The Struggles of a Customer

By: @Zamaradi_M

I am one of those customers who are referred to as difficult customers. And it's an honor to be called that. I am earning my money the hard way, if I spend it I definitely want what's worth my money.

As every other human being I am a customer. A customer to so many companies and small businesses. From Mangi dukani to Ustaadh gengeni to Vodacom and Zantel all the way to Stanbic, Banc ABC and Standard Chartered.

But I hate being a customer! If celebs hire stylists I wish I could hire someone to represent me to all my service providers! Growing up I thought Mathematics was the most difficult course but now I thank God I did not opt for Customer services. The way customer service reps work, I think theirs must be the most difficult course. Like, did any of them get at least a D-?

Mangi dukani, I come first. Wait in line as a good customer that I am, then out of nowhere comes a smoker, cuts the line and you serve him first! Seriously? I guess smoking is an emergence!

Ustaadh gendeni, I am cooking and I realize that I need to get something quickly. I run to gengeni with my mismatching ndala and what do you do, ask me to wait when you talk with your buddy on the phone!

Telecoms! Where do I start with you? That famous solution from your call center agents; 'tafadhali fika ofisini kwa msaada zaidi.' You realize that we all have jobs to keep enh? The problem is not with my device, why do I need to come to your office?

I have worked as a call center agent for almost two years and when we get to this point, let's just say somebody is having a shitty day already, and that somebody's name does not start with Z!

Then, my dearest banks! From paying TZS. 40,000 just to get a 6 months bank statement (do you manually make statements or just print from the system?) to keeping me on hold for five good minutes. You know I am paying for that call enh?

My inspiration for this piece came from my bank (Thank you). I reported a problem since morning and was told it was resolved only to go check now and find out it was not! I finished my 20 minutes of Cheka Nao screaming! I asked the customer care rep to call me back as I could not afford even one more minute today. It is 1530hrs and I am sitting here patiently waiting. Banks close at 1530hrs.

I don't wanna wait in vain for your call....

UPDATE:

It is 31st May and I did not receive that call but checked and my problem is resolved. If that customer care rep called he would probably get a big shout out. His loss anyways...

Will I die for my country?

By: @Zamaradi_M

On our way to work with some colleagues we were talking about the current events. And nothing is more 'current' now than the Mtwara unrests. When it comes to politics I am just a tiny step above those who still believe that Mwalimu Nyerere is the president of this beautiful nation.

My point is, I do not know the political side of this issue or of any issue for that matter. What I have heard is that the citizens of Mtwara are protesting against the government's decision to build a gas pipe that will transfer gas from Mtwara to DSM where it will be processed.

These protests went as far as burning government buildings, torching cars that are owned by the government employees (I hope their insurance covers this) and worst of all people have lost their lives and some keep endangering their lives. This got me questioning, if it comes down to it, will I willingly die for my country? Will YOU willingly die for your country?

Depends, if they take all corrupt politicians and put them in one stadium (I am not sure they can fit anywhere else) I will happily wear a bomb and go with them. But wait, we can just put the bomb in the stadium, close the doors and save one good person. As Devi would say, why should bad things happen to good people?

And make no mistake though, if the country is invaded and I have to fight to save lives, I will fight.

May be I am a coward, a traitor, a disgrace to this lovely nation, but if I am to be honest, I will not die for my country. Besides, the after life freaks me out!

I respect the people who will and who have lost their lives in the names of their countries. I admire their courage and their unselfishness.

I think of dying for my country and I ask myself, who will take care of Mama Mkilalu? Will my fellow patriots look after my 3years old Tanisha? Will this country that I died for make sure she gets a decent education and a chance to a better life?

And then I ask again, what will my death accomplish? Will it be just another statistic? Will those corrupt leaders resign, or better yet commit suicide because I died for my country?

So. all these questions whose answers we will never know got me saying NO to dying for my country. It is just too much of a risk. I love my country. Instead of dying for it I'd rather stay alive and fight.

Why don't we go to school, study whatever it is we need to study and fight for our country in the safest way possible. And if we have to protest why don't we do it in a way that we will all stay alive long enough to see our children grow up and our parents enjoy their uzee?

Call me selfish and all the names you can think of but if I have a say in it, I will not die for my country kwa kweli. I just don't see the point. 

Clash of the Generations...

By; @Zamaradi_M

 

I have this lovely Mama Mkubwa who has retired and is now working for a private firm. We were not very close before but we are now what people say super tight. We are each other's shosti even with almost 40years age difference. 

Well enough with dolidoli. So, we were talking and me being the planner and dreamer I always am I told her that if I have it my way I would like to be able to retire by 35, meaning if I will be working it will be for the love of my job but not for financial dependence to my employer.

