In 2008 I travelled to the Tanzanian port of Dar-es-Salaam to pick a car which was purchased for the family from a Japanese company .
Since it was my first time to go there, I requested a friend who had been to the Tanzania before to accompany me.
In order to cut down on travelling time for the 4,000Km round trip to Tanzania, we flew from Lusaka to Dar. This takes just over two hours.
When we arrived in Tanzania, I was amazed by the heavy traffic and the crowding in the city of Dar-es-Salaam.
We spent two nights in Dar before the car could be cleared at the port.
Due to the heavy traffic within the city, we hired a local man to drive the car, up to some ten kilometres away from the port.
All vehicles that are imported via the Dar-es-Salaam port are given a specific route to follow up to the Zambian border, which is some 998 kilometres away.
There are four check points on the route at which the car's importation documents are checked.
After the local driver left us, my friend took over the steering wheel. He told me that he was now comfortable as to which roads were to be followed to be on the authorised route.
We travelled some ten kilometres when we crossed some traffic lights.
Soon after the traffic lights, we saw a Tanzanian traffic police patrol car behind us flashing its beacon instructing us to stop.
My friend thought that we were being stopped for going through the traffic lights when they had indicated "Stop". I told him that was not the case. They were showing "green" at the time we crossed the road junction.
When the two policemen came out of their patrol car, one of them, who could speak English ( Swahili is the official language in Tanzania) asked us where we were heading to ?
We told him that we were going to Zambia. He told us that we had gone off-course the authorised route by one kilometre.
We thanked him for pointing out this mistake to us and requested him to direct us to the right road.
To our surprise,he told us that we were under arrest!
He told us that we had to pay twenty thousand Tanzanian shillings (about US $12) for the "offence" or the vehicle would be impounded.
We were to appear before a Magistrates Court the following day. The charge was to be: "Attempted theft of a vehicle destined to go to Zambia and illegally diverted into Tanzania."
We were told that there was a gang of thieves who were involved in this racket.
After a protracted discussion with the English speaking policeman, the other officer who was of a higher rank, spoke to his junior in Swahili, which we could not understand. It looked like he was telling him that we could be let off after showing them our Zambian passports and the relevant documentation.
The junior officer then came into the back seat of the vehicle and closed the door behind him. He said, "Now my friends, say something!".
At first, we could not understand what he meant by "say something". After he repeated the sentence several times, we realised that he meant.
He was given a ten thousand Tanzanian note, which he quickly put in his breast pocket. He was all smiles and said, "Thank you my friends, greet people in Zambia and make sure you do not get lost again!"
Have you thanked someone who has corrected your mistake which could land you in deeper trouble if you went "off course" any further?
Remember next time someone corrects your mistake to "say something " or thank you !
Showing posts with label authorities. Show all posts
Showing posts with label authorities. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Let us be Serious !
Recently I wrote about the uncontrolled consumption of alcohol in the country. One hopes authorities will not allow this type of lawlessness to continue unabated for sometime to come.
Another area where authorities should focus their attention is in the public transport sector.
Recently I boarded a minibus from Kitwe to Kalulushi. Immediately we left the town centre bus stop, we found a roadblock of traffic police near the Central Police Station.
On seeing the roadblock, the driver of the minibus made a detour which made us to take a longer route behind Chisokone market.
The question one asks himself is : Why are these dilapidated minibuses allowed to load passengers at the Bus stops? Why not fish them out and arrest the drivers there?
Roadblocks have been known to be "personal" revenue collection points for some corrupt police officers. They have not in any way stopped unroadworthy vehicles to be on our roads.
The photo shown in the Twitpic link below shows a "door" of a minibus I boarded recently on one of the routes from Kitwe town centre. The locking mechanism is defective. To open the door, one has to pull an electric cable which improvised the actuating mechanism .
Members of the public who board these public transport vehicles don't seem to care either ! Is it not time we took interest in matters that affect our safety and health ?
Dilapidated Public Service Vehicles Twitpic
http://twitpic.com/1vb1l7
Another area where authorities should focus their attention is in the public transport sector.
Recently I boarded a minibus from Kitwe to Kalulushi. Immediately we left the town centre bus stop, we found a roadblock of traffic police near the Central Police Station.
On seeing the roadblock, the driver of the minibus made a detour which made us to take a longer route behind Chisokone market.
