Death by Hanging: Justice or Retribution?

On my mind the past week has been the judgment passed on Friday 22^nd November 2013, where former Inktech managing director Mathews Mohan was sentenced to death by hanging for the murder of Cyclone Hardware director Sajid Itowala in 2009. I am quite saddened that in this day we still have such laws that allow one human being to declare that another be killed. I am reminded of the words of late English poet John Donne; "any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”

The existence of the death penalty in our society raises several questions regarding the basis of the justice system. Do we seek to establish our justice systems out of a desire for rehabilitation, or out of a desire for retribution? Is capital punishment the best way to deter would be offenders? Is the principle of this legislation one of equivalency, reprisal or justice? Is this piece of legislation relevant today? I don’t have the answers to all the questions I have raised above, but the words of Nelson Mandela can guide; “You will achieve more in this world through acts of mercy than you will through acts of retribution.”

 

Justice or Retribution?

Our society's indignation, it seems, is more overwrought by legal wrong than conscious wrong. There should be no room for such archaic laws in the 21^st century. In the old testament of the Christian holy book, the phrase "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" gives a lucid picture of how conflict between two parties was handled. However, precisely two thousand forty six years ago when Jesus Christ descended to earth by birth through the Virgin Mary, this system of justice was challenged. In speaking to the people of Israel, Jesus said that we should love even our enemies and do good to them. Jesus Christ was not the first to challenge this type of justice system of eye for an eye. It was first challenged in the Old Testament way before Jesus was born on earth. Why should we uphold it today?

The absurdity of this ‘piece of legislation’ is that I haven’t heard anyone actually get hanged in Zambia for a long time even though many continue getting sentenced to death. Everyone on death row just waits for the day when the Tuberculosis or whatever disease they get infected with while in jail eventually does kill them. This, I believe, is more angst to the family of such a person. In this case the family is also subjected to punishment all because of one person’s debauchery. Yet, there is no credible evidence that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than long terms of imprisonment or life sentences.

Going by the testimonies that the court heard in the Mohan case, the murder of Sajid was really gruesome and the responsible person(s) must face the full wrath of the law. In saying so I am talking of a life sentence or ‘two life sentences’ (which I don’t understand, –If you died, would you be jailed for life in your next life?). A life sentence is more appropriate. 

I am cognizant of the fact that the issue of Capital punishment was brought up in the Mungo’mba draft constitution but a size-able number of Zambians rejected it. It would appear like a size-able number of Zambians still want “an eye for an eye”, or would rejoice at taking away the life of another simply because they participated in taking someone else’s life. Why must the chain end there? Even he who has ordered the execution must then also be subjected to the same standard and be executed for participating in the killing of another human and so on until the killing chain wipes everyone off the face of the earth.

Surprisingly, the most postulated reason Zambia still keeps the death penalty is that the USA still upholds it. Are we supposed to do everything the USA does? Ultimately, the moral question surrounding capital punishment has less to do with whether those convicted of violent crime deserve to die than with whether government deserves to kill those whom it has imprisoned.

By the way, is “Death by hanging” literary death by hanging? It couldn't be hanging; even the infamous Timothy McVeigh was killed by lethal injection, who takes pride in hanging another human.

Who is in charge?

“Dr Livingstone, I presume?”

The famous words of Welsh born, American journalist and explorer Sir Henry Morton Stanley. 

In November 1871 he found a sick David Livingstone at Lake Tanganyika (Livingstone's last known location) greeting him with the famous words. That encounter happened more than 125 years before the first time I read about it. In the same vein, when Ronald Reagan was president of the USA, I may have been a little too young to follow anything that was happening thousands of miles away. Therefore, any little information about Reagan and his presidency which I have come across over the years, is mostly from books and in some instances TV documentaries.

One interesting book about the Reagan presidency I have read is Kitty Kelley's Nancy Reagan: The Unauthorized Biography. In her book, Ms Kelley makes some sensational claims which she states are from 1,002 interviews with estranged Reagan family members, alienated former staff members and Reagan friends and loyalists. My pick of the many allegations in the book is the suggestion that, Nancy Reagan and not Ronald Reagan, was in charge of the White House for the most part of the Reagan presidency.

This comes to the question of the roles of first a first lady, what are they? “While there is freedom in how the first lady elects to fulfill her office, there are also many historic precedents that she is expected to follow. Perhaps the most imperative function she serves is White House hostess. The early first ladies, like Martha Washington, Abigail Adams and Dolley Madison, set a careful tone for this role. Given the United States' separation from England's monarchical traditions, it was important that the first lady be a woman of the people -- but for the sake of being taken seriously by other nations, she had to imbue the role with some queenly prestige” [source: National First Ladies Library].