She was proud and went on telling me about her friend who was told by her daughter that she is working past her retirement age because she did not plan her life well enough. (I swear I am not the daughter!)

So, we talked and talked talked. And the two generations of Mlege came to agree that it was not easy for the retirees to plan an early retirement in those days as opportunities were very limited. The only things people could do was work for a government, or a private company if they can find any and the very lucky ones made it into politics.

That was their curse, there were no enough opportunities.

Come to this generation, millions and millions of opportunities. People are employed yet own businesses that sometimes make even more than their salaries. And let us not talk of those who double/triple their salaries while working no overtimes and exceeding no targets, we reserve them for another day!

So we are blessed with opportunities, Thanks to the Almighty.

But our curse is, we know no loyalty, we have no respect for friendship and we don't even value family! How many of us have been betrayed by their friends? How many of us have been conned by our very own relatives? How many of us have lost money just because our decision was based in trusting the information from a person close to us gave?

Now, we hear stories of shop owners in Zanzibar who would leave their shops unlocked for almost 30 minutes and go to the mosque to come back to the exact same shop they left! (WARNING: Don't try this anywhere.)

We hear stories of people who worked under one company for more than 40 years! (This is my second job/company in 4 years.)

We hear stories of friends who cut themselves to mix their bloods just to show how deep their friendship is! (Don't try this now, unless your Doctor approves).

Those are now just stories. Stories I wish I lived to see!

So, we might retire at 35 but we will get there with no friends and no family. Our emotions will be so played with that we will not even trust our own children and the poor kids will probably be below 15!.

And sadly, we might not even live long enough to be 35. We just have to stay out of people's ways, people we are not even aware of their existence, because nowadays killing and harming another human being to protect one's interest seems like an okay thing.

You are still working at 60+ but I could trade places and live in that era where there was loyalty, true friendship and relatives were your last line of defense, I will do the trade in the blink of an eye!

Why We Love Cesc Fabregas

By: @Zamaradi_M

 5. He is strong

 

 4. He is flexible

 

 

3. He doesn't party like a rock star, he parties like Cesc the Fab 

with a lollipop and juice at 1AM!

2. He is so cool that he can autograph even Ozil's shirt, with a smile!

 

1. The only healthy person we know that takes a nap after 11hrs of sleep!

 

 

Cyberbullying

By; @Zamaradi_M

Cyberbullying: Using communication technology such as emails, texts and instant messages to intimidate, control, manipulate, put down, falsely discredit, humiliate or embarrass others.

 
Hi, my name is Zamaradi and I have been bullied.


I was bullied back in primary school (11 - 13 years old). The first day I reported at a secondary school Jane Chikomo made it her mission to make sure I return to where I came from! Here I was in a new school, reported less than 5hrs ago and I was already in tears!

So, when I talk of bullying, I am not just talking the talk, I have been through that path.

For any socially active individual, the Internet and social networks are definitely a must have nowadays. It's where we can connect with others, talk, have a laugh and joke around. When this beautiful thing is turned into a crime scene, you can not help but wonder, what is wrong with this world?

I have not been cyberbullied, Thank God. But experiencing bullying in the past I can't help but be worried. Back then I only had to deal with a couple of school mates that I knew. With the internet, I will be dealing with God knows how many people and from God knows where! That is the worst thing about cyberullying, you are attacked by anyone from anywhere.

Each one of us has had their moment(s) of weakness and did things we are not proud of. Things that we wish would be forgotten. As human beings we keep making mistakes. I might be proud for some mistakes I made because I learned from them but if I don't personally tell the world about them it is because I am not proud enough to share them.

Before you go on exposing my shameless acts, just stop for a minute and think of how would you feel if that was done to you? How would you feel if that was done to your loved one? Exposing me does not only hurt me, it hurts my family, my friends and everyone who cares about me. What reasons would you have to cause all that unhappiness? What exactly have I done to you to deserve all this pain? And the ultimate question; what do you expect to accomplish with that?

I did some reading on bullying and especially cyberbullying. There are no reports on the extent of its effects in Tanzania or Africa but it scares me what it has done elsewhere. In USA 50% of teenagers admit to have been cyberbullied. Some would give up and take their own lives. How do you live with yourself knowing that something you typed or sent on the internet was a reason another person took his/her own life?

The next time you want to post, forward, favorite, Re-tweet, Like or send something that you know will hurt someone, please think twice. 

I might have knowingly or unknowingly be a part of cyberbullying, my sincere apologies.

