo	South Sudan Kenya Uganda Ivory Coast

The list is endless, but it is important to understand how a personal battle can turn out to be a national battle. 

President Salva Kiir and his deputy Riek Machar

After several years of guerrilla warfare, which killed atleast a million of people and more displaced, South Sudan became an independent country in July 2011 after a referendum that saw her break away from Sudan. With a lot of hope and happiness of a better future filled the hearts and faces of the newly independent state with they country being labelled a ‘model of 21 century democracy’.

With a record of having Africa’s longest running civil war, south Sudan is no stranger to negative news such that in 2013, it made worldwide headlines when the president Kiir fired his whole cabinet and accusing his deputy Machar of planning a failed coup which led to war among the loyalists of the latter.

With both leaders fighting their personal battle on the tribal lines the president hails from the Dinka and the Nuer tribes back Machar and the Dinka and Nuer are the country’s biggest ethnic groups, the Dinka being the biggest at 36% and the Nuer at 16%. Furthermore, the Dinka and Nuer tribes are well known longtime rivals whose rivalries began in the 19^th century over land and resources, hence it is no surprise they rivalry has been renewed in the 21^st century.

Even though, President Silva and Machar are highly regarded as freedom fighters, it is important to understand that both the president and his deputy are architecturers of the present violence and I believe the people of South Sudan are held hostages to instability caused by the two leaders. And the same applies to the crisis in Burundi where the leadership has held the people hostage all in the name of governance. And to name a few possible personalized fights turned national issues watch out for President Kabila and Moises Katumbi and not forgetting President Zuma and Julius Malema and it is true that in politics the are no permanent enemies, but the impact of these personal battles may or has led to loss of lives.    

Conclusion

It is important to understand that this article does not discourage competition, but speaks out against competitions that uses tribalism, violence and ignorance as raw materials for competition. I believe an elections is a competition which is inspired by constructive arguments and competitive ideas and the will to serve not an appetite of violence and thirst of blood of innocent souls.   

    

STATUE SYMBOLISM: Let’s support our people

It seems both African governments and people are doing less in supporting the ‘African brand’ initiative that is meant to promote African made goods among Africans and the rest of the world at large. Furthermore, this initiative was suggested as a wake-up call for Africans to counter off competition from foreign imported goods that flooded the African markets. And besides countless efforts and campaigns to implement the initiative, African government seem rather relaxed to consider the initiative as law or something near to a law. With that in head, it’s no doubt African will always be dependent to foreign manufactured goods that are of low quality and expensive.

Statue symbolism syndrome

Further, it can be observed that most African governments and people are tolerant to foreign goods in spite its quality and price to locally produced goods. And the reason can be attributed to what I will term as ‘status symbolism’ or just an African syndrome which I will diagnose and with time a suitable prescription will be suggested to help cure it. A status symbol is a perceived indicator of economic or social status and ownership of a foreign good is seen as a major breakthrough in many African setup and this has left a lot of families in debts due to wanting to fulfill the statue symbol syndrome. And it is even more shocking to learn that supporting of Europeans footballs teams and buying its expensive merchandise is more of a economic or social success while never supporting or buying merchandise of an African team. To make it clear, I would want to state that the is no harm in supporting a foreign team or good, but the question still remains who will support African teams and goods if we do not support them and secondly, is there a possibility of non-Africans outside the continent supporting our football teams like we support Manchester united or Barcelona? And on days that the famous el classic is to be played in Spain, one can observe a parade of jerseys in Africa of either Barcelona or Real Madrid and It is possible to think of a public holiday only to discover it is just a football match, but the atmosphere is completely different when TP Mazembe or Zanaco United is playing nobody seems to care even our local newspapers would prefer to run headlines of the Barcelona match to Asante Kotoko match.

