re: ngwazi legacy

micahj3k · Member

re: ngwazi legacy

game · Guru

micah.

i respect your courage to forgive and move on,i totally disagree with you on that front,in the face of brainwashed malawians he was a hero,the father and founder but to me and some people who were victimised by this man, life will never be the same and forgiveness is a difficult word to say.kamuzu was like a loving father who provided for his kids but secretly molesting them.

people have mixed reactions towards his regime and everyone is entitled to his or her opinions,we do have freedom to exercise our free minds,say what we want to say without fear of contradiction and i for one stand by the fact that he was an evil,monstrous dictator who fed his political rivals to crocodiles in the shire and deserved no mousoleum.his resting place should have been in sewages after death by firing squads.our heroes who deserve a little respect are the ones that died fighting his government.the yatutas,dunduzus.gadama,may their souls rest in peace.

this man robbed families of their fathers,people lost their loved ones and you are free to insult these people by treasuring his life.you can put placards up showing your slogans but what i can guarantee you is that it will only bring bitterness and sombre memories,in malawi now there is anarchy and lawlessness,corruption and political infrustructure,inflation.crime has escalated and violence multiplies on a daily basis,all this is because kamuzu built his political foundation deep in the sand and covered it with a veil.building the mousoleum is nothing but a political strategy by the Bingu government to win support in the central region you surely should know that.

its an uphill battle for malawians to rebuild their country,but that can only happen without those that served under kamuzu in the current government.

abre les ojos · Guru

You know Game,

Lots of times we disagree on topics but never have I been in total agreement with you like now.

It is really easy to talk about forgiveness and stuff. It sounds profound and our neo-religious morality claim that it is somewhat divine. Well, I'm not longing for "divinity". Besides can someone tell me what good forgiveness would be in this case. I mean, Kamuzu is dead.

What we have to do is build a memorial for his victims. Not him! We need to exorcise the country of Kamuzuism. Look at Malawi for crissakes! The spirit of Kamuzu still lives in Malawi and it is seriously counter-productive. The more you travel abroad, the more you learn about how behind the country is, no thanks to Kamuzu.

The only reason that the people who were responsible for all those death squads are not being hounded and jailed is because it would probably cost a lot of money to prosecute them.

Nali · Member

Micah

You took the words out of my mouth. Well written and not selfish. One should not be selfish and think that because they suffered so did everyone. They forget that in that time there were millions of malawians who lived a better life as today. People who had food on their tables, hospitals were better equiped. Public education was better than today. That was all because of proper governance.

Its easier for me and you to say that democracy is better than being run by dictators because we have food on our tables, we can afford private education, we can afford private hospitals. What about those people who dont have money? What about those who have nothing? What is the use of having freedom of expression, freedom of dressing etc if you go hungry, cant educate your kids, public hospitals have no medicine, no security.

The Idea of building the mousoleum is good but the timing is not good. This is all propaganda. This totally shows that this government their priorities are not to improve and better malawians lives but to better themselves. The mousoleum should have been postponed. I know that Kamuzu committed a lot of atrocities against those who tried to oppose him but he did a lot of good things for the people of Malawi. He cared for the well being of all malawians especially the poor.

What have these other politicians done for Malawi? When I looked at the Photos here on this site of Blantyre, I could see that in the past 15yrs there has been no development what so ever. The same old buildings. If the commercial capital is like this then what more with the villages.

We seem to have a lot of people here who have that me syndrome, its all about them others dont matter. Who only see things according to what happened to them they forget that Malawi is made up of more or less 16 million people.

I am sorry that you lost some of your relatives under Kamuzu's regime. You have to be applauded for forgiving, for out of this you are no longer bitter, you are no longer a victim of that old regime. If there were many people who thought the way you do, just like Mr Mandela this world would be a better place.