I take a vow today;  Not to be part of those cowards who hide behind their keyboards and play tough. I am stronger than that. And I was taught better than that, my mama didn't raise a coward. I will express my concerns, I will stand by victims' sides whenever I can and I will never be a part of cyberbullying.


And here are some links to see the victims of cyberbullying. They are mostly from America, Canada and Europe. We have not gone as far as to have victims physically hurting themselves but I am worried that we will get there if we do not do something to stop this madness NOW. I am doing my part,What are YOU going to do?

If you want to get some local feel, just go through some local blogs, websites, tweets and facebook posts and you will see how bad cyberbullying is getting.


Amanda commited suicide a month after posting this.

All these 10 teenagers are gone.

Megan

Audrie Pott

Rahtaeh's father speaks out

 If you are being bullied block, talk to someone, get help, and above all, Stay Strong.

Celebrating Taifa Stars

By: @Zamaradi_M

Celebrating Taifa Stars

I will start with a confession. I love football. I watch and follow Manchester United to the extent that I am hanging somewhere between supporting the club and being obsessed!

As for the Tanzanian Premier League, I have claimed  to support Azam FC for three years now and the closest I have come to really support the club is following them on Twitter and getting a jersey from a friend who had an extra one!

And for Taifa Stars, it is a little less embarrassing but still a shame. I remember watching Taifa Stars vs Mozambique, the first ever match we played at the brand new world class Uwanja Wa Taifa. We lost by one and someone was peeling onions next to me which was the reason for the tears in my eyes that day.

Since then I have watched ALL of Stars home matches until somewhere in 2010. (Thanks to NMB for the VIP tickets to NMB Brand Ambassadors between late 2008 and 2010.)

Last time I watched Taifa Stars; Ngassa was the ish, Kaseja was 'banned' from the national team and Maximo couldn't pronounce Nsajigwa. And now Kaseja is the Captain, Maximo is gone and almost forgotten, Poulsen is the boss and there is Samatta and Ulimwengu, who until this morning I didn't even know how they look like.

So, before you think I am judging you, think again.

Sunday, 24^th March 2013. Taifa Stars beat the Morocco by 3 – 1 in the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers in which we are just a point behind the Ivory Coast and 4 above the Morocco. And before that we won against Kenya, Zambia and Cameroon.

We had some positive and negative reactions, and believe it or not some of those negatives were coming from fellow Tanzanians!

I am a dreamer, a believer and yet I am not blind to the obvious. So, in all fairness Taifa Stars might or might not make it to Brazil in 2014. We don't know anything for sure yet, but why waste time and energy worrying instead of celebrating what we have now?

Why are we so negative about our very own national team? What is our excuse for not supporting Taifa Stars by 110%?

Some say it is because they lack consistence. And same people have been supporting Arsenal and Liverpool, season in season out! Some say players are not united as a team. And same people have been supporting Real Madrid! Some say they do not respect the coaches. And same people are supporting Chelsea! Truth is, we do not have any valid reasons to not support Stars.

If we all get behind Stars and support them with all we have, they will definitely get far. How would they be divided within the team if we scream and cheer their names in one voice? How could millions of Tanzanians fail to unite 20+ players?

Let us support them even more than we support the European Clubs we are so crazy about. 

The same support we showed Luis Suarez and John Terry even when they were found guilty of racially abusing Patrice Evra and Anton Ferdinand.

The same support we showed as we booed and abused Super Roy Keane when he gave HIS opinion that Luis Nani's card was well deserved. That opinion was actually a fact proven by UEFA.

The same support we show towards Lionel Messi and call him Messiah even when he angrily kicks the ball to Real Madrid's supporters and injure one.

The same support we show towards Pepe even when everybody calls him The Assassin and have video clips to prove that he is,well at least an assassin in a football world.

We support European clubs blindly, why can't we do the same for  OUR Taifa Stars?

Most of us probably don't understand the power of supporters in a football match. Why do you think players say away matches are the hardest? Why do we have a home advantage? Why do away goals matter even in big competition like the UEFA Champions League? The pitch is of the same size, playing against eleven men as usual, the only difference is those millions encouraging their home side while discouraging the visitors. That's the difference.

Do you know why supporters are referred to as the 12^th man? It's because our support from the stands is as good as being the 12^th man in that pitch.

Fans have a big impact on the results. Big clubs such as Bayern Munich, Liverpool, PSG, AC Milan, Lazio, Portsmouth, CSKA Moscow know that and that is why they retired Number 12 for their fans.

It's even proven that the noise from the fans can impact the referees decision and for every 10,000 fans in the stadium, a team increases their goal advantage by 10%.

We have away game to Morocco then we host Ivory Coast on 14^th June. I say, we as fans play our part by making use of all 60,000 seats (we can spare a few for Ivorians). If 10,000 fans is 10 percent lets make our 58% contribution and leave the 42% to the players.