Weddings

Being in Zambia after four years away, introduced me to a new reality of financial stress among yet to be couples who found themselves locked up in heated financial stress and pressure of wanting to please everyone. The crunch of financial stress turns most brides and grooms into beggars who are willing to auction they marriage for few donations from family members for a fairy-tale wedding. It is this harsh reality that most young couples find themselves in even before the announcement of wedding dates. And more drama unfolds when the bridegroom is charged an out of space bridal price fee also known as ‘Lobola’, that puts the now confused young man in a state of shock while asking if the bridal price could be reduced since he is unemployed, but madly in love with the yet to be bride. As the bride helplessly looks on with eyes facing the ground and hands held together as a gesture of respect as the bridegroom humbles himself in a last plea for mercy to the yet to be in laws who seem willing to listen, but not convinced to reduce the fee. Notably, after negotiations, wedding announcements are made, relatives from all walks of life appear and hijack the moment and a new hunt for elegant gowns begins while relatives battle each other for wanting to be matrons with some enrolling their whole clans as bridesmaids or knife boys. And in all these things the bride and groom have little or no say because their wedding has been turned into a ‘family affair that’s sends out a message of statue symbolism to enemies’, under these circumstances, young couples are forced into a state of financial stress in the name of pleasing the now extended family.

    

And the point mostly overlooked is, the is life after wedding receptions that will require a lot of finances, hence spending lifesaving's on a wedding reception without a steady income is suicidal and chances of recovering is low. On the positive side, wedding receptions are beautiful and a source of lifetime memories, although this may be true, never play ‘fairy-tale’ with finances.

Minimalism

And not long ago, I begun to embrace the concept of ‘minimalism’ a phenomenon that practices full minimization in capital, time and relationship. Even though, this phenomenon dates back to the sixties, it is important to understand that it touches all activities of our lives. And in connection with what I observed in Zambia weddings, I am fully convinced the idea of minimalism can be ideal for many young couples who are undergoing pre and post wedding financial stress.

Pre wedding financial stress can be prevented by firstly knowing your financial status as an individual and then as a couples, then ask yourself the question of what you can afford without seeking assistance from the bank or relatives. The knowledge of one’s financial status before looking at what others did for they wedding will save the young couples headaches. The idea to operate without competition of ‘who did that’, under the supervision of a wedding expert we give the couple the will to seek new ideas without pressure, but within they means.   

As for the post wedding financial stress, I must accept that it has caused a lot of premature marriage break-ups because as soon as the wedding and honey moon ends the blaming games starts then fights and regret cements the beginning of the crisis. But all this can be prevented, when a couple knows its financial muscles and having attended atleast five weddings that ended up within 24 months, I can confidently state that the is more to a marriage than a fairy-tale wedding and minimalism can be a long awaited answer.

And to conclude with a caution, statue symbolism is a good achievement but it should not kill our dreams and reality and I want to state that the ideal of minimalism also works for students not only couples. As a student this has helped me save money and generate more to lend to fellow students, therefore, for those of you who would like to embark on the journey of minimalism remember money depreciates and appreciates every second, with that in mind use it with a caution of what you would want to do next.

THE AFRICAN UNION: MISSING IN ACTION AGAIN

The African Union and its many challenges          

Indeed agony is wanting to be taken seriously when African leaders shout slogans from a Chinese-built headquarter in Addis Abba whose budget is funded by the west. And it’s no surprise that the annual African union is characterized by same twisted speeches of hope that do not yield any fruits at all and that’s why it is nicknamed the biggest talk show on the continent. From Mugabe ranting against the Europeans to Mugabe again advocating for the Chinese’ dominance on continental affairs offers valid prove that Addis Abba once in a while turns into a theater  of comedians.

Journey of Death

A cry of Africans immigrants drowning in the Mediterranean is heard and seen all over the news, but yet they cry and pain falls on deaf ears and blind eyes of our able leaders as they showcase in long motorcades and long endless speeches of promises that never come to effect. Do our leaders really see the need of stopping this ‘journey of death’ of young capability Africans to Europe or maybe the sweetness of power has accumulated they body, souls and spirit to realize the crisis in front of us.  And accordingly to statistic as of 2016 already 2515 Africans have lost they lives and I have waited to hear a statement or solution in relations to the matter, but the African Union seems too busy for it discuss its citizens’ well-being.

Valentine

African youth entrepreneurship programs is a myth that only exist on paper and since Africa has cemented its spot on top as a theater for lost dreams and hope due to harsh governmental policies to youths. The youths are now in a state of rush and are willingness to do anything for the money like the advertisement I came across of a smartly dressed handsome man who offers a ‘Rent A Gent Valentine’s Promotion’ for single ladies. The advertisement on the flyer included services such as selfie pictures as a couple, holding of hands, ‘Miss you love’ status post on social media and kissing in front of friends and family to mention a few all for hundred dollars. Dear readers as innovative or fun this many sound, I want you to understand that failures by African leaders to discuss real youth empowerment will lead to more youths endangering their lives and integrity.

