Chief Makupo’s Farewell Speech
ed. Chief Makupo delivered this presentation just as we were leaving the village last August.
8:30 - 19 August 2010
Before I say goodbye to you, our beloved visitors, I have a few remarks to make.
I am extremely happy this morning, on this send-off ceremony. On behalf of Makupo people and indeed on my own behalf, we wish you a safe journey on your way back to Canada. We know you had a very wonderful moment here in Malawi and Makupo Village in particular. In fact, people of Makupo became and are now your brothers and sisters just in this short time of which memories of such event will remain in the blood of Makupo people for generation after generation.
Makupo People appreciate the role you are playing in developing Makupo people and village as well the villages around in many areas. During your stay here you may have experienced some rude behaviours which did not go well with you; please take it from me that it is not our style of cheering visitors. We cheer visitors in a way that they live happily, live on peace and harmony. Please accept our sincere apologies.
I know most of you are saying “Sheesh!!!! This is too early to leave Makupo.” I am sure of this, but because time is against us, there is nothing we can do to save the situation, for sure some of you are saying that. All the same there is still hope that you may come again and enjoy with your brothers and sisters of Makupo.
I am also compelled to point out here that our diet was not compatible with your standards. Nevertheless, most of you found it delicious, even if the preparation was substandard.
Your visit has created a bond of friendship, love and understanding so much that Makupo People and you have become intimates. I am very pleased to say that you have left a culture to our children to love communicating in English. It is very surprising to hear from as young as Loice Bwelezani, 4 years old, saying, and I quote, “How are you? I’m fine and you?” end quote. While on the other hand you have managed to pick some Chichewa words and sentences such as and I quote, “Muli bwanji? Tili bwino, kaya inu?” end quote. You have managed to put yourself into the world of linguists. You have written dictionaries which translate English words into ChiChewa. Really you will be super-models back home. The highest marks go to Alida for almost fluent speaking – 95%.
I was very impressed seeing Canadian students carrying babies on their backs. This is a sign of joy and appreciation, which existed at Makupo expressing their happiness indeed. You have done many things which I need not mention. Life changes take time but become easy where the environment is so cordial.
Turning to our two professors, Dr. C. Stonebanks and Barbara. I have been overwhelmed for your full participation in all activities taking place at Makupo; in the way you conducted your research and in the way you maneuvered around Makupo. People of Makupo became your brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews.
Your research was so magnificent that no-one complained and I have a hope that whatever information gathered will one day materialize to fruitful benefits. I am suggesting to open up a book where records of your visits be recorded so that our children may have something to refer to, as to what made this village and its people develop to such heights. This book will guide them to the answers.
Development by handouts only is no development. It is meaningful where there is a combination of research, advise and assistance. May you please understand our full co-operation and acceptance of this exercise in our village. Please feel free to conduct more and more research as you may wish at any time.
Please extend our heartfelt thanks to the respectful people of Canada, of your universities, your respectful homes and your respectful families for unflinching support to gladly accept that you come to Malawi and sleep with Makupo people.
Lastly let me thank Mr. Miller, who is head of delegation, Professor Dr. C. Stonebanks, Prof Barbara and the entire group for the wonderful visit.
God Bless You
Chief Makupo
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
The elders present their case
The elders present their case
Wednesday night was the last night in the village for the students from Bishop’s university, so we had a party. Everyone enjoyed themselves as we sang and danced and relished those last few moments together. I had passed on responsibility for the pay to the Makupo “Central Committee” of the account signatories, elders and the ones who had organised the different work teams – cleaners, cooks, security and guides. There was a lot of heated discussion about the amount of money available and how some got paid less than in past years, but on the whole everyone was in a good mood with money in the pocket. So they danced and they sang. When the CD player in the truck stopped working, then out came the women led by Esnati who really knows how to whip the older women into a really good mood with lots of hand clapping, praise singing, dancing and laughing.