“The first lady is an international celebrity, and she can leverage her title to serve as an advocate for social issues. That's why the first lady traditionally has a platform (or pet project, as some historians call it) for her term in office. Whether it's animal rights (Florence Harding), environmental beautification (Claudia "Lady Bird" Johnson) or literacy (Barbara Bush), the first lady's influential advocacy of her chosen cause will typically continue even after her term in Washington ends.

In the latter half of the 20th century, the first lady espoused more political roles, acting as a campaigner for her husband and drawing up support for his policies. In many instances, she acts as the president's informal adviser.” http://history.howstuffworks.com/historical-figures/first-lady1.htm

In the Zambian context, while I may not have been old enough to remember the activities of Betty Kaunda, I do remember Vera Chiluba’s Hope Foundation social activities, Maureen Mwanawasa’s Community Initiative (MMCI), Thandiwe Banda and Dr Christine Kaseba have both engaged in various health and education initiatives.

To draw comparisons to Nancy Reagan, Maureen Mwanawasa was at times rumored to have had a lot of influence on government during Mwanawasa’s second term of office. The rumor was further fueled when some people within MMD endorsed Maureen as the successor to her husband. Maureen did not herself participate in active politics despite all the endorsements that went round. The irony of it all is that even after Levy Patrick Mwanawasa’s death, the story has not blurred away. This is despite the fact the Maureen Mwanawasa has lived life after state house largely as a private citizen. Make no mistake about it; Maureen is highly qualified to run for the highest office in Zambia. She just hasn't involved herself in active politics. Probably she was never active.

The question still remains, what is the role of a first lady? Maybe rephrased, what is the role of the spouse to the head of state?

Perhaps one nation where it might be argued that the first lady had a BIG hand in the running of the state is Argentina. This is so because during the reign of Néstor Kirchner, it was widely rumored in some circles that first lady Cristina Fernández de Kirchner was actually the one calling the shots in that country. The rumors gained some pockets of merit when after just one term, Néstor Kirchner stepped down and his wife Cristina Fernández de Kirchner ran for president and is still the incumbent now in her second term.

Néstor Kirchner & Wife Cristina Fernández 

It is widely expected that the head of state’s spouse might sporadically weigh in on personnel issues such as presidential appointments, but they would never meddle in policy. Are we expecting heads of states to be on a higher moral ground than the rest of humanity in keeping that rule? If the rule exists at all! Are couples in political office expected to only share romantic passions behind closed doors without a tinge of anything work related? To what extent does a spouse get involved?

In her book, Kitty Kelley affirms that Nancy Reagan, or "Mrs. President," as her staffers called her, not only ruled the White House, but with an  iron fist. When President Ronald Reagan was given his agenda for his first meeting in Geneva with Mikhail S. Gorbachev, Ms. Kelley recounts, he asked his aides, "Have you shown this to Nancy?"

"No, sir," they replied.

"Well, get back to me after she's passed on it," he told them. 

A Prose Odyssey

One thing has been constant every year when my birthday comes around. My mother awakens me from sleep with a phone call shortly after midnight to wish me a happy birthday and ask how old I have turned. This year however, I only received the call after 9am. In fact I didn't get any other birthday wish before 9am apart from my wife who was just beside me. Of course it’s nice being wished a happy birthday as early as possible into the day as it sends a message that you have been thought of. Not the kind of birthday wishes emanating from Facebook generated birthday reminders.

However, if the birthday boy is a married man like myself it’s better for everyone to wait for sun rise before those phone calls start pouring in, lest an ex-girlfriend who isn't updated by the change in marital status makes that midnight birthday wish as well. Lo and behold, this blog is not about birthday wishes or who should give them at what time. The passing of my birthday this year ignited a fire to commernce a writing peregrination. I have embarked on an odyssey in prose. This is an odyssey to publish three books and a script for a TV show.

I do not know how and when this will happen, but the journey was born on 7 November 2013. By the way, my good friend Moonga Mkandawire launches his book, Where to now? The book will be launched, 14^th November 2013 with a live concert at The Fringe, Joburg theatre. His book is an anthology of lyrics and the journey that inspired them. The book’s message is about building life on talent. Apparently, I get the greatest inspiration not from the likes of Martin Luther King jnr or Geoffrey Archer, but my very closest friends. The timing of Moonga’s book launch coincides, or comes exactly 7 days after a birthday when I challenged myself to begin work on three books. I have always envisaged myself one day authoring a book and frankly, I now have extra motivation. 