Shackled by chains and dressed in prison scrubs

Other than valentine, the month of February was filled with so much activities and most notable was when we thought our music had lost its value and connection to reality, then came up performances by Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar that ignited a new creative revolution that speaks out against systemic racism and modern 21^st century mental oppression. And it is no surprise that they performances received major criticism, but I believe they performances showed how far the struggle for equality has come which has undermined the unite of the country.

Struggle Is Real

The systemic racism in America is seen in the profiling of black men and police brutality that has been seen and shocked the world. Systemic racism also known as institutional and structural racism are rooted in major social institutions, but it is important to understand that institutional or structural racism was and is not an accident of history in America, but is something that was and is created intentionally to disadvantages minorities such as the African Americans.

America as a country was found on principles of racism and sexism and the struggle for equality has existed for more than 150 years, and what is seen today is as a result of a seed of inequalities that was planted more than 150 years ago. Indeed, America is the ‘land of the free’, and prides itself because of its diversity, but yet most of its minorities are enslaved institutionally which is the same as lock them up in chains.

The visa free Africa

The free visa Africa is a great initiative, but is Africa really ready for such a big move that abolishes passports and any type of border control. Like a certain Mrs. Tembo said, Africa is filled with adopted ideologies that we embrace fast and has both indirect and direct impact on our population, the visa free initiative by the Africa Union is adopted from the controversial European Union (EU) signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg in 1985. And the main purpose of its establishment was to strengthen ties between trading countries and ease traveling loads, but the migration crisis of poor members to rich members led to a number of countries to reintroduce border control and not forgetting acts of terrors.

Difference between the African Union and European Union:

African Union	European Union
54 countries	28 countries
800 million people	510 million people
Consists mostly of the world’s poorest country	Consist mostly of the world’s  richest country
Headquarters: Addis Ababa	Headquarters: Brussels
Motto: ‘a united and strong Africa’	Motto: ‘united in diversity’

With the above already said, does the African Union(AU) have the same muscle power as the European Union (EU) to combat an migration crisis and acts of terrorism. A border less Africa will be a challenge due to militant groups such as Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab terrorizing the west and east Africa respectively and public health will be at risk with Ebola already killing a lot of people.

Therefore, before the African Union (AU) makes a conclusion on this matter it is important for them to firstly establish  intra-African trade which will facilitate the free movement of goods and services around the continent to encourage equal socio-economic development. Then the idea of free visas can be introduced at regional block levels such as SADC, ECOWAS have they own free visa process for security purpose. For I know the African Union lacks the muscle and experience to deal with a major crisis compared to the European Union.

And as we wait for the outcome of the African Union meeting in Kigali, we cross our fingers hoping that whenever will be discussed there will yield fruits for we are tired of long mean less speeches filled with  a lot of promises in meetings filled with smartly dressed men and women.  All we need are speeches accompanied with action and we hope morocco will join the union so that we achieve the united Africa movement.

KAKISTOCRACY

It is unarguable fact that Africa is characterized by rich countries with poor people and an elite that does not seem to care much, and the same can be said that an elite of worst or least qualified citizens are at the helm of national leadership. And the best, term to describe the phases outlined above is ‘kakistocracy’ and this has affected the state of affairs due to incompetence. And not to confuse kakistocracy from aristocracy, aristocracy is governance by the small privileged ruling class.

Elections of Chaos

In Africa, anything is possible, a man with no achievement record can be celebrated and glorified overnight while a man who works hard and has an achievement record is vilified and labeled as a certified Satanists. Furthermore, what’s even more surprising is that a mentally disturbed ‘honorable’ is given and guaranteed media coverage than an economic expert to comment and analyze economic situations at the expense of a people that has lost hope and national pride.

And in relation with the above, Africa’s many problems never be solved any time soon since the loss of vision on democracy and embarkment on a self-destructive kakistocracy journey that heads into the wildness of confusion and corruption. With many upcoming elections scheduled for his year, it is a known fact that any song composed by any singer under the influence of narcotics is good enough to earn any candidate the highest office of the land in some parts of the continent. And this can be seen from the so called revolutionary songs and slogans that grace our communities that put the integrity of the state at stake.