Esnati had come to the village from granny’s home village in the valley below Dedza as an orphan in 1970 and lived with the old lady anaMumba almost as a servant. She and her children were very much part of the fabric of village life and even though she never really went far in school, she was the energy and enthusiasm behind dancing and singing whenever she got involved. After many years in Lilongwe trying to be a business woman, she and her husband are moving back and building their house in a nearby village about 4 kilometres away. He is going to become a Group Village Headman (GPV) which makes him chief over as many as 6 to 10 other village headmen.
Our Chief Makupo came to invite myself, and the 2 professors, Christopher and Barbara to meet him. He had something to tell us. He praised us for what we had done and how we were working to make Makupoites work together and take responsibility for their own projects. He understood how we were passing on to the people of Makupo the running of the projects so they could build a stronger economic base.
However, he wanted to remind us that there were people who contributed a great deal to making the visits successful but were not included in the payroll. They were the elders who helped behind the scenes to smooth out rough patches and contributed in a variety of ways to the enterprise.
It was a very logical appeal and very instructive about how a village works. We were paying people for functions that fit the labour force, but behind the scenes was the wisdom and judgment of the village managers, the movers and shakers. Despite their age and apparent lack of visible contribution they had maintained a constant eye on things and monitored progress and ensured that the overview was never lost in the busyness of the moment.
Mr. Chikapa is a case in point. Now 72, he retired from the civil service many years ago after a career as a local government auditor. He was married to Nellie’s oldest sister, Ruth who died in 2007. He had suffered a stroke about 5 or 6 years ago that slightly incapacitated his left hand and leg, but his senses are still really strong. Because he had married into the family there was a tendency to leave him out of the family circle when things were discussed. From my first visit, I felt that we could use his background in accounts and bookkeeping to our advantage and that it would be therapeutic for him to be involved and called on for help.
That really began during the last trip in February, but he remained peripheral until this trip, when I set up a petty cash for him to administer so the workers in the kitchen, security, construction, etc.. would go to him and he would exercise the requisite controls and develop a business sense among the people and a sense of accountability and transparency. He was very busy throughout my stay and worked very hard to bring some order to my chaos.
The chief himself, intervened at any number of instances too ensure that problems were dealt with. When one person became too overly friendly with the women visitors and approached people when he was clearly drunk, Chief Makupo had called the elders together including the culprit’s father to correct the behaviour. With the many projects and actions which required a business sense, he was the go to person. He signed the contract for the hostel on behalf of Makupo and solved the problem of the signatories and the bounced cheque. (Don’t get me started on the sins of the Standard Bank of Malawi). And there were others – Mr Kuphera (79) and Anasimango (69) who did not march at the front of the parade, but who helped the whole machine work smoothly.
Now here was the chief reminding us that in all the calculations, these essential contributors had not been considered, nor rewarded. It was an important lesson in how a village works. This is true in any organisation let alone a village. The managers may not be visible on the ground, but they are the ones who create the conditions for everything else to work effectively. His message was articulate and clearly put. He was educating us in how a village works as much as he was making a plea for the elders to be included in the rewards assigned for the visits.
Wednesday night was the last night in the village for the students from Bishop’s university, so we had a party. Everyone enjoyed themselves as we sang and danced and relished those last few moments together. I had passed on responsibility for the pay to the Makupo “Central Committee” of the account signatories, elders and the ones who had organised the different work teams – cleaners, cooks, security and guides. There was a lot of heated discussion about the amount of money available and how some got paid less than in past years, but on the whole everyone was in a good mood with money in the pocket. So they danced and they sang. When the CD player in the truck stopped working, then out came the women led by Esnati who really knows how to whip the older women into a really good mood with lots of hand clapping, praise singing, dancing and laughing.
Esnati had come to the village from granny’s home village in the valley below Dedza as an orphan in 1970 and lived with the old lady anaMumba almost as a servant. She and her children were very much part of the fabric of village life and even though she never really went far in school, she was the energy and enthusiasm behind dancing and singing whenever she got involved. After many years in Lilongwe trying to be a business woman, she and her husband are moving back and building their house in a nearby village about 4 kilometres away. He is going to become a Group Village Headman (GPV) which makes him chief over as many as 6 to 10 other village headmen.
