The Beggar's Mentality: Time to Change? (2)

Wandugu, here is what his excellency Dr. Hingi once wrote regarding poverty. I ain't changing a thing, except add a few experiences to reiterate his points:

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Wazee wenzangu hamjambo???
Vijana na watoto Marhabaaa!!!

Hapa kuna burudani ya mtu na akili yake, kila mmoja kivyake. Umasikini ni hali inayozaliwa ndani ya akili zetu inayo fanya kazi usiku na mchana kututenganisha na rasilimali zote.Ndiyo maana watu wanaofikiri katika upeo wa juu kabisa na kutumia uwezo wote waliopewa na Mungu, wanauona umasikini katika umbo la Roho angamizi. Katika hatua ya mwisho kabisa umasikini unajitokeza katika hali ambayo kila mtu anaitambua, mtu anakuwa mhitaji wa kila kitu hofu na mashaka vinatawala.

Kwa sababu umasikini ni hali inayozaliwa katikati ya mawazo yetu si rahisi kutambua kwamba mtaji ulio nao unakuangamiza. Hata ukitambua kwamba mambo unayofanya yanakuangamiza, "peer pressure", wapambe,marafiki wanafiki, inakufanya urekebishe hali yako kwa kuanzisha uharibifu mpya. Kwa mfano najua hali yangu ya kifedha ni mbaya na vile vile sipendi watu wajue hasa (mademu/njemba). Kurekebisha nakufa kisabuni. Naenda kukopa kwa dhamana ya kapay check kangu.Naendeleza ratiba yangu baada ya muda wa wiki moja wanaanza kunidai kutatua sipokei simu.Ungejua kwamba hupendwi kwa sababu ya pochi tu usingefanya yote hayo nini kinakutuma, Roho ya umasikini.

Njia ya awali ya kuanza kupambana na hii nguvu ya umasikini ni kurejea sauti ya wazazi/mzazi wako tangu ulipo pata akili ya kutambua kwamba wewe ni mtu hadi siku ulipo agana nao na kupanda pipa kuja majuu,tulia sikiliza zi/inavyokukanya. Rejea imani yako. Watanzania wegi tuna imani juu ya Mungu tunatofautiana namna ya kuabudu tu, kama wewe si mmoja wetu basi uko kwenye kundi la wachache. Jiulize wewe ni nani na unataka nini hapa duniani. Visualize una miaka 65 unayaona maisha yako? hali yako ikoje?

Ni rahisi sana kupambana na mambo amabayo chanzo chake ni nje ya mawazo yako kuliko mambo ambayo asili yake ni mawazo yako. Si rahisi kupambana na Hasira, Tamaa mbaya, Choyo,Wizi,Uvivu, Uasherati na Uzinzi. Hivi vyote chimbuko lake ni akili na fikra zetu. Lakini, ni rahisi kupambana na Homa iliyosababishwa na plasmodium kwa sababu haina asili ya mawazo yetu.

Wengi tunafikiri umasikini tumekutana nao tunapo pita huko majiani, la hasha. Tumeujenga taratibu vichwani mwetu. Kimaoni na kimtizamo mtu anaweza kusema huyu mjinga kachanganyikiwa. Ni kweli kwa kipimo cha huyu msemaji nimechanganyikiwa maana kipimo chake cha umasikini ni kiwango cha fedha aliyo nayo, au asiyokuwa nayo. Mambo mengine hayaingii na wala hayana uhusiano.

Ndugu yangu hayo mambo mengine unayoyapuuzia ndiyo asili ya vurumai zote, hebu kaa na kujiuliza tena.
Ahsanteni kwa kuniazima fikra zenu.

Ndela-Nzali Hingi
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I couldn't have agreed more with Dr. Nzali. I once said that our leaders are educated, but for some reason they act like deer stuck in a flood of light! I believe some of their acts are due to poverty mentality. They can't see the resources we have. As such, they have failed to devise better ways to utilize those resources to lift the country economically. That's why the "chukua chako mapema" mentality is so prevalent in the country. Mentally, most Bongolande leaders have not visualized a prosperous Tanzania. All they see is scarcity.

Let me help you see how the scarcity mentality operates. For some of you who went to government boarding schools (and even some private schools also had the same experiences), you can relate to the way poverty or scarcity mentality works. Imagine when the gudulia la maharagwe was placed down on the table, was there any utaratibu around? Absolutely not! Due to the scarcity mentality, EVERYBODY wanted to get there first. As a result, some of the maharagwe actually got spilled on the floor.

Fellas acted like maharagwe wasn't enough. Contrary to their thinking, the ration provided was weighed and measured to ensure everybody got an adequate portion. The problem, however, was that they never stopped to think. They inherited the same "fight-for-food" mentality from the prior generations. So they went with the same instincts everyday to the dinning room. You could be laughing now, but that's the way it used to be. Some of the fellas who used to fight for maharagwe are now ministers and such. Instead of the "fight-for-food" bandwagon, these fellas are now on a "fight-for-mali ya taifa" mentality. They have never outgrown their dinning hall experiences.

I once said that poverty in Tanzania is not real, it is artificially existing because our leaders have failed to fully utilize their brains. It is also obvious that they don't have a positive mental outlook on Tanzania's economic progress. Until that happens, tuendelee tu kutafuta masaa kwenye hizi inji za watu.

Dr. Nzali, thank you for a wonderful reflection.