It seems to me that the world over, and more so in our developing nations, that our very existence is built on risk. Women’s ability to bring life into the world is full of risks; the ability of the child to survive past her childhood is surrounded by risks; the ability of the child to obtaining basic schooling is a momentous risk. And the risk of a young girl falling into the poverty trap is greater than her succeeding in life - writes Salma Maoulidi.
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Twice in one week I refused to be served by two men, both vendors, who would not heed my request that they wash their hands before serving me. Consequently, I forwent satiating an appetite for delicious oranges in one instance and ‘muhogo wa kuchoma’ in the other. And this is not the first time I have had to forgo appeasing my fetish for local yummies. One night I went to bed hungry after one man decided to serve me my portion of Swahili delicacies using his bare hands. I asked him to use a serving spoon and skewers. He responded by rudely asking me to leave his stall.

It is surprising that these men react extremely negatively (and even violently) to requests of consideration for a client’s welfare, in this case mine. They would not even have a discussion about why they could not or would not heed to my requests. I did not need to explain myself but just so that I left nothing to chance I clarified that we all know what men do when they need to relieve themselves. How could I be sure that cleaned up after, or if that he had not scratched himself somewhere wicked?

Momentarily the resistance I witnessed offered a vivid image of what women who have to negotiate with men over a condom must face. While a woman is keen to protect her self during intercourse her male partner has no sense of obligation towards her well-being. At all times his needs seem to eclipse all else. Indeed, if being asked to wash one’s hand to serve another causes such resistance and uproar what must putting on a condom entail?

For almost a week after the event I tried to figure why it was hard for the men to understand that what they were offering me with their bare hands would be consumed by me and enter my system. I, therefore, had no choice but to be prudent as to where what I consume originates and how it is served. It is enough that it is sitting by the side of the road. I don’t need the extra risk of exposure from a known carrier of bacteria. Did they honestly believe that I would trust their hands over my judgment? That I would defer to their ego over my wellbeing? Better safe than sorry I urged myself on as I turned my back to the oranges, muhogo and other choice bites.

I will not be surprised if someone attempts to explain such behaviour from a cultural perspective. I don’t think there is anything indigenous about risking another’s life but what I do buy into is the link between risk and a way of being. Indeed, it seems to me that the world over, and more so in our developing nations, that our very existence is built on risk. Women’s ability to bring life into the world is full of risks; the ability of the child to survive past her childhood is surrounded by risks; the ability of the child to obtaining basic schooling is a momentous risk. Rather she risks dropping out after a few years of schooling to work or to get married. The risk of a young girl falling into the poverty trap is greater than her succeeding in life.

WHY IS A DISCUSSION ON RISK RELEVANT?

Someone mentioned to me recently with regards the power outage in Zanzibar that if this was in another place (and perhaps in another era) the government would be sued for non performance, for the inconvenience caused and for the sheer negligence that leads to subjecting a whole population to power blackout, and for failing to have an emergency plan.

Elsewhere heads would have rolled: a few hours of power blackouts is serious enough let alone a whole month! But this is Tanzania so the President and his Ministers explain away the situation asking citizens to remain calm and preserve as they as they do other mess-ups by the leadership.

One would think that one scandal is enough to warrant a government to clean up its act lest it resigns. Not so in Tanzania. In the same week a few schools closed down because of food shortages. Apparently suppliers stopped sending food supplies to schools due to back payments in the millions of shillings. The ministry concerned through the Deputy Minister Mwantum Mahiza issued a weak statement asking suppliers to bear up as the Ministry has just completed an assessment of the contracts before sending them to Treasury for action.

Imagine our future is risked by poorly conceived and executed contracts! This fiasco happens at a time when students are gearing for their final ‘A’ level examinations. So the suppliers are promised action but what about the students, who will make up for their lost study time? How is it that the Ministry can have overlooked paying suppliers for months while they know children are in schools? No wonder national secondary education results have been dropping…

I worry about the placid response to all this goofing by the taxpayer. Indeed our sense of outrage over recent scandals involving grant theft in government is short lived. Imagine our national pride is compromised in order to appease political egos and we heed calls to stay calm. Our sense of justice is compromised so as not to risk offending the powerful and their friends or those who may be harbouring them. We watch as materialism and expediency puts at risk our sense of what is ethical - and morally just and applaud this as development.

Annually Tanzania remembers the victims aboard MV Bukoba on Lake Victoria who died after the Captain risked taking on extra baggage (perhaps to compensate for the transport shortage) resulting in a massive loss of life. Just recently in Lake Tanganyika another accident has claimed the lives of scores of passengers from all parts of the Greater Lakes. According to official reports overloading is to blame. Was this not a risk?

More disconcerting in all this is the power outage - a matter of national security not addressed as such. Indeed it is not only a grave matter with respect to the risk of an invasion or sabotage but with respect to the threat to life and livelihoods it has posed and continues to pose to local communities. How many people have died as a result? What is the sheer cost of running on generators for extended periods when oil prices are soaring? Who, I wonder, will meet these unexpected costs?

As the world braces itself for food shortages and soaring food prices how much food has wasted away in freezers? How much income has been lost when industries and business fail to operate or to operate maximally? Will the revenue authorities bear this in mind as they go after our taxes? Surely citizens cannot be expected to pay taxes but remain silent and docile when authorities mess up.

More shocking to our nationalist sensitivities is the reason behind the longetivity of the outage. Apparently the only one who can fix the problem is an expert from Norway. After four decades of national independence, why is an area of national sensitivity like power still in the hands of foreign experts? And this is by a government that claims the political right to protect the isles against a take over from some gulf state!

Incredulous as it seems, it is becoming increasingly clear that our belief that we have entrusted the governance of this country to people who know what they are doing is wrong. It is abundantly clear that highly paid professionals and people who claim to have high qualifications posing as politicians and bureaucrats don’t have a clue about what they are doing. Conversely those who do have a clue may not care enough to make a difference. The result is pure misery for the common taxpayer.

It is no wonder that a friend of mine signs off all her messages with quote that reads “experts made the titanic but an amateur made the ark.” The Americans would say “go figure!” but I say we need to figure a way out of this leadership mess.

*Salma Maoulidi is an activist and the Executive Director of the Sahiba Sisters Foundation in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

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