Our Chief Makupo came to invite myself, and the 2 professors, Christopher and Barbara to meet him. He had something to tell us. He praised us for what we had done and how we were working to make Makupoites work together and take responsibility for their own projects. He understood how we were passing on to the people of Makupo the running of the projects so they could build a stronger economic base.
However, he wanted to remind us that there were people who contributed a great deal to making the visits successful but were not included in the payroll. They were the elders who helped behind the scenes to smooth out rough patches and contributed in a variety of ways to the enterprise.
It was a very logical appeal and very instructive about how a village works. We were paying people for functions that fit the labour force, but behind the scenes was the wisdom and judgment of the village managers, the movers and shakers. Despite their age and apparent lack of visible contribution they had maintained a constant eye on things and monitored progress and ensured that the overview was never lost in the busyness of the moment.
Mr. Chikapa is a case in point. Now 72, he retired from the civil service many years ago after a career as a local government auditor. He was married to Nellie’s oldest sister, Ruth who died in 2007. He had suffered a stroke about 5 or 6 years ago that slightly incapacitated his left hand and leg, but his senses are still really strong. Because he had married into the family there was a tendency to leave him out of the family circle when things were discussed. From my first visit, I felt that we could use his background in accounts and bookkeeping to our advantage and that it would be therapeutic for him to be involved and called on for help.
That really began during the last trip in February, but he remained peripheral until this trip, when I set up a petty cash for him to administer so the workers in the kitchen, security, construction, etc.. would go to him and he would exercise the requisite controls and develop a business sense among the people and a sense of accountability and transparency. He was very busy throughout my stay and worked very hard to bring some order to my chaos.
The chief himself, intervened at any number of instances too ensure that problems were dealt with. When one person became too overly friendly with the women visitors and approached people when he was clearly drunk, Chief Makupo had called the elders together including the culprit’s father to correct the behaviour. With the many projects and actions which required a business sense, he was the go to person. He signed the contract for the hostel on behalf of Makupo and solved the problem of the signatories and the bounced cheque. (Don’t get me started on the sins of the Standard Bank of Malawi). And there were others – Mr Kuphera (79) and Anasimango (69) who did not march at the front of the parade, but who helped the whole machine work smoothly.
Now here was the chief reminding us that in all the calculations, these essential contributors had not been considered, nor rewarded. It was an important lesson in how a village works. This is true in any organisation let alone a village. The managers may not be visible on the ground, but they are the ones who create the conditions for everything else to work effectively. His message was articulate and clearly put. He was educating us in how a village works as much as he was making a plea for the elders to be included in the rewards assigned for the visits.
An Amazing Trip – Continued
An Amazing Trip – Continued
Doug’s note
Posting this exactly 2 months from when it was written, I realise theris so much more I could add. I have presented a banner to the the presidents of the student council and the Social Justice Committee in front of an assembly of all students of Royal West Academy to thank them for their dedicated support. The banner was hand-stitched by the women of Makupo and says, “Zikomo. Bwanali / Mlangali. Madzi ndi moyo” which translates as “Thank you from the villagers of Bwanali and Mlangali. Water is life.” On October 19 we will deliver the same message of thanks to OPSEU – the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, who have been consistent and principled supporters of our efforts to help the people of Makupo and the neighbouring region become self-sufficient.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Therese Foundation
Friday 6 August 2010
It had already been a very exciting day with our visit in the morning to the Therese Foundation also being very charged. Melissa Banda, the coordinator, is a very impressive lady who has done a wonderful job of village based care. It started with agogos (grannies) and orphans and is dealing with an important outstanding need. Roger Roome when he was in Lilongwe had made the connection with Mnjale Village on behalf of his adoptive aunt, Therese Bourque-Lambert, the octogenarian dynamo who heads the Stephen Lewis grannies chapter in NDG, Montreal.