The question one asks himself is : Why are these dilapidated minibuses allowed to load passengers at the Bus stops? Why not fish them out and arrest the drivers there?
Roadblocks have been known to be "personal" revenue collection points for some corrupt police officers. They have not in any way stopped unroadworthy vehicles to be on our roads.
The photo shown in the Twitpic link below shows a "door" of a minibus I boarded recently on one of the routes from Kitwe town centre. The locking mechanism is defective. To open the door, one has to pull an electric cable which improvised the actuating mechanism .
Members of the public who board these public transport vehicles don't seem to care either ! Is it not time we took interest in matters that affect our safety and health ?
Dilapidated Public Service Vehicles Twitpic
http://twitpic.com/1vb1l7
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Uncontrolled Alcohol Consumption
A problem has recently emerged in Zambia regarding the uncontrolled consumption of alcohol by the general public.
What is more worrying is that, youths who are not legally allowed to take alcohol, are amongst the consumers. The legal minimum age for consumption of alcohol is 18 years.
In our towns and cities the availability of alcohol for sale is common. Anyone can walk into many bottle stores and bars to buy beer or spirits without questions asked.
The latest problem has been the availability of spirits that are sold in 60ml plastic satchets commonly known as to "Tu jilijili". These are even sold on the streets.
Empty satchets of spirits, thrown after consumption, is a common sight on roadsides and footpaths.
The long term effect on the country, amongst its citizens, are health problems associated with alcohol abuse, such as liver cancer and mental illness.
The short term effect is, an increase in criminal activity amongst the citizens, most of whom are youths.
What are authorities doing to address this problem ?
What is more worrying is that, youths who are not legally allowed to take alcohol, are amongst the consumers. The legal minimum age for consumption of alcohol is 18 years.
In our towns and cities the availability of alcohol for sale is common. Anyone can walk into many bottle stores and bars to buy beer or spirits without questions asked.
The latest problem has been the availability of spirits that are sold in 60ml plastic satchets commonly known as to "Tu jilijili". These are even sold on the streets.
Empty satchets of spirits, thrown after consumption, is a common sight on roadsides and footpaths.
The long term effect on the country, amongst its citizens, are health problems associated with alcohol abuse, such as liver cancer and mental illness.
The short term effect is, an increase in criminal activity amongst the citizens, most of whom are youths.
What are authorities doing to address this problem ?
Thursday, April 1, 2010
The Cost of Poor Service
Service is defined in the dictionary as "work, or doing work for another or for a community, etc".
According to Wordweb online Dictionary and Thesauras ( http://www.wordwebonline.com/ ), one meaning of a Service is "a Company or Agency that performs a public service ; subject to government regulation".
A number of companies and organisations are engaged in providing services and amenities such as education, water, electricity , communication facilities, sewerage removal and medical care to the public .
These companies and organisations are commonly referred to as service providers.
The quality of the service provided by a number of the service providers has been a source of concern .
One area where public has been given a raw deal is in the availability of a reliable electrical power supply. In recent years, there has been power cuts on a regular basis.
Supply of water by water utility companies in some areas has seen disruptions on a regular basis. The quality of the water supplied also leaves much to be desired.
It is common in some areas, to open a "domestic water" tap and see muddy water coming out of it for some time before clear water is seen.
The muddy water is metered and paid for. The users have no choice but to let it flow to the drain or keep it in containers to let it settle before use.
The availability of internet is erratic in some parts of the country. Even those customers subscribing to broadband internet, do not always get the specified speeds that they pay for.
The availability of medicine in a number of medical institutions is erratic. It is only those who can afford to pay private institutions who get a better service.
In the education sector, it is now "fashionable" for parents to pay for private tuition of school going children in order for them to get good marks in their examinations.
What has happened to the standard of teaching in some schools ? The answer is anybody's guess.
Let us consider an example, where a parent pays, say $250 per term, for a child who attends a boarding school. During school holidays, the parent pays $20 per subject for the child to get "extra tuition". The tuition would be from a member of staff from a similar school where the child attends! For four subjects, $80 tuition fee has to be paid. The total cost of education per child comes to $990 per year, instead of $750. This is 32% more than what should be paid.