And it is during elections, that it is better not to possess a television set, radio, phone or tablet because they all seem to be instructs of propaganda that influence our attitudes towards a people, race or tribe than being instructs of information. Indeed, it is a known fact that, African Medias are playgrounds of the incumbent and his hired guns, worshipers and cheer leaders to mention a few and that automatically eliminates the purpose of freedom of expression on the opposition factions.

And with elections campaigns hitting a boiling point, it is no surprise that willingness to practice the art of tribalism openly is one of the qualifications needed to be considered a visionary leader in modern elections. And as we wait for results of elections all over the continental we hope good governance that requires governmental institutions to embrace citizens irrespective of different political opinions will be observed.

UNDERSTANDING SCELERODEMA

Having spent two weeks at the dermatology department, I observed many skin related diseases, but three appeared on most patients we examined and the most common symptom seen during physical examination was a reddish itchy rash. Skin conditions such as scleroderma, psoriasis and lichen planus were the most common and by statistics I can say that 1 in 4 patients we examined had one of the three diseases. Therefore, it is the purpose of this article to outline scleriderna its definition, etiology, pathogenesis, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment. This article will also highlight complications in relation to the disease, not forgetting differential diagnose.

The terminology ‘scleroderma’ is derived from the Greek words ‘skleros’ hard and ‘derma’ for skin and was first described as a condition of thickened skin by Hippocrates and Carlo Curzio fully described the details of the disease in 1752 on a patient.  It is important to understand that Hippocrates described the condition of thickened skin, but did not call it ‘scleroderma’. Therefore, it was Giovambattisa Fantonetti who first used the term ’skleroderma’ after observing a patient with a ‘dark-leather like skin’ that somehow caused the skin to tighten in 1836 and later on in 1945, Robert H. Goetz coined the systemic manifestation of the disease which he profoundly described as progressive.

Therefore, scleroderma can be defined as a progressive autoimmune characterized by skin hardening. And in line with its history, scleroderma’s cause is unknown, that’s why it is termed as autoimmune because it is suspected that it occurs when ones immune system attacks and destroys  healthy body tissue by mistake and this dramatically changes the function of the immune system which is to protect from disease and infection. And it is a known fact that the cause of scleroderma is as a result of overproduction and accumulation of collagen (main component of connective tissue), but yet what prompts the abnormal collagen production is stil unknown.

And in accordance to its pathogenesis, genetics and environmental factors have been implicated to be in the etiology of scleroderma. While changes in metabolism, immune and microcirculatory disturbance have been associated to the disease, not forgetting abortion, retroviruses, coal dust and chemotherapy.

Furthermore, it is important to understand that scleroderma is divided into; localized (limited) and systemic. Localized scleroderma has a benign course and mainly affects fingers, hands and face while systemic scleroderma is characterized by affecting connective tissues, lesions of the skin, musculoskeletal system and internal organs such as the heart, kidneys and digestive tract.

Furthermore, localized scleroderma can be divided into linear and morphea while systemic also has limited and diffused scleroderma and are characterized by symptoms such as sores on fingertips, weight loss, diarrhea, heartburn, muscle weakness, calcinosis, Raynaud phenomenon, telangiectasia, esophageal dysfunction and sclerodactyly. The above symptoms are important in the diagnosis of localized and systemic scleroderma respectively.

Even though, scleroderma affects many different parts of the body and can appear in many forms, its diagnose is somehow difficult. Despite that being the case, a proper physical examination and blood tests are one of the vital stages in checking if certain antibodies produced in the immune system have elevated the blood levels. Also pulmonary function test, ct scan of scan and echocardiogram of heart are helpful techniques to diagnosis systemic scleroderma due to its ability to cause complication in digestive tract and heart.

In conclusion, no drug has been created to stop the overproduction of collagen, but treatment is directed towards individual symptoms affecting different areas of the body.

extracted from my 2015 fifth student conference Tambov State University

AFRICA: FAMOUS FOR THE WRONG REASONS AND THE HYPE Part 2

A year ago, I wrote an article entitled ‘Africa: Famous for the wrong reason’, and it is with pleasure that I continue to write the part 2 of this fantastic topic. Even though, the first part received mixed emotions, I glad to state that ‘African history is African history and we should not compromise on how we tell the African story because that will automatically change the content of our history. For African history must be told and celebrated so that the new generation know where we have come from as a people and continent respectively’.