-- Edited by Nali at 00:42, 2005-12-07

guevara · Senior Member

well served nali,

abre,you are right to say that kamuzu's spirit lives on.he instilled discipline to men and women of malawi,encouraged them to work hard in the fields and produce enough to feed themselves and sell.if you recall,i said he was a genious,his interview is studied in a media course at a leading a uk university.by the way,work is underway for a tv documentary(series) by a reknown african film maker.i cant wait for the primiere.

micahj3k · Member

game wrote:

but to me and some people who were victimised by this man, life will never be the same and forgiveness is a difficult word to say.

micahj3k

Game i appreciate your honest constructive and mature reply and there is no way i would ever try to impose my beliefs on anyone. But if you knew who my grandfather is(im not gonna use the name of my gogo as an excuse) you would see why i should really hate Banda and what he did to our family. its just i am not going to let Banda's ways hold me back and have bitterness inside. But as you said everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

Nali wrote:

I am sorry that you lost some of your relatives under Kamuzu's regime. You have to be applauded for forgiving, for out of this you are no longer bitter, you are no longer a victim of that old regime. If there were many people who thought the way you do, just like Mr Mandela this world would be a better place. -- Edited by Nali at 00:42, 2005-12-07

nali thank you for the encouragement its just i strongly believe that judgement should be left to God and bitterness is not a very good thing to hold on to. hate makes you an angry person. i could go on and on. but i'll just leave at that.

remember constructive criticism please and please read the comment before heating up and cussing me out because you dint read what was written instead you read what you wanted.

guevara · Senior Member

game,just to collect you,kamuzu built his politacal foundation from the 'four corner stones'.UNITY,LOYALTY,OBIDIENCE and DISCIPLINE.we need 'these' for a better malawi.

abre les ojos · Guru

Its funny how dictatorships always come out with these ridiculous slogans "loyalty" to who I ask? Obviously to Kamuzu himself. "Obedience"? Likewise! Unity and Discipline seem almost as forethoughts to make it all seem profoudly affecting. Well, we know what happened to those who were not LOYAL or OBEDIENT. Wel, they were killed or imprisoned that what.

Who the hell are you guevara to say what we need in Malawi? No country or human being on earth can live like that without being coerced by force or fear. Or maybe financial incentives.

Malawians - what a load of docile, uneducated, ignorant, backward lot. And stubborn to that fact that they are one of the poorest people in the world. What good is obedience and loyalty and discipline on an empty stomach? Who is paying for it now? When all I hear everyday is give money to starving malawians!!! And you can still come here and say all this nonsense about building million Kwacha memorials to Kamuzu. I feel sick to my stomach!!!

The education system is crumbling, people are hungry. HUNGRY. Can you imagine not having ANYTHING to eat? Maybe you can't because you probably live in the US and have internet access and a pocket full of credit cards.

game · Guru

guevara wrote:

game,just to collect you,kamuzu built his politacal foundation from the 'four corner stones'.UNITY,LOYALTY,OBIDIENCE and DISCIPLINE.we need 'these' for a better malawi.

Guevara.These four corner stones do not mend a broken heart,loyalty works in a two way strait,but in this case he wanted you and all the people of malawi to be loyal to him,to unite in making him a god,to be obedient and discipline in his presence,he developed farmers yes,but it all sprouted side by side with torture and extortion.remember the evils carried out by the youth league and the myp.do not mention the name of ngwazi in vain,even in the privacy of your own home.malawians were totally robbed of their birthright.

Ngwazi is no different to Adolf hitler,only that he committed his crimes on a small scale,women spent time dancing for him when they had families to look after,instead of bonding with their children they bonded with kamuzu.this man was worse than the colonialists and if chilembwe was alive during his time,he was definately going to depose him.so when you open your mouths to say viva kamuzu put it in your conscious that other families are still picking the fragments of a broken family and their chance to a better life.

guevara · Senior Member

abre les ojos wrote:

Its funny how dictatorships always come out with these ridiculous slogans "loyalty" to who I ask? Obviously to Kamuzu himself. "Obedience"? Likewise! Unity and Discipline seem almost as forethoughts to make it all seem profoudly affecting. Well, we know what happened to those who were not LOYAL or OBEDIENT. Wel, they were killed or imprisoned that what. Who the hell are you guevara to say what we need in Malawi? No country or human being on earth can live like that without being coerced by force or fear. Or maybe financial incentives. Malawians - what a load of docile, uneducated, ignorant, backward lot. And stubborn to that fact that they are one of the poorest people in the world. What good is obedience and loyalty and discipline on an empty stomach? Who is paying for it now? When all I hear everyday is give money to starving malawians!!! And you can still come here and say all this nonsense about building million Kwacha memorials to Kamuzu. I feel sick to my stomach!!! The education system is crumbling, people are hungry. HUNGRY. Can you imagine not having ANYTHING to eat? Maybe you can't because you probably live in the US and have internet access and a pocket full of credit cards.

