Chandimu’ is a Kiswahili word-expression derived from a lemon,
as a fruit-turned-football. In the days long gone, the 1960s and
thereabouts, we, the lads, settled for that tool of soccer, because
parents couldn’t waste hard-to-come-by money on buying real (luxurious)
balls.
Yet, it was that brand of soccer, played by mostly
barefoot boys on mainly dusty and sandy pitches, which gave rise to the
expression ‘mpira wa michangani’ that produced stars who shined in
school, club, regional and national teams.
I doubt whether anyone can name anybody in Taifa
Stars, from the early post-Uhuru era to-date, who was a product of a
setting other than ‘michangani’. This is indeed a universal phenomenon
that covers great footballing nations like Brazil – the homeland of the
legendary Peles and Ronaldos.
Some of those who rose to phenomenal fame in
boxing, such as Mike Tyson, were street fighters whom talent scouts
sweet-talked into abandoning crime, were coached and became much-admired
and wealthy sportsmen.
Professionals like medical doctors, engineers,
architects, accountants, and pilots, major drivers of the economy, and
social servive delivery, are, by and large, products of unfriendly
village and academic environments. Experts detected the skills and
talents of some of them and polished them.
My view is, unlike fish that is drawn from water
and each tastes virtually as sweet as any other, talented or skilled
individuals in a wide pool that hosts many non-starters, must be
spotted, encouraged and promoted.
Alternatively, those who discover that they have those attributes, advertise themselves.
It’s an arrangement, though, that gives leeway to
even non-starters driven by sheer ambition, to take a shot at
opportunities on offer.
That’s the backdrop against which I place the
controversy surrounding the presidential chase within the ruling Chama
Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), as the 2015 polls beckon.
Opinion is broadly split between those who feel
that, individuals who judge themselves suitable as flag bearers, and who
have track records they reckon may be an asset in their favour, should
be free to make their intention open; and those who castigate it as a
manifestation of power-hunger, and, on the party’s administrative front,
a breach of norms and procedures.
It’s a crossroads situation. Is the old order
feasible: of the national chairman, on behalf a top decision-making
organ, announcing that, Mr Fulani is the party’s choice; an individual
whose character and service record may not ring loud enough bells in the
members’ ears ?
Is it possible, maybe, that the person could be a
behind-the-scenes super-performer (unlike a highly visible ‘mchangani’
footballer) who could perform wonders once thrust into the hot Ikulu
seat and spring surprises upon one’s compatriots ?
On the other hand, if self-advertisement is permitted, where
should the line be drawn between a self-seeker backed by a clique of
opportunists, and genuinely State House material that would be, first
and foremost, a patriot, and other considerations, being secondary, and
below that ?
Striking a judicious balance between the two is arguably the best way to go; the ‘chandimu’ dose being worth pondering.