From the modest money she has been sending, the villagers through self-help work have assisted more than a hundred grandmothers in as many as 30 villages. From the beginnings in Mnjale village, the work has expanded to so many communities that when they applied for NGO status they decided to change the name to reflect the greater scope and that is when they decided to honour Therese by calling themselves the Therese Foundation. Many of the grandmothers or agogo had gathered and were waiting for our arrival. Sister Gisele from the MIC order of sisters acted as our guide and when our two vehicles pulled up the women all began singing and dancing towards us in greeting. It was quite overwhelming.
The main focus of their work arose out of the situation of destitute seniors in the area. There are many older women and some men with no-one to support them. For whatever reason their children are not there to look after them. They can be old and lonely and as some get senile they get in trouble because no-one is around to care for them. Others are rejected or discriminated against, especially if they are labeled as witches. Sometimes if there have been unexpected or unexplained deaths in the village, people will accuse them of bewitching the bereaved family and they are ostracized. Others are charged with looking after their grandchildren when their own children have died, The group has used the money Therese has sent for food, clothes and blankets to share with these elders who have no means of support and end up in extreme poverty. Bicycles allow village based health care workers to travel around to see how the different elders are doing. They have also begun to help the orphans and already have a couple of girls going to secondary school who would have dropped out for lack of school fees. They are also building a community centre for their meetings and office.
The real reason for the visit was Alice Abracer. Therese has trouble traveling at the tender age of 88 so Alice was visiting Mnjale as her grandmother’s eyes and legs. They had been alerted to her presence and were extremely excited to show her everything, explain their progress and outline the problems they still face. Their new community centre is going to be very special and the foundation was already laid. Bricks were being prepared for burning as we met and even the oldest grannies had given some time to molding them and would help carrying them over to the construction site.
By the time we left Mnjale we had been emotionally drained but the day wasn’t over.
Well report
As I was posting the last item about an amazing trip, the drill rig from the Ministry of Water had arrived and in less than 2 days had completed drilling the 2 wells at Bwanali and at Mlangali. On Friday, Alice. Alida, Barbara, Katie and I were just arriving back from Lilongwe and Mnjale when Themba had called to tell us that they had begun the drilling at Bwanali Village.
We drove straight into Bwanali before arriving at Makupo and found them packing everything up. However, they weren’t finished. The last step, to the joy of the villagers was to drop an air hose to the bottom of the bright new tube they had installed and using the giant compressor that travels on the back of one truck they blow the tube clear of waste matter and debris. The site is quite spectacular as water shoots 5 metres or more into the air. Many villagers gathered including woman with assorted pails and buckets on their way to the older well. They quickly placed their containers on the ground around the hole to catch the water that was coming up.
Their joy and excitement was evident as they began to sing. One man arrived with a drum and they really got into it. We were all teary eyed by the time the crew finished the job. After 10 to 15 minutes they drove off to Mlangali to begin the 2nd well. In that way we got to see them at both ends of the operation - drilling and cleaning up.
We saw them begin the drilling at Mlangali and came to recognize why these wells are so expensive. Three huge trucks bring in the equipment. One has the huge compressor that pumps air under great pressure to force out the material being drilled. The other has the drilling rig which looks like the ones we see in the movies for oil wells. The third is laden with pipes, length of drill shafts and the other materials and tools needed for the work. They are big, muscular 4 wheel drive trucks capable of traveling over extremely rough terrain.
The drilling is a carefully coordinated, almost military operation. The foreman stands on platform right beside the drill and directs everyone else. All the team members have a role and shafts are put in place, lining pipes are readied and tools are available at exactly the moment they are needed. The compressor and the motor of the drill truck make a lot of noise and the dust of the drill by product blows up straight out of the hole. They record where the first water is reached and continue down to 45 metres. A metal sleeve keeps the hole from collapsing and it is inserted at lengths as the hole deepens. Once the depth is reached they remove the drill and drop a white plastic pipe down inside the metal sleeve. The pipe is full of tiny slits that allow the clean water in. The sandy refuse that the drill has pulled up is dropped down the space between the sleeve and the white tube to act as yet another layer of filter and keep the slits from clogging with finer clay like materials. The sleeve is slowly removed and a short bit of the white pipe is all you see above the ground waiting for the next crew to come and construct the cement footings, drains and wash stand. After the cement has duly hardened then the pump is placed on and the well is operational.