i think we can spend the rest of our precious time without reaching a compromise.i dont think malawians are'a load of docile,uneducated,ignorant,backward lot'.you should be ashamed of your statement!or should i say you have no sense of belonging?

i am a malawian who treasures the priceless history of my nation,thats why i can unashemedly climb at a mountain top and proclaim kamuzu's greatness.

like dr donal broody said,i say the same to the NGWAZI,'WELL DONE THOU GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT'.

guevara · Senior Member

DR. H. KAMUZU BANDA
BBC AFRICAN OF THE MILLENNIUM

Despite the current politically inspired negative rhetoric, there is no more deserving son of Africa than Dr. H. Kamuzu Banda, the Founder and First President of the Republic of Malawi. He is my nominee as African of the Millennium.
I knew Dr. Banda very well over a period of more than forty years. I watched in awe as this highly respected American and British educated physician and scholar, a small-statured giant, took on the colonial power ruling his homeland Nyasaland and, overcoming all odds, won independence for his people.
I watched as this neglected colonial backwater quickly grew in pride and confidence under his leadership and began dramatic social and economic growth and recovery to take an honorable place in the world of nations.
While his presidential colleagues throughout Africa decried his policy of contact and dialogue with South Africa, Portugal and Rhodesia, Dr. Banda moved forward, protecting Malawi's national interests and meticulously and craftily opening doors that helped lead to the end of
their oppressive regimes.
Malawi grew and prospered under the four cornerstones of "Unity, Loyalty, Obedience and Discipline." "Peace and Calm, Law and Order" prevailed throughout the country. "Poverty, Ignorance and Disease" declined rapidly and visible, tangible development, improving the lives of every Malawi citizen took place from border to border. Hunger was non-existent as Dr. Banda's inspired and dedicated agricultural policies provided abundant nutritious food for all. More than 1,500,000 Mozambique refugees sought sanctuary and were well accommodated. World leaders and institutions praised the miraculous changes in the country, and the inspired and pragmatic leadership of Dr. Banda.
Dr. Banda once told me that, "I lead this country for the 95% of the people who live in the villages, who have few if any people looking after their interests. Everything that I do as the leader of this country, I do to improve their fragile lives. My job is to make certain that they have a safe and increasingly prosperous future."
I consider Dr. Banda's friendship one of my life's greatest blessings. I honor his memory and miss him very much, as do most Malawians who now appreciate his vision and leadership, and the quality of life that they enjoyed during his 30 years as Head of State. Dr. H. Kamuzu Banda richly deserves recognition as African of the Millennium.

guevara · Senior Member

December 1997
Number 9

HIS EXCELLENCY,
NGWAZI DR. H. KAMUZU BANDA
MARCH 1898 - 25 NOVEMBER 1997
A TRIBUTE TO MKANGO WA MALAWI

"It has been the glory of the great masters to confront and to overcome;
and when they have overcome the first difficulty to turn it into an
instrument for new conquests over new difficulties."

Edmund Burke
Speech to the British House of Commons
March 22, 1775

The Date:
Friday, 8 April 1994

The Place:
Sanjika Palace, Blantyre, Malawi

The Cast:
His Excellency Ngwazi Dr. H. Kamuzu Banda, then President of Malawi and Dr. Donald A. Brody, then Honorary Consul General of Malawi in the U.S.

Dr. Banda:
"Move your chair closer." (Brody moves chair.)

Dr. Banda:
"Closer". (Brody moves chair.)

Dr. Banda:
"No. . . closer, closer!" (Brody moves chair until he is knee to knee with Dr. Banda.

Dr. Banda:
"Good. (long pause). It's been almost forty years now, hasn't it?"

Dr. Brody:
"Yes, Your Excellency".