 

UNEXPECTED WEDDING BELLS

Indeed, a lot has happened and changed since I wrote the first part and I must confess Africans are natural performers, if not comedians. Even more, this can be highlighted through a series of stories that made headlines across Africa such as, when a Kenyan man publicly offered President Obama a herd of 150 cows, sheep and goats for his Daughter’s hand in marriage. The man seemed geared for Obama’s daughter and was in high spirit airing out his emotional affection while claiming that it was an issue of destiny, not infatuation as most people might say.

Secondly, while waiting for President Obama to respond to the surprise proposal, another social media stampede was created in southern Africa, Zambia when President lungu’s daughter made rare public appearance alongside her father that captured everyone’s attention that led to a Mr. Eric Jere, to make his intentions known of wanting to marriage her while offering 50 cows and 200 goats. Besides the first proposal already made, another man by the name of Joe Moono, an economist by profession took a leap of faith by countering Mr. Jere’s offer by offering 17 cows and 50 goats for her hand in marriage.

In addition, what is even more interesting about the above is that the girl and lady involved in these stories had no idea marriage proposals were made for them and this can be seen in the lack of response on the ladies’ part, but no doubt the gentlemen made us laugh with their five minutes moments of fame.

THE ENDLESS DRAMA UNFOLDS

YEAR ISSUED	CONSTITUTION COMISSION LED BY
1964	Independence Constitution
1973 One-party constitution	Mainza Chona Constitution
1990	Patrick Mvunga Constitution
1996	John Mwanakatwe Constitution

And from funny moments such as the Nigerian’s missing budget documents to Zambia’s amended constitution that the opposition  claim  to discriminate against women and worse than the colonial master and I wonder what has led to the heated exchange when this people driven constitution was long awaited.

And the reason was simple and straight forward the government introduced a ‘senior secondary certificate clause’ as a requirement to run for parliament and this is huge because 2016 is an election year and this move is seen as a prevention measure by the government to create an elite only system. Though a question may be asked, where were the oppositions when such bills were being signed which can be answered by a simple statement like,’ they signed something that favored them upon appearance, but has backfired on them on the long run, hence they have to suffer the consequences of their actions’. And this can be attributed to the increasing poor reading and research culture among parliamentarians. 

And in this year’s segment of famous for the wrong thing, I would like to add a special feature ‘ famous for the right reasons’ to one leader who is making headlines for his bold decisions that seem to have awakened a new social revolution in his country. His Excellency Dr. John Pombe Magufuli, president of Tanzania is indeed a 21^st century model of African leadership. Even though, some information suggest that Magufuli lost to Edward Lowassa, he has smoothly led a remarkable wave of reforms that has united the divided electorates into one force that has forgotten about the elections rumors. And hardly in office for 6 months, are Magufuli’s reforms are more effective and popular than his presidency and in a time like this when most African presidents are ‘flying or tourist presidents’, Magufuli’s has resorted to cut on foreign trips due to the costs.

	Hype Moments (characterized by the personalized decisions made)	nicknames
Dr. john Magufuli	-cutting unnecessary government spending -firing incompetent and lazy government employees -cancellation of independence celebrations -cutting of foreign trips	Bull blazers
Late Michael Sata	-more money in the pocket in 90 days -fight against corruption	King cobra

WHY IS THE MAGUFULI HYPE A LITTLE BIT DANGEROUS?

It is important to know that the direction the president has taken is dangerous and in ordinary language we term it as ‘roadside politics’. Roadside politics is a strategy that is used to improve a person’s popularity and social image by making of popular personal decisions that create conflict of interests in the long run.   I believe decisions of this magnitude have to be debated and collectively agreed upon so that self-righteous individualism will not be the president’s middle name which is likely to be the case in Tanzania. And it is important to understand that governmental business should never be personalized because the presidency becomes a one man show that eliminate the power of collectivity possessed and displayed throughout Tanzanian history.

About the Hype

African politics is always characterized by a hype moment that ends up in a crisis for example, in Zambia, a country that borders Tanzania on the west underwent a hype moment when late president Michael Sata popularly known as ‘king cobra’ made personalized decision to fight corruption and a promise of putting more money in citizens’ pockets that ended up in enriching his supporters at the expense of the now disappointed Zambians. Today Zambia’s debts is huge and the government is yet to borrow more money to help revive the slowly collapsing economy.