So, are we going to proudly put our Taifa Stars jerseys and be the 12^th man on the stands or sit and complain and worry about what was, what might or might not happen? Are you going to scold us who have not been 110% behind Stars till this late? We can do that and gain nothing, or we can come together as a country and do our best.

They say that we have made a statement by beating Zambia, Cameroon and Morocco. We have proven to be competitors and not participants by being rivals to Ivory Coast when everybody was betting against us. And now every team coming to Tanzania will take us seriously, no reserves. They will bring the best they have. And we say; We are ready for you, Bring it on.

Let us enjoy this journey, one game at a time. So, until June 7^th Tanzania is celebrating a massive win against Morocco.

And for ToT, let's trend #TzBrazil2014

PS: For some serious motivation.

Cesc for Arsenal

 By: @Zamaradi_M

 I strongly believe, in my heart of hearts that Cesc was better off with Arsenal. And before you go screaming and get all 'Cataluna' on me please know that I am NOT an Arsenal fan and never will be. I am just an unbiased observer with so much love for good and exciting football. And a big Francesc 'Cesc' Fabregas Soler fan.

So, here are my reasons why Cesc was better off with Arsenal. 

NOTE:  I am trying so hard not to use 'should have stayed' or 'should move back'.

Arsenal Victims

Or they sometimes refer to themselves as Arsenal fans. We will get to why they are Arsenal victims in another post. Arsenal victims adored Cesc, they still do. They worship the guy. The amount of love and respect he was getting at Arsenal, he will never get that anywhere else, ever! Even now, two good years after his departure Arsenal fans still follow him, defend him when Barca fans say he is sh*t! They have no obligation to do that, but they will, even ten years from now. Because of the support of these extremely loyal millions of millions of victims all over the world, he was better off at Arsenal.

Arsene Wenger

Cesc can have all the coaches in the world, but Wenger was his coach. You know us stupid people believe that there is that one person who was brought into this world just for us? Like they are meant for us and us alone? Then, Wenger was a coach brought into this world for Cesc and Cesc was meant to be with Wenger. I am still rooting for this 'love' story. No Homo!

El Capitán

Before I go into this point, a shout out to all Arsenal victims who learned the meaning and spelling of this Spanish word just so they could make their Captain feel at home.

El Capitán, if you don't know is a Spanish word which means The Captain. Emirates was decorated with this word when Cesc was playing there. Cesc was made a captain at Arsenal when he was only 21. Yes, he was a captain for Spain U17 but being a captain at a big club like Arsenal at the age of 21, that's something else aisee! One of the top four clubs in England don't make you the captain at 21 and you leave at 23. You just DON’T!!

Emirates vs. Camp Nou

One of the biggest believed reasons for Cesc’s departure was that Camp Nou is home to him. He was raised there so it’s only understandable that he has to go back HOME. I strongly disagree! Cesc started at Cam Nou at age 10 and he was training with La Masia only once per week. He joined on a permanent basis at age 12 and left for Arsenal when he was 16.

From day one at Arsenal Cesc was training with the first team and made his senior team debut at 16. He then played as a regular for the first team for half of his debut season. Cesc played for Arsenal for 8 years before going back to Camp Nou.

So, why would home be where one spent two part time years and four full time years instead of where he spent eight FULL time years?

 Bench vs. Mr. Arsenal

Not to be too dramatic, but Cesc was The Arsenal. You know, like Giggs is for Manchester United, Gerrard for Liverpool, and Casillas for Real Madrid. It’s like the flag of the club. That was Cesc at Arsenal. He was better off being Mr. Arsenal than warming the Barca’s bench! Besides, Cesc hates not playing. Well, at least he used to say that before joining Barca but now he is all for ‘What’s important is that the team wins.’

And a very personal opinion, Cesc is too talented and too young to be a benchwarmer. He is a first 11 material.

Cesc’s undying love for Arsenal

Okay. This is an easy one. Do you ever remember Cesc pouring his heart out in public for Barca when he was playing for Arsenal? Well, I didn’t even know that he played for La Masia until a few years ago, when the transfer rumors started. Now, since Cesc left Arsenal, two good years ago, have we ever been through at least a month without having an Arsenal related quote from Cesc? No wonder journalists can not help but always refer to Cesc as the former Arsenal captain!!

Even his BFF Gerard Pique was quoted saying; “Cesc loves to talk about Arsenal.” And no, that was not from last year, it was on February 13^th, 2013.

Those are MY arguments. You can drop your thoughts on the comments and we will talk.

Till next time.

P E A C E