Dr. Banda:
(Poking his finger in Brody's chest). "You're - getting - very - old!"
(roaring with laughter)

Yes, Dr. H. Kamuzu Banda had been my friend for more than forty years. He was my mentor and indeed, my political hero.

The following is a pictorial tribute to one of Africa's greatest sons. Scholar, Physician and Statesman, his passing leaves a void that can never again be filled. I shall miss his love of country, his wisdom, his enthusiasm, his wit and his sense of humor.

The photographs that follow need no captions. They clearly speak of his greatness. Please be patient while they download. Take that time to bid farewell to this most extraordinary man and to pray for his well deserved eternal rest.

"Well done thou good and faithful servant".

Donald A. Brody
Commander of the Order of the Lion of Malawi
Governor of Kamuzu Academy

December 97 © Great Epic Books™

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RETURN TO GREAT EPIC BOOKS HOMEPAGE

Ngwazi Dr. H. Kamuzu Banda | Dr. Kenneth D. Kaunda
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game · Guru

even hitler made so many pictorial statements with thousands of his NAZI followers screaming their slogans,these pictures show a psychotic,and neorotic image of a man who encourages my disposition to forever criticise his regime.and for your information not all malawians will agree with you thats why in 94 we all screamed for change and we got it,kamuzu lies in the dust bin of history.

abre les ojos · Guru

guevara wrote:

i think we can spend the rest of our precious time without reaching a compromise.i dont think malawians are'a load of docile,uneducated,ignorant,backward lot'.you should be ashamed of your statement!or should i say you have no sense of belonging?
i am a malawian who treasures the priceless history of my nation,thats why i can unashemedly climb at a mountain top and proclaim kamuzu's greatness.
like dr donal broody said,i say the same to the NGWAZI,'WELL DONE THOU GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT'.

No sense of belonging? You think you are talking to a child. You think you can accuse me of that dumb rubbish. Being a citizen of the entire world in general I don't believe I have any allegiance to anywhere. I live in the UK, pay my taxes here, the government here is more important to me than the one in Malawi. What should I care if Bingu buys a limo. It's not my tax money. It was Kamuzu however that affected my life personally that is why I keep a grudge.

So don't me that crap about Malawi...

jones_1 · Veteran Member

abres,
dont you think that sometimes these things happen for a reason and maybe it was a blessing in disguise....
look at yourself now youre in the uk,workin there and i bet youre far much better than the ones who r in Malawi!!
so sometimes its better just to bury the hatchet!though its hard....
me and my family were also victims of kamuzu and tembo,i still hate wot they did to us but i think in a way it was a blessing!!believe me,i dont think i wouldve reached where i am now!!

jus my thots y'all!

abre les ojos · Guru

What are you talking about?

No. Things don't happen "for a reason". Things only have consequences. And me being in the UK is not a consequence of Kamuzu's atrocities. It's like telling African-Americans that slavery wasn't so bad because now they lead better lives than Africans... Things shouldn't be given the wrong contexts just because they have unforseen, maybe better consequences - That is revisionist.

jones_1 · Veteran Member

woteva abres,

i reckon we think on different levels!
we also obviously look at situations differently.

peace

abre les ojos · Guru

Yes my dear mis Jones1 we do think differently. I confess that it takes a better man than me to forgive. I am too vindictive for that. It is in my nature to hold a grudge indefinitely. The grudge I hold against MCP and its controllers of the past is a lifelong persuit.

game · Guru

jone1

you really arent serious are you?people cannot just bury the hatchet and make amends with those that tortured and killed their dreams for a better life,you know how i feel,if anyone kills my dream now God forbid i will move mountains to inflict that same pain to them.there is a saying that goes if you feel sorry for a maga dog it will turn around and bite you the best way is to put it down before it hurts you.malawi like any other country has to have heroes and villains and am sorry but kamuzu and the colonialists are the villains that walked on our land,chilembwe,ziliro mumba,Gadama,chisizas,chimpemberes these are our heroes.

or maybe m'bona is our comic hero,not HKB maybe when he first came back from abroad but he bacame self obsessed and power greed which led to his downfall thats why he killed anyone that opposed him,he got lucky that generation was not violent because if he was alive now,i was going to cut his wrinkled balls and make a necklace for mama as a souvenir.

guevara · Senior Member

Dr. Banda continued. . .