Plenty inspiration! Moonga Mkandawire launches his book,
Where to now?, at the Fringe, Joburg theatre

The TV Story – This was born out of an idea I typed for publishing on my blog site. After I read through, I thought it still needed more creative ideas on it. It has never been published on my blog site as later on I decided it would do well as a TV series story. It’s a story so great that I can barely risk revealing even the title for fear that someone else might swoop in and try to steal the idea. I will commence the process of copyrighting immediately then I can publish snippets of it. Then again, this is ground I have never trudged so I will open my ears as wide as possible and try and learn as much as possible from the professionals in the film industry on how I can go ahead with this.  Unfortunately, the reality of being a rookie in the film industry alters the entire plot a bit but I am determined to soldier on and have as much material as possible even if no one buys into it.

Book 1 – This is what others have called autobiographies. Autobiographies are for famous people though, my book will be a retrospective look into the major highs and lows of my life. The exciting times and the challenging times, including insight into decisions I took when faced with certain situations and what my decision would have been looking back now. This book will not be published until after I turn 40. Nevertheless, I have started the journey.

Book 2 – This is a fiction novel, inspired by true events. Only a title and story line have been written in my diary. All the plots and excitement will be written down and typed in due course. Despite not having started work on this book, it will be the first of the three books to be published.

Book 3 – This is another book inspired by events in my life. It is themed around finding the light in our darkest moments.  It will discuss mainly the struggles of growing up without a father. Other topics to be discussed include, parenting out of a marriage setup, sibling or parental alcoholism –its effects and most importantly, how we can avoid being trapped in the same vice. It is largely based on personal experiences and how the reactions we give lead to different results.

The outline has been mapped, what remains is to see when the first book will be published. It’s not a sprint but it is a marathon. My passion for writing began long ago when as a little boy; I’d stare for long periods, at The Accusing Finger, a book authored by my cousin Nyambe Wina. Every time he came home, I’d tell him I’d one day be a writer like him. Over time the passion waned, and like water waves formed after a dinghy cruises past, I recaptured the passion again. Recently, I have sought to satiate my passion for writing by maintaining the blog-site;
http://www.patricenambayo.blogspot.com.

So when on my birthday I decided to embark on this ambitious odyssey in prose, it seemed like a fulfillment of a good year. My passion is telling stories in ink.  In recent years, I find myself not as excited as I used to be years ago, when my birth date approached. It is now just another day, except I’d have added one more year to my age. I have outlived the age when a birthday excited me; maybe I have got to that part of life when I need to find more meaning to life and my existence. I have heard of the much talked about mid-life crisis, and at times I wonder if it has caught up with me. It definitely isn't that though.

The loss of my elder brother on 28^th June 2008 contributed to this situation. My brother and I, though ten years apart shared the same birthday and we always celebrated our birthday together. He was like a twin brother to me (just older). The likeness in us could not be mistaken. I actually recently came to learn that my mother had really wanted to have at least a set of twins. Though she never got any, I reckon the situation of Patrick Aongola and yours truly served as a great consolation. Writing is that other missing part of the jig saw to fulfillment of self in me. 

Patrick Aongola (circled in red), pictured here in this
1989 photograph taken by Nyambe Wina

As I embark on this ambitious prose odyssey, I’d like to reflect on the words of my good friend Keith Hamundyoli Hamusute. These were words he put on my blog site as words of encouragement to me after I had published my first ever blog.

“All I can do is encourage you to continue writing and reading. I believe you are never completely free as a writer till you vent out. Whether it is to an audience of one (yourself), three or thousands doesn't really matter. What matters is that your story is told, from your eyes, from your perspective.”

CSR: Real care for communities or a marketing ploy?

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development in its publication Making Good Business Sense by Lord Holme and Richard Watts, used the following definition.

“Corporate Social Responsibility is the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large.”

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become an important part of business operation in the developed world, as well as loftily taking shape in the developing world. At the time of publishing this blog, I have not come across a thoroughly researched paper on CSR in Zambia. In my opinion, the Zambian case for CSR or lack of it is all based on western research and text books. I have a friend who is totally against text book theory copy and pasted in. But the truth remains that CSR is an emerging theme that cannot be ignored in Zambia hence I will blot my opinions on it.

CSR is a duty, beyond what is obligatory by the law and economics, for a firm to pursue long term goals that are good for society. It is how an organisation administers its business process to produce an overall positive impact on society. It is a company’s sense of responsibility towards the community and environment (both ecological and social) in which it operates.

