Butiama Bed & Breakfast

Butiama Bed & Breakfast

Saturday 29 October 2011

My version of the year 2010 in review - November


November 1, 2010
In the early hours of the first day of the month, at 06:24 AM, CHADEMA's candidate in the Musoma Urban parliamentary, Vincent Nyerere, race took to

the podium and and thanked his supporters after the returning officer announced he had won the parliamentary race and had become the new MP for Musoma Urban.

Less than an hour later a mob of his supporters thronged his residence on
 

Gandhi Street in Musoma to celebrate his win.

Thursday 27 October 2011

Mt. Kilimanjaro weather


There is a combination of light showers and fog at Butiama today, reminiscent of the weather on Mt. Kilimanjaro.

My version of the year 2010 in review: October


October 10, 2010
I attended Uganda's independence anniversary celebrations and had the
 

opportunity to meet, from left to right, Uganda's Inspector-General of Police, Maj.Gen. Kale Kayihura, and fellow invitees to the commemorations, Francois Lumumba, son of the late Patrice Lumumba, Samwel Muganda, retired officer with the United Nations, and Mabior de Garang, son of the late John Garang.

October 11, 2010
 

I was in Mwanza the next day where Prof. Ibrahim Lipumba, presidential candidate for the Civic United Front (CUF) held a campaign meeting and told his
 
 

supporters what was wrong with the ruling party, Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM), appealing to his supporters to vote for CUF.

October 13, 2010
Two days later in Musoma, a highly charged Zitto Kabwe of the Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo(CHADEMA) and its parliamentary candidate for
 

(CHADEMA) and its candidate for Kigoma North constituency addressed a meeting with CHADEMA's candidate for the Musoma Urban constituency, Vincent Nyerere.

October 16, 2010
I attended a funeral in Kinesi, a village located on the shores of Lake Victoria, east of the regional centre, Musoma. I noticed some of the mourners seated on a hilltop overlooking the graveside. When the burial was delayed because the
 

coffin could not fit the length of the grave, and as the grave was widened, I rushed to the hilltop to take this photograph. The bees – or some unknown entity – did not like it.

As I descended I was chased downhill by a swarm of bees and had to seek refuge inside a parked car.

October 21, 2010
Mama Maria Nyerere hosted another guest. This time it was Dr. Gharib Bilal, the running mate of Chama cha Mapinduzi's presidential candidate, Jakaya

Mrisho Kikwete. In the photo, from left to right, Mama Maria Nyerere, Dr. Bilal, and Member of Parliament for Musoma Urban constituance, Nimrod Mkono.
 

After Dr. Bilal's departure, Mama Maria talked to some of Butiama's residents who had turned up for the visit. From left to right, Councilor Peter Wanzagi, Butiama village's chairman Zacharia Wambura, Chief Japhet Wanzagi, and Mwalimu Jack Nyamwaga.

October 23, 2010
I traveled to Muleba District in Kagera region in pursuit of campaign news and prior to a meeting that was addressed by the candidate for the Civic United
 
 

 Front (CUF), Hassan Millanga a traditional dance group entertained
 

Millanga's potential voters.

October 25, 2010
 

Two days later, still in Kagera region, I traveled to Misenyi District where I received a message on my mobile phone” “MTN welcomes you to Uganda...” I was about to reach for my passport when my host pointed to some hills in the distant horizon and told me: “Those hills are in Uganda.”

These mobile operators! Transgressing on each other's territory!

October 26, 2010
 

For yet another occasion I completed another voyage on MV Victoria between Bukoba and Mwanza on M.V. Victoria a vessel that has been plying the waters of Lake Victoria for more than a century. 

October 29, 2010
On the first of the two remaining days of the election campaigns in Tanzania's general elections, I went to Musoma to find out what the main contenders for the Musoma Urban race were saying to potential voters in their last campaign
 

meetings.

The CCM candidate for Musoma Urban constituency, Vedasto Mathayo Manyinyi, held his meeting on Uhuru Street, above...
 
while CHADEMA's candidate, Vincent Nyerere, held his meeting near Musoma harbour.

October 30, 2010
 

A day before the general elections, CCM's Nimrod Mkono, the sole candidate who sailed through unopposed in the Musoma Rural constituency, smiled down at passersby from one of his campaign posters at the junction of the Mwanza-Musoma road, next to his party's presidential candidate, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, right.
 

In Musoma, as CCM's supporters rode on a hired truck to their final campaign meeting of the 2010 general elections, CHADEMA's supporters walked to theirs.