There is nothing wrong with extra tuition for school children who are slow learners. What is worrying is where this tuition has become the norm rather than the exception. What happens to the children whose parents can not afford extra tuition if their schools can't provide quality tuition ?
Let us consider another example of a water utility company who supplies low quality domestic water. If a family pays $40 per month for it and, say $5 worth of that water is not suitable for use. This comes to $60 worth of water per year thrown into the drain.
These two examples given above, results in a total figure of $300 extra expenditure per annum. This money, which is paid unnecessarily reduces the quality of life of the family. It is also good breeding ground for corruption as people are forced to find other means to make ends meet .
If the total amount of money lost by the public, in terms of loss of business, or having to pay extra is calculated, it will be in millions of dollars for the whole country.
The question is, what has gone wrong for us to reach this state of affairs?
A number of service providers are dogged by various problems ranging from poor management styles , lack of capital input and lack of competition.
Authorities are urged to put measures, to ensure that the public does not subsidize non-performing companies and organisations, at the expense of national developement.
According to Wordweb online Dictionary and Thesauras ( http://www.wordwebonline.com/ ), one meaning of a Service is "a Company or Agency that performs a public service ; subject to government regulation".
A number of companies and organisations are engaged in providing services and amenities such as education, water, electricity , communication facilities, sewerage removal and medical care to the public .
These companies and organisations are commonly referred to as service providers.
The quality of the service provided by a number of the service providers has been a source of concern .
One area where public has been given a raw deal is in the availability of a reliable electrical power supply. In recent years, there has been power cuts on a regular basis.
Supply of water by water utility companies in some areas has seen disruptions on a regular basis. The quality of the water supplied also leaves much to be desired.
It is common in some areas, to open a "domestic water" tap and see muddy water coming out of it for some time before clear water is seen.
The muddy water is metered and paid for. The users have no choice but to let it flow to the drain or keep it in containers to let it settle before use.
The availability of internet is erratic in some parts of the country. Even those customers subscribing to broadband internet, do not always get the specified speeds that they pay for.
The availability of medicine in a number of medical institutions is erratic. It is only those who can afford to pay private institutions who get a better service.
In the education sector, it is now "fashionable" for parents to pay for private tuition of school going children in order for them to get good marks in their examinations.
What has happened to the standard of teaching in some schools ? The answer is anybody's guess.
Let us consider an example, where a parent pays, say $250 per term, for a child who attends a boarding school. During school holidays, the parent pays $20 per subject for the child to get "extra tuition". The tuition would be from a member of staff from a similar school where the child attends! For four subjects, $80 tuition fee has to be paid. The total cost of education per child comes to $990 per year, instead of $750. This is 32% more than what should be paid.
There is nothing wrong with extra tuition for school children who are slow learners. What is worrying is where this tuition has become the norm rather than the exception. What happens to the children whose parents can not afford extra tuition if their schools can't provide quality tuition ?
Let us consider another example of a water utility company who supplies low quality domestic water. If a family pays $40 per month for it and, say $5 worth of that water is not suitable for use. This comes to $60 worth of water per year thrown into the drain.
These two examples given above, results in a total figure of $300 extra expenditure per annum. This money, which is paid unnecessarily reduces the quality of life of the family. It is also good breeding ground for corruption as people are forced to find other means to make ends meet .
If the total amount of money lost by the public, in terms of loss of business, or having to pay extra is calculated, it will be in millions of dollars for the whole country.
The question is, what has gone wrong for us to reach this state of affairs?
A number of service providers are dogged by various problems ranging from poor management styles , lack of capital input and lack of competition.
Authorities are urged to put measures, to ensure that the public does not subsidize non-performing companies and organisations, at the expense of national developement.
Friday, March 19, 2010
The Quest for Survival
On 16 March 2010 council authorities, for Kitwe City situated on the Zambian Copperbelt, demolished some illegal makeshift market stalls at Kabala Shopping Centre which is in Nkana East township.
This is the second time this has happened, the last time was in June 2009.
Word going round is that the plot on which these structures were put up has been bought by a business enterprise who intend to build a modern supermarket.
We are not going to discuss about the pros and cons of this action by the city authorities.
What is in mind is, how can these marketers, who have a desire to make a living be assisted to make this dream come true ?