It is generally believed that CSR can improve profits. CSR can promote respect for a company in the marketplace which can result in higher sales, enhance employee loyalty and attract better personnel to the firm. Society is constituted of current and potential customers, thus the perception they hold about a company being socially responsible and promoting their cause may tilt their loyalty towards that organization hence improve profits.

  

Compliance CSR vs. Conviction CSR

Some experts discourse that companies use CSR as a tool to conform to expectations and regulations imposed by government and society at large. This is known as compliance CSR. Conviction CSR, contrariwise, is about the vision and integrity of the organization and its desire to assume a leadership role in positively influencing the development of the society. CSR in this case becomes a relationship-building tool that inspires trust in the statements and intentions of the company.

Then there is the case of KCM. To be fair to the mining giant, in this day and age mechanization is required in order to boost production hence enjoy economies of scale which later translate into productivity. This is a seriously business decision, and over time job cuts are inevitable. However, a company that has a proper CSR programme would not just throw more than 1500 families to the streets overnight. This is a company that boasts of great CSR, they sponsored a chipolopolo trip to India for extensive training prior to the 2012 AFCON. When copper prices were high they pledged to pay for the coach’s salary and left the burden to FAZ and government when the copper prices plummeted. Since when did sports sponsorship become CSR? This is not CSR but advertising. It is actually riding on the Chipolopolo brand. Would you then say insurance giant AON’s shirt sponsorship deal with Manchester united is CSR?

My views… my thoughts

CSR requires a company to ensure that it’s financial, human and resource capital are conserved and developed in the best interests of everyone concerned. CSR is distinct from simply donating money to the Football Association or building a block of classrooms at a basic school. Of course long term activities focused on improving educational opportunities and facilities can be CSR. Such CSR may also help build the brand image of the business; in due course improve the quality of the human resource pool available for hire, ensuring the long-term success of the business.

It is also absolutely correct to expect that corporations should be “responsible” by creating quality products and marketing them in an ethical manner, in compliance with laws and regulations and with financials represented in an honest, transparent way to shareholders and stakeholders alike. It is expected that a food manufacturing company will provide a safe product to its community. Agencies like Zambia Bureau of Standards then police such a company to make sure they meet the minimum standards in order to guarantee the safety of the consumers. When a company achieves these minimum standards, this can’t be called CSR. They are obligated to guarantee consumer safety for God’s sake.

However, the concept that a company must apply its assets for social purposes, rather than for the profit of the shareholders, is reckless.  Any company must strive to make a profit first. In striving to make a profit, it must fulfill all its obligations – legal, social and taxation. This must not in any way be classified as CSR. These are obligations.

The owners of a company can certainly donate their own assets to charities that promote causes they believe in. In order to have companies that operate in ways that portray real care for society, ownership of these companies must change. We need to develop a cadre of as many Zambian’s that own business entities. A local Zambian may not under declare profit before tax so as to syphon the difference abroad. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) must be augmented by local investment.

I do believe real CSR does help with profitability; but I do not entirely classify it as advertising. On the other hand I do not classify sponsorship to a local sports team as CSR; neither is donating prize money to a local school debate competition. What both situations do is enhance a company’s corporate image. Enhanced corporate image is linked to favourable behavior from customers towards the firm’s products and services (Eisenburg and Riley, 1998; Fombrun, 1996; Turban and Greening, 1997; Arpan, 2005)

Corporate philanthropy is a direct way of marketing. In other words, no one really cares about society unless they have a cut in it.

The Pursuit of Happiness

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

― Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration of Independence

When the Euro-Africa coach services bus eventually got to Ndola, one name kept registering on my mind. Sydney Sichula had lived most of his life in Ndola. This was his home and he was proud of it. On this occasion though, I wouldn't be honored with a tour around the city of Ndola by Sydney himself as he had relocated to Lusaka.

I met Sydney in Livingstone at Hillcrest Senior Technical High School, and for three years we shared the same dormitory. In that period there was not a day that went by without his declaration of his love for Ndola. He went further to constantly claim that there was not a place as beautiful as Ndola in the whole of Zambia. We were all proud of the towns we came from, as I also spoke highly of Chilanga. I spoke highly of Mongu too, my home town. Chilanga is a nice place, but I always felt like I was talking of a neighborhood. Mongu is a great place, but Sydney’s tales of Ndola were at another level.

Regardless of how highly we spoke of our home towns, none was as loud as Sydney had been. I had been to Ndola before that trip, but I always thought I was too young to remember anything about this copper-belt town. So Sydney’s never ending alluring accounts and illustrations of Ndola were the only real images on my mind. I had spent three years listening to Sydney tell me how Ndola was miles ahead of Lusaka in terms of infrastructure, industrialization, and even cleanliness. Subliminally, my mind was expecting a city of the standing of New York. So as I gathered my back pack to disembark from the coach, I was looking out through the window for any signs of any Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty or even the Times Square.