October 31, 2010
 

Elections officer, Flora Kamanzi, applies indelible ink on Dr. Bwire of Butiama hospital, moments after he cast his vote at the Butiama Hospital voting centre.

Wednesday 26 October 2011

The Mwalimu Nyerere/Mt. Kilimanjaro Charity Climb 2011 (post 2 of 15)

Thursday 15 September 2011
I am in “standing mode”, busy to the core, hovering over my office desk rather than sitting down as most people do. And as always, I am also in apprehension that I have several important tasks I should complete before my departure for the annual Kilimanjaro climb, but there appears to be little time to complete these tasks.

As I wondered how I would travel to Moshi this time around I recalled that someone I know mentioned he was driving to Arusha tomorrow. I called him to find out whether I could hitch a ride and he reassured me I could. 

Later, he came up with what I suspected was a monumental work of fiction about having to suddenly change plans and drive through the Serengeti during the night to rescue another colleague who had been involved in a road accident.

Later in Musoma I found out that the Extra Musica Band was playing tonight and I suspected my ride to Arusha had been compromised by their presence.

Having being assured of a possible ride through the Serengeti tomorrow I left in the evening and spent the night at Bunda.

Next: Another disappointment

Posts related to this one:
http://madarakanyerere.blogspot.com/2011/10/mwalimu-nyereremt-kilimanjaro-charity.html
http://madarakanyerere.blogspot.com/2011/12/mwalimu-nyereremt-kilimanjaro-charity.html

Tuesday 25 October 2011

My version of the year 2010 in review - September

September 4, 2010
During a visit to Butiama, the Nigerian High Commissioner to Tanzania, H.E. 


Dr. Ishaya Majanbu and his wife, Naomi Majanbu, visited the mausoleum of Mwalimu Julius Kambarege Nyerere (1922 - 1999). In the photo when the visitors posed in front of the mausoleum with Mama Maria Nyerere, centre, the widow of the late Mwalimu Nyerere, I took a photograph and caught my own reflection on the right window pane.

September 6, 2010
 

Mama Maria Nyerere, left, received more guests as Prof. Sospeter Muhongo from the University of Dar es Salaam and Jumanne Magiri, General Secretary of Kanisa la Mennonite Tanzania, visited. During the visit, Prof. Muhongo briefed Mama Maria on plans to build a university in Mara region in honour o the late Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere.

September 9, 2010


When I drove to Musoma I noticed that Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) had put up a campaign billboard featuring Mama Maria and CCM's presidential candidate and incumbent president, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete.

September 14, 2010
As I drove to yet take photos at yet another campaign meeting in Musoma I
 

noticed an approaching VIP motorcade on my rear view mirror. I gave way and about 14 cars whizzed past. Each time a VIP visits the region all senior government officials in the regional administration abandon their offices to accompany the VIP, adding to the cost of the visit and a suspension of their duties to members of the public.

In Musoma CHADEMA's presidential candidate, Dr. Wilbrod Slaa, held a


campaign meeting while the pilot of his leased helicopter took a nap under the helicopter's shade.
 

The meeting drew a large crowd of CHADEMA's supporters and the curious.

September 16, 2010
 

I doctored my own photograph and placed it on my Kiswahili language blog.

September 18, 2010

 

Councilor for Makongoro, Ward Peter Wanzagi (right) had a big laugh about something as he and others in the photo, including, from left to right, Jack Nyamwaga, Elias Nyang'ombe, Charles Ndagire, Zacharia Wambura, and Makongoro Nyerere awaited the arrival of the Uhuru Torch at the Mwitongo enclave of Butiama village.
 

The arrival of the Uhuru Torch is marked by speeches in which the leader of the Uhuru Torch provides a history of the Uhuru Torch and delivers the annual campaign message carried for this event which covers the entire country.
Later in the evening, Manyama Mgassa, below right, gave a speech at the


wedding of her daughter Hanna Mgassa, center, who was married to Walter Mweyo.

September 21, 2010
 

I was minding my own business when I walked past these two children and one of them said: “Will you take a photo of us?” I said I would, and did just that.


It was turning into "taking kids' photos day" today. Further down the road, I asked these children whether I could take their photograph. They said I could and I did just that.

September 25, 2010
 

Chama cha Mapinduzi's (CCM) campaign juggernaut, Tanzania One Theatre (TOT), rolled into Musoma ahead of a campaign meeting of its presidential candidate and Tanzanian incumbent president, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete.
 