“You have told me on a number of occasions that you want me to comment on various difficult times, or periods, during my years of leadership of the Party and of the Nation. I have told you to be patient, but I forget that you are an American and Americans are never patient (laughing). The reason that I have told you to be patient, is that there were no visible, V-I-S-I-B-L-E difficulties or problems during my first month home, July, 1958. On the surface, everyone in the Congress leadership appeared pleased that I was back in Nyasaland to assume the top leadership role or position in order to begin the intensive fight for our freedom.

Now, as the conference was over and the real work was to begin, I began to detect or, rather, I became sensitive to subtleties that had been simmering below the surface since I arrived at Chileka on 6 July. I was in a state of euphoria during that first month. I was very emotional as I traveled throughout the country and realized that I was actually home. I was surrounded and immersed in the euphoria of the ordinary people when I spoke of seeking their freedom and independence. All of this emotion blunted, B-L-U-N-T-E-D my sense of real observation of what was simmering just below the surface. It was the disease that infects all of Africa and has destroyed more people, chiefdoms, governments, even families, than all of Africa’s maladies; malaria, schistosomiasis, leprosy, cholera, even AIDS, all of them combined. I am talking about jealousy. Jealousy infects African society at every level. Frankly, I had been away from home for so many years, that I had forgotten how damaging, how toxic this African disease, jealousy, really is, sadly even now.

Also, jealousy goes hand-in-hand with backbiting. So, between the two, jealousy and backbiting, a course is set for failure if not destruction of any cause. At that time, I admit to being an idealist. I expected everyone to be an idealist focused on our dual objectives of the end of Federation and self-government. . . independence for Nyasaland and her people. I expected an undivided team. After all, as a physician, a surgeon, I always had an undivided team in the theater. Jealousy, bickering, backbiting and such, if it existed at all between the people in theater, was left outside the door. Only one objective was dealt with in theater. . . the well being of the patient. In July, 1958, our patient was Nyasaland and I expected one hundred percent dedication to the causes and treatment effecting that patient.

Orton Chirwa
Kanyama Chiume
Masauko Chipembere
Yatuta Chisiza
Dunduzu Chisiza

As you know, at that time, there was a group of brilliant young men within Congress that I called my ‘lieutenants’. They were young men and women who were, on the surface, passionate supporters of Congress and our stated objectives. I have already mentioned Mr. Kanyama Chiume and Mr. Masauko Chipembere. There was also Mr. Orton Chirwa, the Chiziza’s, Rose Chibambo, Chokani and others, but they were the central figures, all brilliant with an equally brilliant political future. But they and others were infected with the African disease of jealousy and backbiting. I should also mention that these are contagious diseases. As the top people exhibit the symptoms, these diseases spread through families, organizations, churches and anyplace else where the virus is unleashed.

So, this is what I became aware of; the tentacles of jealousy and backbiting silently and destructively beginning to make its way through Congress.

I am not a silent observer when I detect problems. No! Not at all! I do not sit at my desk sucking a pipe as they do at Whitehall. No! I told them all forcefully and emphatically, individually and together, that I came home to do a difficult job and I expected to complete the tasks to be completely successful and then spend the rest of my life practicing medicine. They all said ‘Yes Doctor’, ‘Inde Atate’, ‘Of course, Doctor’. I told them that I was elected to run the show, not to be a ‘front man’ to be run by young people no matter how brilliant they were. I said that we would work together as a unified team, no jealousy, no backbiting, no bickering or I would go to my surgery immediately, sad that I could not deliver the goods that I had promised the people of Nyasaland for a month, but satisfied that I could at least spend the rest of my life treating and healing their bodies.

In some cases, the disease was, sadly for the nation, not curable. These people, as brilliant as they were and, in some cases, still are, could not leave the diseases of jealousy and backbiting “outside the door to the theater”. . . so they had to eventually go. I had to turn to other people that were prepared to work together as a team, to achieve our objectives. I will tell you more later. . . at times appropriate to different events. So, be patient! (laughing).