I didn't stay in Ndola for more than 24 hours  The following day I traveled to Kitwe for an even shorter visit to the Copper-belt University just for the purchase of a study application form before returning to Lusaka the same day. Yet, I returned to Ndola three years after that short visit. On this occasion, I’d spend three days and I’d have the luxury to move around the city appreciating all the great things engraved on my mind years before. I had come as a Sales Executive for a company that specialized in IT hardware, security equipment and surveillance hardware. The first item on my agenda was to have a site visit at a location that was to be a center for Gemstone Processing & Lapidary Training.

However my expectations came crushing down before I began any tour of Ndola. The site for the Gemstone Processing & Lapidary Training Center looked like an area that had experienced a civil war. The area revoked memories in me of the TV images of Kosovo as the semblance was very apparent. There was a lot of damaged equipment that suggested a lot of prosperity in years before. I was told this place had been the Ndola Copper refinery and had been sold to Binani group of companies at the heart of privatization of the 90’s.

Being the inquisitive self that I am at times, I decided to ask everyone I found nearby what had really happened there. The answer I got was that after Binani bought the refinery, they later moved most of the equipment to areas where they could process at a lower cost ( I suspect this was abroad or even overseas). This was of course a strictly business decision that any profit oriented organization would consider. I was further told that Binani had earlier lain off some of the workers and this created a lot of despondency around the remaining workers and those that had been laid off. This led to a systematic looting of the remaining equipment and thus led to a deterioration of infrastructure that I was now looking at. Whatever, the true account of the actual events that led to that situation was, the result was terrible.

Eventually when I left the ‘Kosovo identical site’ on a taxi, I asked the driver to take me on a little tour of Ndola and he duly obliged. Not too far from there, he showed me where there had been Dunlop, this also had closed down. At the end of the tour, I almost entertained the thought that I could have got a wrong taxi driver. This one had just chosen to take me on a melancholy tour of Ndola. He systematically just showed me the gloomy side of the town. Had he been one of the many workers that had lost employment as a result of new business owners re-positioning and downsizing most companies at the peak of privatization in Zambia? One thing was certain in him though – he loved Ndola.

A year later when I went to Ndola gain, I decided to travel around using the city minibuses. I went to areas that were still on a path of prosperity and modernization, I went to areas that had seen the ugly side of the World Bank and IMF encouraged Structural Adjustment Programme that led to all state run companies being privatized. There was one thing that the people of Ndola all displayed—they were all proud of their town. Despite all the despair and hardships that had befallen them, they still walked with heads high. They were proud of Ndola. As a matter of fact you will never find anybody that hails from Ndola and is not proud to come from there. Make no mistake about it, privatization badly affected the copper-belt the most because of the mines that downsized or closed there by leaving many a worker, mine contractors and suppliers with no source of income. With most mines closing or downsizing, the ripple effect to all the support businesses was too huge.

However, ‘zima Ndola’ is still the most proud you will ever find. They love their city. Even when they trek to all parts of Zambia and abroad for all kinds of reasons they carry Ndola with them. As Zambia celebrated 49 years of independence from British colonial rule, the spirit of Ndola filled my heart. Proud and free, despite all the hardships we may encounter as a country.

 

There have been voices questioning the relevance of celebrating when we ‘are not economically independent’. They have cited the roles played by the World Bank and IMF in the policy direction of Zambia as an example and the ‘hasty’ privatization of Zambia’s many state corporations especially. Yes this may not be the best relationship and we need to change a few things in our relations with such organisations. But the fact doesn't change. It still remains Zambia is a sovereign free country that chants its own destiny even though there could be external influence once in a while. In any case, Zambia is not forced to take any direction.

On the other hand, the voices that demand economic independence may have a point too. Our political leadership needs to realize that the needs of the people have evolved 49 years onward.  The exclusive need for self-rule in no longer at the epicenter of the average Zambian’s needs, the 21^st century Zambian needs more comfortable and humane conditions for everyday life. This is our pursuit for happiness. I am not talking of a heaven on earth society full of milky and honey only. It is the pursuit for a fairly prosperous nation with successful individuals. Of course success and prosperity is subjective, hence the western notion of living above a dollar a day as a basic requirement can be a starting point. This is by no means calling for a materialistic approach. It is about striking a conceptual cleavage between the capitalistic and socialistic approaches. Dr Kenneth Kaunda’s question in his book, ‘a humanist in Africa’, may be of relevance here; “is there any way that my people can have the blessings of technology without being eaten away by materialism and losing the spiritual dimension from their lives?”