Before the meeting TOT's artistes entertained the gathering crowd.
 

CCM' supporters painted themselves green, one of their party's colour.
 

At the meeting I bumped into Muhiddin Issa Michuzi, left, who was part of the official press entourage covering President Jakaya's Kikwete campaign visit to Musoma.

Sunday 23 October 2011

My version of the year 2010 in review - August

August 5, 2010


As the sun set, I took a photo facing the west and a bush fire revealed itself against the fading
sunlight on Mtuzu Hill, famously known as Vodacom hill. Fires are sometimes intentionally lit to clear farmland, but the fires become uncontrollable and can burn for days.

August 6, 2010
A guest from the United States asked me to take him to a traditional healer before his departure from Butiama. The traditional healer prepared her tools of
 

trade and changed into special attire before sitting down to hear what ailments my guest was suffering from.

She doubles both as a traditional healer and a soothsayer, and is supposedly able to discern from patterns of finger millet spread out on a wicker container the ills and misfortunes that could be preventing her clients from enjoying good health and happiness.

The healer spoke in the local dialect, Zanaki, to the person who took us to her house; the person translated to me in Kiswahili, and I translated to the American guest in English. While I feared the message could have been lost in the translation, the guest later reported that the healer was correct in her diagnosis.

August 26, 2010
I came across the voting card of Tanzania's founding president, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage
 

Nyerere dated 24th July 1985, 3 months before he voluntarily stepped down after 23 years in office.

He most likely casted a "yes" vote for Chama cha Mapinduzi's candidate Ali Hassan Mwinyi in that year's elections on 27th October 1985 in which President Mwinyi, the sole candidate in one of the last elections in which CCM was the only political party contesting, won with a 95.68 percent margin. Voter turnout for the presidential elections was 75 percent.

August 28, 2010
Someone brought his domestic chores to "the office". I was locking my car about to walk to a campaign meeting of Chama cha Maendeleo na Demokrasia
 

(CHADEMA) when this young woman called out: “Uncle!” She is one of my nieces, daughter of one of hundreds of my cousins.

At CHADEMA's meeting, held by its candidate for Musoma Urban constituency and one of my cousins, Vincent Nyerere, all the political parties, except Chama
 


cha Mapinduzi, were provided space to display their colours.

Wednesday 12 October 2011

Zanaki culture: wives and mistresses

In Zanaki Culture, polygamous marriages was the norm, rather than the exception. My grandfather, Chief Nyerere Burito (circa 1860 – 1942) had 22 wives. On average. traditional leaders had more wives than other members of the community.
Chief Nyerere Burito, centre, with one of his wives, left. Right is one of Chief Nyerere's guards.
What was common to both the rulers and the ruled was the existence of a semi-official system of mistresses whose presence was known even to the wives. The practice exists among some elders to the present. Chief Nyerere had 4 of these mistresses.

I have attempted to estimate the number of uncles, aunts, and cousins from my grandfather's 22 wives and I have come up with a figure above 6,500.

Tradition is not always easy to follow. Chief Nyerere's predecessor, Chief Edward Wanzagi, had only 11 wives. Chief Wanzagi's son and current chief, Japhet Wanzagi, has only one wife.

You may also like:
http://madarakanyerere.blogspot.com/2013/02/nuances-of-zanaki-dialect.html
http://madarakanyerere.blogspot.com/2012/07/inheritance-among-zanaki.html
http://madarakanyerere.blogspot.com/2009/12/letter-from-butiama-married-life-in.html

Monday 10 October 2011

The Mwalimu Nyerere/Mt. Kilimanjaro Charity Climb 2011 (post 1 of 15)

Wednesday 14 September 2011
I realized today there's little time for anything else other than prepare to travel to Moshi for the Mwalimu Nyerere/Mt. Kilimanjaro Charity climb 2011. So I cleared my papers and sorted out what I felt were priority tasks before my departure.

In the afternoon, and under an approaching rain cloud, I rode my mountain bike for more pre-Kilimanjaro exercising but the ride was short-lived. Barely five minutes into the ride, after I reached the furniture shop, I realized I would ride into a storm if I rode my preferred route. Instead, I chose a new route towards the Makore Primary School.

Next: Departure for Bunda

Posts related to this one:
http://madarakanyerere.blogspot.com/2011/10/mwalimu-nyereremt-kilimanjaro-charity_26.html