With the above, in mind a similarity can be observed in sata’s personalized hype moment with the Zambian people to Magufuli’s current hype decisions. And therefore, to simplify this article all I can is a hype moment is not a reform or vice versa hence the sooner our leaders realize the difference the better. Magufuli’s decisions maybe truthful, but it will take him more time to fight against the internal system that benefit directly from corruption than the external factors.


Written by:
Sishumba Musanda
To read part 1 you can CLICK the following link: https://sishumbamusanda.blogspot.ru/2014/12/africa-famous-for-wrong-reasons.html
Happy International Women's day 

WHY FACEBOOK DOES NOT CARE AND WONT CHANGE ITS POLICY?

According to my relate observation and conversation with my comrades I discovered that in written all lives matter, but in reality not all lives matter and this is self-explainable through recent sad events that shocked the world and claimed many lives. Above all, the relate French terrorism attacks attracted a lot of media coverage to an extend of Facebook, the world’s leading social media creating a program that enabled its users to show solidarity towards terror victims by putting the French flag as a profile picture which is different to what is done to show solidarity to people losing they lives in Africa or Mideast Syria. I believe at this moment many are wondering why Facebook does not really care and I will explain in the following sub title WHY.

WHY

Firstly it is important to understand that Facebook is a business whose main agenda is to serve its many users, but to issues relating to terror attacks and coverage, I believe face book’s board of directors used two concepts to choose what to cover:

1.       The majority wins concept:

Please observe that this ‘majority wins concept’ did not apply to the board of directors but applied to its users in a way I will explain. France has a population of 66 million people and approximately 22 million Facebook users compared to Nigeria’s population of 173 million and only 6 million users and the same applies to Syria. Therefore, Facebook’s board of directors saw it fit to give coverage to the French crisis due to its many users because it had to protect its interest.  Business first

2.       The ‘where your treasure is, that’s where your heart is’ concept:

This is an extract from a religion scripture that most of us are familiar with and yes the Facebook board of directors used this concept on their choice of coverage. The directors understood that they ‘treasures’ are and will expand more in France and definitely they move payed off because by 2020 the number of users will increase drastically from 22 million to 30 million users compared to Nigeria’s stagnant 6 million users which may increase to 6.5 or 7 million users by 2020. In today’s world and business, remember statistics really matter no matter the situation statistics really matter and I believe the directors had to protect the interest of users using statistics.

NAME OF COUNTRY	GENERAL POPULATION (Million)	FACEBOOK USERS
FRANCE	66.03	22
NIGERIA	173.6	6
SYRIA	22.85	5
KENYA	44.35	1.8

And to those Africans who would want to ask Facebook why it did not react to terrors in Africa and Mideast the same way it did for France, under the humanitarian act that advocates for equality despite someone’s race, geographical location, creed or religion, then it’s important to understand that the humanitarian act or generally human rights do not apply for countries outside Europe and American because:  

In 1789, the France’s national constituent Assembly signed the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen or Declaration des droitis de l’homme et du citoyen which advocated for equality before it was restored by Napoleon in 1802 and re-abolished in 1848, therefore, it is important to observe that even though France had colonies overseas like Africa, the declaration signed in 1789,1802 and 1848 did not include the natives of the colonies meaning the equalities or humanitarian did not apply to them. And the same applies to the 1948, United Nations General Assembly’s  Universal Declaration of Human Right which represents ‘ a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations’, while in the actual sense, Africa was under the rule of the colonial masters 

meaning the human rights did not apply to them.

Therefore, with the above already out lined, I believe it is important for us to STOP crying over ‘the humanitarian act card’, because it does not work and not many understand, hence it is the our duty as Africans to let the Facebook and the world at large our grief, even when we surely know that nothing will change, but a statement has been made and will be they reminder in the near future.

Let us learn to pray for the world #2016resolution#

written by Sishumba Musanda

FOCUS ON ZAMBIA: THE LAST THURSDAY POLITICAL THROWBACK

STATE OF AFFAIRS

China’s never ending thirty for mineral resources has helped many southern African countries like Zambia to experience massive economic breakthroughs. With Zambia’s copper been a key export has enabled china to flex its financial powers to acquire the resources, but concerns has risen over China’s recent slowdown or economic crisis which has had a negative impact on many African economies. 

With that in mind, many politicians in Zambia have found that reason enough to make many excuses, but the truth is Zambia’s economic has more to do with poor investment and financial mismanagement to the china slowdown the government attributes its problems to.