However, prosperity at individual level is what Zambia needs today. It’s now incumbent upon leaders to react and create an atmosphere where the Zambian can prosper. As celebrations to towards Zambia’s Golden jubilee commence, it is vital that as a country we begin to face the realities of today openly. During the years that have elapsed since independence, there have occurred some global developments that have made economic prosperity as important as freedom itself. Economic prosperity can now almost be classified in context as a human right. The economic prosperity of Europe, Japan, the middle East and the upcoming super power status for India and China have led to a dispersion of centers of power.

After all is said and done, freedom and prosperity are two different things. But they must be complimentary in the pursuit for happiness. In the same vein, October 24^th is and should be a celebration of our freedom and liberty. It is not necessarily a celebration of prosperity but a celebration of being Zambian. Freedom is a human right, which man has at times denied his fellow man to have. Freedom must then be celebrated by all; rich, poor, employed, unemployed, indebted and not in debt.

As we go towards 50 years of the existence of Zambia as an independent sovereign nation, I sound a clarion call for more patriotism. Let us embrace the spirit of the people from Ndola. With or without troubles we are proud and free. It is only when we are free that we have the opportunity to prosper economically.

The photographer in me

The weather forecast presented by Jacob Nkomoki on TV the previous evening suggested that the minimum temperature would be 24°C and the maximum would be 32°C. As I waded on the sandy soil past Tungi primary school on the way to Lourdes Catholic church, I kept telling myself that the weather was probably way above the forecasted maximum.

It was warm and I was perspiring a little as I kept hurriedly walking to my destination. I had almost resigned myself to the fact that the actual weather was probably now 38°C. As a matter of fact, I was just glad it wasn’t windy for an August afternoon.

Having reached Lourdes as I queued at the entrance, I could hear the music of Shaggy coming from inside the hall. In no time, there were sounds of cheering voices that almost decimated the music. Almost immediately, I knew the opening act had started. Luckily it was my turn at the front of the queue. I paid for my ticket after which a heavily built gentleman date stamped my wrist with blue ink and I set off for the inside of the hall. As I passed sweat drenched bodies at the back of the hall, I increased on the grip given to the cameras that hang on my right shoulder. I cared less for the two rolls of Kodak film, as it was safe in my baggy jeans pockets.

The more I walked towards the front of the hall, the more the music got louder.

"Mr. Boombastic
What you want is some boombastic romantic
Fantastic lover, Shaggy
Mr. Lover Lover, Mmm, Mr. Lover lover, Sha
Mr. Lover lover, Mmm, Mr. Lover lover


She call me Mr. Boombastic
Say me fantastic touch me on the back
She says I'm Mr. Ro
Mantic, say me fantastic
Touch me on the back, she says I'm Mr. Ro"

Eventually I got my way to the front row and immediately positioned myself with my photographic paraphernalia in place; and it was ‘all systems go’. 

By the time the Variety show came to a close at 6pm, I had exhausted all the rolls of film. It was a job well done. My only problem was that I didn’t collect enough deposit payments for all the shots I snapped. Experience had taught me that, it was easier for people to complete payment when they had shown commitment by paying half before they saw the actual photograph.

I had developed the habit of frequenting Variety Shows which were mostly singing and dancing competions, as a photographer and truthfully these shows were lucrative for me. I had been doing photography for a while and it wasn't entirely an easy ride as i had to move from one place to the other as well as convince people to pose for pictures at a fee. But variety shows, provided many clients in one location and they quickly became my cash cow and I loved them for that.

There I was, a 13 year old in his 8^th grade ‘hustling’ with a camera. My brother in law had bought the camera to grow my hobby for photography, but there I was – gone commercial. Not that it was entirely a bad idea, but commercial photography where you hustle for customers came with its own disadvantages. There were people that would refuse to pay for a picture even when they themselves repeatedly asked you to photograph them. Others just became bad debtors all the time.

Nevertheless, it was not an entirely gloomy venture. It came with its own ups and really great moments. At times it gave me exposure to things I’d never ordinarily be exposed to at 13. For instance, I’d never in a million years be allowed to attend a function of that nature while coming from Mr Me’s (my brother in law as he often referred to himself) home. Variety Shows then didn’t get a lot of good publicity. I’d honestly say V-shows as they were fondly called, got a lot of bad press. Teenagers drunk --Teenagers dancing inappropriately --Teenagers trashing halls -- Teenagers sneaking off to the bathroom to smoke or have sex. But the truth is that the shows were never really about all those unsavory elements. This was just teens showing off dancing skills, rapping skills, singing skills and having fun doing karaoke.

