The piece was a summation of what he feels is the problem with Tanzania today based on a recent trip through the country. This articulate account of what many people in Tanzania certainly believe to be true-to an extent- has been circulated amongst policy and social commentators and the social media cliques of the country with fervent fanfare and admiration for its ability to express a facet of the Tanzanian condition. For all its richness and flourishes, which should be commended, I am compelled to provide a rebuttal-come-compliment to the piece, which in my opinion significantly lacks in multiple areas.
There is a glossing over of historical context to the point of obtuse condescension as well as a misleading representation of everyday realities and governance processes demonstrated through confounding contradictions that periodically appear in the prose. This is not intended to be an admonition but rather a critical examination (albeit a meek one) of what I feel to be a skewed perspective.
Perhaps I am too dense to grasp an intention of irony, however, the sub-title to the piece “The country seems well, but corruption is rampant” is blatantly contradictory and a mere superfluous device. Let me explain. Vassanji speaks about the way “the nation has charged forward” “print media is bold and vociferous” and how “paved roads connect every part of the country” while further along expressing his amusement at English language papers “trotting out business statistics”, that there is “construction…with callous disregard for zoning, safety or heritage” and “the gulf between the rich and poor [is] so vast it’s embarrassing”. Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t all these issues integrally related. The “charge forward” as the product of the economic liberalization he speaks of is the same policy shift that birthed the many woes we face; yet it is more efficient “governance” and more “accountability” that will solve them. This sounds like the same “idiomatic trot” that he despises- reminiscent of the ‘west knows best’ rhetoric of Structural Adjustment that got us here in the first place.
I am not saying that corruption and poor governance are not problems that are essential to address, far from it, what I am alluding to is that you cannot take the good without the bad. The superficial enamel of progress is simply the cosmetic appendage of a broken system. We cannot tout yoghurt factories “whose product now reaches all over the country” and entrepreneurs who “own a hotel in the capital” as success stories in a narrative that clearly highlights the duplicity and morally malleable nature of business as usual in Tanzania. I am not pointing fingers but I am also surely not going to pat anyone on the back.
Read More here
No comments:
Post a Comment