Furthermore, with a weak kwacha currency and economy Zambia’s future is definitively uncertain and the government seems not to be in the right position to restore confidence and former glory of the country. And this can be observed in the ‘gambling kind of borrowing’ the government has ventured into and forgetting the most recent national prayers that were done to seek spiritual interference an initiative that the president come up with since Zambia is a Christian nation.

With the above in mind, Zambia’s problems never seems to be ending or getting better, in a matter of months millions of dollars will be needed (borrowed) for elections and to keep the angry electorate and civil servants happy at the expense of a dying economy.

THE AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION

The idea of a new constitution has always been a cry among Zambians with many wanting to limit the powers of the presidency which the considered to be too powerful while other sectors of society wanting the introduction of a bill of human rights. However, the constitution making process was just a source of conflicts between the ruling and opposition political parties who had different motives to satisfy. And even though, military coup d’état are so uncommon in Zambia, I might confess constitutional coup d’état is the new anthem of the day and can be observed in the rejection of clauses that were equally important to those adopted by the so called majority in parliament. And to explain about the constitutional d’état, it’s simply a fashionable 21^st century kind of clinging to power through clauses, referendum and amendment of constitution in favor of the sitting president. In reality this whole process is supposed to be illegal, but since it’s done in a fashionable way, bloodless and without any guns people do not see its dangers.

ADOPTED CLAUSES	REJECTED CLAUSES
50+1 for winning the presidential candidate	Mixed Proportional representation
Running mate	Appointment of cabinet ministers outside parliament
Dual citizenship	Provincial assemblies

And as we cross our fingers in waiting for the Head of state to sign or reject the amendments a lot of reflections must be done by the people, political parties and the Head of state because the outcome of the constitution making process will determine the way forward of the country as a whole. Of course, it is impossible to satisfy all parties involved, but it is possible to put their respective arguments into consideration.

CALL FOR A COALITION GOVERNMENT

Unlike other countries of the world where formation of coalition governments is the norm of the day, Zambia cannot have such because the opposition parties are too weak to pose any serious opposition to the current government. And in the past year,  Zambia has had some coalition or pacts were as two parties coming up together to form one party, but all these coalitions or pacts could not agree on simple issues such as candidates to file on election. With the above in mind, coalitions or pacts in Zambia do not work because they expose the opposition parties’ many unknown and known weaknesses, therefore to avoid such exposure the opposition has to work extra hard to earn the respect and support of the electorates for nothing is impossible.

In conclusion, I believe 2016 is both a good and bad year for Zambian for a lot of activities ranging from elections to redeeming of the economy, awaits the population and all will depend on people’s attitudes towards national development and personal choices in the booth

Merry Christmas and a filled New Year and thank you for reading and commenting the blog throughout the year. For your reading and commenting is what has kept this blog going.

Until next year 2016 God bless. 

Sishumba Musanda

GRAND FINALE: MISS PLUS SIZE INTERNATIONAL

The Miss Plus Size International was indeed the best event that marked the end of 2016 with a huge BOOM, even though the cold winter of -10 degrees did seem like a hindrance in the first place, but that did not prevent the ever blazing students from witnessing history in the making and crowning of the new queen in town.

The excitement of seeing the presenters on stage introducing the contestants for the opening dance was emotional for viewers who chanted  slogans in support of they favorite contestant in different foreign languages. And some could not hold it back other than singing and dancing while watching the fulfillment of an evening of glitz and glamour.  

For this contestant began like a joke between friends would thought of  transformation that could be turned into a major international annual tradition with countless students around Russia vying to be part and parcel of the students’ modelling history in Tambov. Furthermore, the thought of transformation was 'an easy said than to be done', because most people were afraid of the outcome of organizing such an event. Initially, a leap of faith was taken with the help of the University and other dedicated individuals led to the first modeling competition among students some years ago.

With time, many students were willing to come on board and assist in and that might be reason enough, as to why many students from different faculties and members of public embraced the cold winter weather and  showed up to the much talked about event and indeed the event was not short of any entertainment because the contestants displayed character and determination in all what they were doing. And with no doubts, these ladies’ work ethnic will advance their careers, personal and humanitarian goals as they seek to improve the lives of others.