Whatever perceptions of the V-show existed back then, I was just happy to be around my peers and also enjoying capturing the event with my camera. The camera was my passport to gain entry to the event. I also knew that not long after that day, we would be deep into the rain season and the Barotse plain would be flooded. That meant the huge post boat would restart the seasonal boat cruises. Yet again, the camera would be the reason I attend the cruises.

The next year I’d improve my skill in photography, and it would prove to be a worthwhile hobby. In fact, some of my most interesting experiences in life have been ‘behind the lense’. I have never been one to be photogenic so being the photographer has always served me well. I learned to not only be able to capture the subject in the shot but also the role played by the background to make a good picture. Basics of photography like exposure, shutter release and photographer’s shadow in a picture became my everyday vocabulary. Then again, this was all before the digital camera.

Fast forward more than 16 years later, I was attending a wedding ceremony when a photographer walks in my direction and …snap… flash… snap… then he turns his digital camera and zooms a frame of my face on his camera screen. Never mind what my first reaction to the photographer, or must I call him ‘camera man’ was. Most importantly is that I politely told him that I didn’t want to be photographed, I had my own digital camera and that at an appropriate moment, I’d take the shots I wanted. 5 minutes later as I walk out of the hall to answer my ringing mobile phone, I see more than 6 pictures with my face sprawled on the floor. There were several other pictures of other people. “What time was this picture taken?” I asked the gentleman who was now asking me to pay for the picture.

This is now an all too familiar scenario each time you attend a function such as wedding, graduation, product launch etc. Personally I find this irritating. The photographer in me still prefers to be behind a camera lense than in front. It is more irritating if I am going to be photographed without my consent and later asked to pay. I’ll not be lying if I said the photographers are the most annoying aspect of most functions. However, I am even more irritated by the audience photographers.

The audience photographer is the invited guest or gate crasher that owns a smart phone, ‘chinese phone’, digital camera, Ipad and any other forms of tablets and gadget with a camera. At one wedding ceremony, as the master of ceremony was asking the new couple to feed each other with a piece of cake and there after share a kiss, it seemed as if a quarter of the guests had stood up to either take pictures or shoot a video from their various gadgets. While so many people anointed themselves as photographers or cameramen, the rest of us sat helplessly not able to see anything but the back of the many gadget slinging guests. When half of guests are converted to photographers, all the remaining half can do is pray to God to grant them a neck as long as a giraffe or an ostrich so they can be able to keep up with the proceedings. While I may have used a camera with a focusing lense and one that uses photographic film, technology available today has enabled every John and Mary take pictures and shoots amateur videos.

Making beautiful photographs and being a great photographer involves nothing more than a bit of thought. While it often helps to have decent equipment, all you really need is to take a moment before each shot to think clearly about what you are attempting to capture or create. At public and private events a bit of photographic etiquette is also needed.

One more irritating aspect of these functions is the role played by the Master of ceremony (MC). Did I miss something? Who passed the golden directive that all MC’s must be comedians? No way. Some of the jokes they say are so dirty and not fit for some particular functions.

I reached the climax of irritation with MC’s late last year when I bought a Bob Nkosha DORIKA DVD. I watched the DVD the entire week and at the weekend when I attended a wedding I realized that one of the supporting acts in the DORIKA DVD was the chosen MC at the wedding. To my irritation, the man just repeated the same jokes on the DORIKA DVD. Is it the only material they have?

That wasn’t annoying enough. Two weeks later when I was at a different wedding, another of the supporting acts in the DORIKA DVD was the MC. Dejavu. The same jokes on the DVD all over. The most annoying part of that evening was not to be the jokes however but the woman that sat on my table. She laughed her lungs out as the MC churned out one joke after another. Each interval after a break from the wedding proceedings when the MC came with more jokes, it almost seemed like she laughed even louder. Then the MC decided to introduce his wife who was seated in the audience… guess who… the woman at my table. Really! Laughing that loud! Had she never heard those jokes before?

The ‘Sexperts’; Laughing away in the studio!

It is Thursday evening and when I check my pockets for my mobile phone, I can’t find the gadget. I do the search once more and still I can’t find it. Just then, the Armcor security officer who had opened the gate for me realizes I've lost something and he beckons in my direction and asks if I had lost anything and I give a response in the affirmative. The tall lanky man offers to help and asks for my phone number, after which he dials it and immediately the phone rings right underneath my seat on the driver’s side of the auto mobile. I appreciated the man’s help with a terse “thank you” and as I drove out I gestured a thumbs up in further appreciation of the man’s efforts.

