Dar es Salaam-based political and social commentator
One trend that seems to define our political class is over-exaggerated praise for whoever happens to be boss in whatever setting. The use of terms such as sir or madam, or chief or boss is so current that sometimes old classmates tend to forget the first-name familiarity they used to share back in high school.
A lawyer acquaintance of mine once mimicked the ludicrous situation which could arise when an old colleague who was a judge approached our group having a chat: Your lordship, I prostrate myself before you, tremble and humble myself in your great magisterial presence!”
We are not there just as yet, but we are headed in that direction unless we are reined in sometime soon. The Tanzanian political class is just so much given to heaping praise on the boss that I feel it is all hypocritical and leads us to flunkeyism.
Own trumpet
Of course, it did not start yesterday. John Magufuli was partial to praise, and sometimes he was not averse to blowing his own trumpet. Such was the case when he said severally that what he was doing for us could not be replicated by anyone else after him. And the crowds cheered.
Now, with Samia Suluhu at the helm, the saying in Kiswahili is “mama anaupiga mwingi’’, loosely translated as the lady is having a field day, or, she is scoring big.
This is okay, up to a point. Appreciating the good done by a top leader is a mark of civility and good manners. But it can be carried too far. For instance, our people expect the president to do everything for them, even the smallest thing such as repairing a rural road or building pit latrines for a primary school.
I do not know if the president knows that she has been encouraging this dependency syndrome with her financial handouts given from time to time. I sometimes wonder where this money comes from, as I do not hear of a parliamentary allocation for such funds. Who authorises such expenditure?
This said, it looks to me that people have settled into this culture, where the president makes decisions affecting our financial lives and everybody acquiesces. Except recently, when Samia’s government decided to tax mobile money transfers.
Many kilometres
The amounts slashed from each transfer were so unpopular that people would rather travel many kilometres — despite the fare — to deliver a repayment to a creditor rather than do an M-Pesa transfer.
People reduced their reliance on mobile transfers and kept their money in the banks.
But now the government has decided they will tax bank transfers and withdrawals too, which has raised fears that some people may decide to do away with these modern conveniences and keep their money in gunny bags at home.
If the government will have achieved something it intended is difficult to believe.
All in all, it looks like Samia’s government cannot make ends meet, which is surprising because the same government under Magufuli used to boast of spurious liquidity, even buying new airplanes with cash money.
So, what happened? Where did the money go?
People will have to be given explanations for all this double taxation that is going on. The Finance minister recently made matters worse when he said that such taxation had been suggested by the people themselves I wonder whether the minister realises this is an insult?
One thing that will rankle with the taxpayers for a long time is the apparent profligacy of the government and its officials. Our ministers travel first class by air and drive the biggest SUVs we have seen in any East African country.
Anyone who has run a business — and many in government have their side hustles — knows that motor vehicle pools are a huge drain on corporate finances, and many countries, including those with financial resources that far outstrip ours, have resorted to giving loans to their officials to buy private cars that they also use to do government work.
Little cars
Surely, our government officials know this fact and they have been to countries where ministers are driving themselves in neat little cars that they have borrowed. These officials in such cars will never allow their cars to carry charcoal or such other things that state cars are made to carry.
Why is our government refusing to emulate what has been done by other governments in the region? Failure to comprehend such difficult equations? Hardly. It is the usual ethical deficit plaguing our public affairs.
The officials, including ministers who are only too ready to tell their people they have to tighten their belts, are themselves riding in the buffet car of the gravy train.
Infuriating signs that they are not concerned at all include the way their luxury SUVs are driven against traffic regulations and the way they are left to hum in ”silence” all day when the officials are in meetings, to keep the air-conditioners working! Go figure!
Jenerali Ulimwengu is now on YouTube via jeneralionline tv. E-mail: [email protected]