ALL HAIL THE QUEEN

Profile of Miss Plus Size International Name: Martha Ndeshihafela Mwatile Age: 25 years Hobbies: Cooking, dancing, laughing Personal bio: Martha an imaginative and strategic thinker who loves to have a plan for everything not forgetting her many talents such as massaging and cooking no wonder her favorite part of the hostel is the kitchen. Furthermore, Martha has a personal philosophy which can be described by one term empowerment which she attributes to her background and teaching through motivation. A 6th year medical student hopes to become a psychiatrist or psycho-therapist. Quote:’ I am the kind who dress the mood and I like to connect with my clothes or anything that surrounds me’.

With a total of 6 beauties who battled it out on the catwalk last night, the winner walked away with a compound prize including cash and other things. Running under the theme,’ Beauty. Intelligence. Plus size’, yesterday marked the first time the Miss Plus Size Tambov International was hosted under that theme. With contestants going through various dress categories including, traditional, high fashion casual and elegant gowns

NAME OF COUNTRY
Martha Ndeshihafela Mwatile	Miss Plus Size Tambov International 2015
Natalie Thokozani Tanyanyiwa	1st Princess
Hendrina Lazarus	2ND Princess
Aily Nangolo	Miss Personality
Hendria Lazarus	Miss Punctuality
Martha Ndeshihafela Mwatile	Miss Public Choice

The Miss Plus Size International is courtesy of Miss International Student Tambov, the most prestigious student competition dedicated to showcasing student beauty and intelligence. Until, next year the founder of the pageant Miss Margaret thanked her team ( Mo, Rania Christabel 'summerline' , Benjamin, Chima and Manga) and assured us of more beautiful events in the future, before she extended her message of praise to the brave contestants and viewers who embraced the cold weather to be apart of the event.

MISS PLUS SIZE INTERNATIONAL: STRAIGHT OUTTA TAMBOV PART 2

On Monday evening after my last class of the day, I took the opportunity to attend the rehearsals of the Miss Plus Size International and I was impressed with the commitment of the participants and I kept wondering where the draw they motivation after such a hectic day. And after a long time of observation, I discovered a lady who kept repeating instructions tirelessly with a sharp voice and with time I learnt that the lady with the sharp voice is all about serious business even though, she shared light moments with the participants, commitment and focus is what really described her ever actions.

At this moment, I believe calling her the "Naomi Campbell of Tambov" is an under-statement that lacks in all aspects of what she has achieved. Margaret has established herself not only as a model, but a mentor who is giving mentor-ship to many ladies. Among her many achievements is the Miss Tambov International Pageant which has proven to be a success and has since attracted much speculation among students in Tambov and Russia as a whole.

And it’s no doubt, that this year's Miss Plus Size International will receive massive recognition due to the commitment of her team that includes the talented young lady Mo who has assured and encouraged the participants about the success of this pageant. Even though, she hardly receives recognition for her many roles she plays in the buildup of events such as this one, do not underestimate her ability to host and organize events and indeed she is a force to work with. And in the fashionable society of Tambov Mo has created herself a reputation as a medical student, socialite and fun person to be around.

EVENING OF GLITZ AND GlAMOUR

For now all is set for the grand finale on the 28^th of December and for a 350 rubles ticket you will be able to witness history in the making because Miss Plus Size International is the ‘must see’ event of the month and year respectively. And this years’ event starts at 18hours at the beautiful Dinamo Economic Institute concert hall and ‘red carpet’ photo shoots and moments starts at 17hours, therefore if you want to enjoy an evening and event of glitz and glamour then do not miss and come on time to lender full support to your favorite contestant. 

NAME OF CONTESTANT	COUNTRY
Aily Nangolo	Namibia
Faith	Nigeria
Hendrina Lazarus	Namibia
Sophie Sikobizahora	Swaziland
Rania	Morocco
Martha Ndeshihafela Mwatile	Namibia
Natalie Thokozani Tanyanyiwa	Zimbabwe

In additional, the models are ready to showcase what they have been preparing for and  to find out more about the likes, dislikes and personal biographies for our 7 beautiful finalists who are competing for the title on the 28^th December, then visit our Facebook page at ‘MISS international Students Russia’ to like and view their respective profiles. And remember, liking the video of your favorite contestant will enable them to winning a trip to the beautiful city of Voronezh with the Founder of the Pageant.

Beauty. Intelligence. Plus Size