A walk around in most African cities and towns reveals a horde of street vendors selling all sorts of merchandise varying from fruit and vegetables to electronic gadgets. Some vendors even sell charms which they claim can improve the libido of men , cure all sorts of illnesses and even bring luck to their customers !
Most of these marketers are poor and have no other means of livelihood apart from selling in the markets or on the streets.
A good number of them are coming from families with problems brought about by loss of employment due to the world economic crunch of 2009 or the death of the bread winner.
In an effort to minimise the number of illegal marketers the Governments, through local authorities, have built a number of markets from which they could operate from.
Due to their poverty, a lot of these are not capable to operate from these markets due to rental fees which are beyond their ability to pay them.
There is also some accusation, from some quarters, about the alleged corrupt way in which market stalls in these modern markets are allocated.
Due to increased unemployment, the number of people who have resorted to selling goods has increased to a level that even the markets being built by the local authorities can not accommodate all traders. This is what has brought the accusation of corruption.
When I visited Europe in the mid 80s I was impressed with the way street vending was organised. In most cities the city square was used as a market on designated days.
People selling goods would converge on the city square and sell their goods from mobile stalls such as caravans . At the end of the day, all traders would clear the city square leaving it spotless clean.
Due to the higher levels of unemployment in Africa, this arrangement may not work.
However, when I visited Tanzania in 2008 , I found that one part of the city of Dar-es-Saalam called Karioko was a huge marketing compound. All sorts of traders are found in this area and one can buy anything one is looking for. They are allowed to trade during the day. They have to clear the streets around 20 hrs. The marketers are required to put all the rubbish left from their trading in huge refuge collectors.
These are cleared by council workers during the night. I noticed that the marketers were very disciplined as far as cleanliness was concerned.
Because of the large number of people trading in Karioko market compound there is a security risk. The authorities have put in place measures to ensure the security of the traders and customers.
The issue of street vending is not unique to any country .
Authorities should put in place measures to ensure that it is controlled. This will result in minimum harassment of the marketers who are entitled to make a living.
This is the second time this has happened, the last time was in June 2009.
Word going round is that the plot on which these structures were put up has been bought by a business enterprise who intend to build a modern supermarket.
We are not going to discuss about the pros and cons of this action by the city authorities.
What is in mind is, how can these marketers, who have a desire to make a living be assisted to make this dream come true ?
A walk around in most African cities and towns reveals a horde of street vendors selling all sorts of merchandise varying from fruit and vegetables to electronic gadgets. Some vendors even sell charms which they claim can improve the libido of men , cure all sorts of illnesses and even bring luck to their customers !
Most of these marketers are poor and have no other means of livelihood apart from selling in the markets or on the streets.
A good number of them are coming from families with problems brought about by loss of employment due to the world economic crunch of 2009 or the death of the bread winner.
In an effort to minimise the number of illegal marketers the Governments, through local authorities, have built a number of markets from which they could operate from.
Due to their poverty, a lot of these are not capable to operate from these markets due to rental fees which are beyond their ability to pay them.
There is also some accusation, from some quarters, about the alleged corrupt way in which market stalls in these modern markets are allocated.
Due to increased unemployment, the number of people who have resorted to selling goods has increased to a level that even the markets being built by the local authorities can not accommodate all traders. This is what has brought the accusation of corruption.
When I visited Europe in the mid 80s I was impressed with the way street vending was organised. In most cities the city square was used as a market on designated days.
People selling goods would converge on the city square and sell their goods from mobile stalls such as caravans . At the end of the day, all traders would clear the city square leaving it spotless clean.
Due to the higher levels of unemployment in Africa, this arrangement may not work.
However, when I visited Tanzania in 2008 , I found that one part of the city of Dar-es-Saalam called Karioko was a huge marketing compound. All sorts of traders are found in this area and one can buy anything one is looking for. They are allowed to trade during the day. They have to clear the streets around 20 hrs. The marketers are required to put all the rubbish left from their trading in huge refuge collectors.
These are cleared by council workers during the night. I noticed that the marketers were very disciplined as far as cleanliness was concerned.
Because of the large number of people trading in Karioko market compound there is a security risk. The authorities have put in place measures to ensure the security of the traders and customers.
The issue of street vending is not unique to any country .
Authorities should put in place measures to ensure that it is controlled. This will result in minimum harassment of the marketers who are entitled to make a living.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
