While it rained cats, dogs and I do believe I saw a pig or two fall from the sky this week causing flooding and horrendous traffic jams, we continued to receive much entertainment from the Katiba people.
Forget addressing a member of the assembly by a ‘Mheshimiwa’, or even ‘Bwana/Bibi’ so and so, first names were said this week. Getting very familiar, indeed. Ladies and gents, Abubakar was in the building.
“If Abubakar has his Chama and my points hurt him, he should stand up and defend his interests” said one Mheshimiwa from Simanjiro.
And defend he did. Abubakar retaliated with a jab, “I don’t think someone from Simanjiro with hardly 10 years in parliament can claim to know anything about standing orders. I don’t think you have more experience than I have, I have been in parliament for 34 years.” Classic.
What was he trying to say? That based on where you are from you may not know how to handle paper? Or read and follow instructions on how to handle paper? That people from Simanjiro are illiterate?
Lack basic skills to learn how to handle paper? Is that it? Could it be? A Maasai man and Zanzibari man throwing below-the-belt jabs at each (in their thick individual accents) while the nation looks at them to draft a constitution.
They both received handshakes and pats on the backs for what I believe were congratulations for managing to waste time for that day. They are doing their part in what is part of a larger game of thrones that for all its worth, we must acknowledge.
Despite the pressing issue and the fact that they clearly seem to be in cahoots to waste time, I must say I enjoy how older folks insult each other.
It is an art form. There is an art to throwing insults and I feel the youth these days lack that talent or skill, if you will. The art of saying something so clever, the other person has to think, and if they understood it, come back with an equally smart reply.
The youth these days just throw the F-bombs and rush to insult their opponent’s Mother as if she did anything to deserve being mentioned randomly by people in the streets. Youth display no class when it comes to insults. They lack imagination but most importantly, lack the patient to formulate something rich and meaningful.
Female dog this and female dog that. F-them, f-these ones, f-everyone! No creativity. The art of insulting a person’s whole being, as exhibited by the Maasai and Zanzibari folk in the Katiba assembly takes time to fully master.
These Katiba people were carefully selected to review the constitution for (approx) 50 million Tanzanians not just based on their ability to think, but also on their ability to formulate and most importantly on their ability to come up with clever solutions.
And they exhibited these skills in this case by cleverly formulated insults.