No sooner had I driven out than my hand reached for the car stereo power button and when the speakers came alive, a group of three males were laughing away in the Hot fm 87.7 radio studio. The digital watch beside my dash board indicated it was exactly 30 minutes past 9pm. My mind immediately switched to home where my wife was alone at home awaiting my return. It was a little late for a newlywed man, yet to clock a year in marriage, away from home at 21:30hrs. I had a meeting the next morning so I had to stay slightly longer at the office to review all the reports and prepare my presentation at the meeting. The situation was not helped by the fact that the departmental manager had recently left, thus the emphasis on accuracy from the new boss was more pronounced now. My options were limited but to put in few extra hours in order to thoroughly prepare for the meeting.

Just then something on the radio caught my attention. The three blokes on the radio had burst into more laughter. There was another gentleman on air who had called the studio and gabbing about … “That man is not a good friend and that pregnancy is not even his. How can he be mounting the friend’s girl?” The man didn't conclude his contribution before the fellas in the studio burst into more laughter and this time it was even louder. It was then when I realized the people in the studio were laughing at the other man’s use of the word ‘mounting’. The caller to this radio station was actually using the term ‘mount’ in reference to sexual intercourse.

The radio show I’m making reference to comes on Hot fm radio every Thursday between 21:00hrs and midnight. The show is anchored by a Jimmy K with guests ‘Pastor’ Steady Divine and Uncle Roy is duly named Real Talk Live. The show discusses various social issues but mainly handing out advice on relationship and marital problems. Callers are also allowed to give advice and give a wide range of comments on the topic at hand. This is all in the hope that the concerned person is listening… and getting helped.

There are a lot such programmes on various radio stations. There was a time when Qfm radio ran the Qtalk show every Sunday morning and Muvi TV runs spit it out programme. Facebook is also full of such pages where people post all their problems in search of solutions to their social and relationship problems and advice is given by other members of such groups. If you ever, listen to any of these programme and you get the solution that solves your problem then count yourself lucky. It is even more difficulty to get any solution if all what the anchors of the show will be doing is laughing like they are at Live the Apollo or Zambia one comedy. These are real people with real problems and all we can do is make fun of their situations.

If these programmes are meant to help the people who bring forth their situations for discussion, then the hosts of these shows bear a lot of responsibility which they should execute maturely. This means letting the callers know that they need to call and provide solutions and not turn such a show to a comedy night show. The same must be said for the other discussants in the studio. If we want to laugh, Mwine mushi or Dorika will ably provide that.

The other thing such shows usually lack is the presence of an expert. Most of the programmes I've been able to listen to actually have medical related problems and it would help to have the presence of a medical practitioner, psychologist or psycho-socio counselor. The other time, the Thursday evening show on Hot fm was discussing an issue of a woman that was dating a man with epilepsy. She had been told by friends that during sex, the man would develop seizures. The panel discussants just made fun of the situation without giving straight answers. They even went as far as putting the entire situation into ‘graphical perspective’ and how such a woman would react.

I really thought that was a childish response to such an important concern from the lady. The Epilepsy foundation website, 
(http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/aboutepilepsy/), states that;
“Epilepsy is the fourth most common neurological disorder in the U.S. after migraine, stroke, and Alzheimer's disease. Its prevalence is greater than autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease combined.”

 

Epilepsy affects 65 million people worldwide. Seizures happen when clusters of nerve cells
in the brain signal abnormally, which may briefly alter a person's consciousness, movement or actions.

The one show with a medical expert is the Manzi therapy show hosted by Herbert Mutabi and features urology specialist doctor, Francis Manda. Doctor Manda responds to several questions regarding a variety of medical conditions. He gives scientific explanations, remedies as well as guidance on where to go in order to seek attention for any such medical problems. However Dr Manda is also not without controversy. He has been accused by some callers of being overly explicit. One lady once called the show and accused him of ‘practicing pornography’ on radio. She was so angry she threatened to report him to the Medical Council of Zambia for inappropriate smutty behavior.

Granted, the programme comes early in the morning when children are awake, but you do not expect a medical doctor worth his salt to start calling body parts by names that they are not. Should he also start referring to sexual intercourse as ‘mounting’? It is just a duty for all parents to give guidance in homes regarding what the little ones listen to. The show is not even exclusive to sexual problems but wide ranging medical problems. The sexual issues only deluge on the show because the large part of Zambians would not go to see a doctor for a sexual problem but would rather hide in the anonymity of a text message to the Manzi therapy show. The doctor is doing a great job. The majority of listeners benefit.

They should be helped, not made fun of.