When I gain the skills I will get our website up and running and post the videos I made of the operation.
Doug’s note
Posting this exactly 2 months from when it was written, I realise theris so much more I could add. I have presented a banner to the the presidents of the student council and the Social Justice Committee in front of an assembly of all students of Royal West Academy to thank them for their dedicated support. The banner was hand-stitched by the women of Makupo and says, “Zikomo. Bwanali / Mlangali. Madzi ndi moyo” which translates as “Thank you from the villagers of Bwanali and Mlangali. Water is life.” On October 19 we will deliver the same message of thanks to OPSEU – the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, who have been consistent and principled supporters of our efforts to help the people of Makupo and the neighbouring region become self-sufficient.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Therese Foundation
Friday 6 August 2010
It had already been a very exciting day with our visit in the morning to the Therese Foundation also being very charged. Melissa Banda, the coordinator, is a very impressive lady who has done a wonderful job of village based care. It started with agogos (grannies) and orphans and is dealing with an important outstanding need. Roger Roome when he was in Lilongwe had made the connection with Mnjale Village on behalf of his adoptive aunt, Therese Bourque-Lambert, the octogenarian dynamo who heads the Stephen Lewis grannies chapter in NDG, Montreal.
From the modest money she has been sending, the villagers through self-help work have assisted more than a hundred grandmothers in as many as 30 villages. From the beginnings in Mnjale village, the work has expanded to so many communities that when they applied for NGO status they decided to change the name to reflect the greater scope and that is when they decided to honour Therese by calling themselves the Therese Foundation. Many of the grandmothers or agogo had gathered and were waiting for our arrival. Sister Gisele from the MIC order of sisters acted as our guide and when our two vehicles pulled up the women all began singing and dancing towards us in greeting. It was quite overwhelming.
The main focus of their work arose out of the situation of destitute seniors in the area. There are many older women and some men with no-one to support them. For whatever reason their children are not there to look after them. They can be old and lonely and as some get senile they get in trouble because no-one is around to care for them. Others are rejected or discriminated against, especially if they are labeled as witches. Sometimes if there have been unexpected or unexplained deaths in the village, people will accuse them of bewitching the bereaved family and they are ostracized. Others are charged with looking after their grandchildren when their own children have died, The group has used the money Therese has sent for food, clothes and blankets to share with these elders who have no means of support and end up in extreme poverty. Bicycles allow village based health care workers to travel around to see how the different elders are doing. They have also begun to help the orphans and already have a couple of girls going to secondary school who would have dropped out for lack of school fees. They are also building a community centre for their meetings and office.
The real reason for the visit was Alice Abracer. Therese has trouble traveling at the tender age of 88 so Alice was visiting Mnjale as her grandmother’s eyes and legs. They had been alerted to her presence and were extremely excited to show her everything, explain their progress and outline the problems they still face. Their new community centre is going to be very special and the foundation was already laid. Bricks were being prepared for burning as we met and even the oldest grannies had given some time to molding them and would help carrying them over to the construction site.
By the time we left Mnjale we had been emotionally drained but the day wasn’t over.
Well report
As I was posting the last item about an amazing trip, the drill rig from the Ministry of Water had arrived and in less than 2 days had completed drilling the 2 wells at Bwanali and at Mlangali. On Friday, Alice. Alida, Barbara, Katie and I were just arriving back from Lilongwe and Mnjale when Themba had called to tell us that they had begun the drilling at Bwanali Village.
We drove straight into Bwanali before arriving at Makupo and found them packing everything up. However, they weren’t finished. The last step, to the joy of the villagers was to drop an air hose to the bottom of the bright new tube they had installed and using the giant compressor that travels on the back of one truck they blow the tube clear of waste matter and debris. The site is quite spectacular as water shoots 5 metres or more into the air. Many villagers gathered including woman with assorted pails and buckets on their way to the older well. They quickly placed their containers on the ground around the hole to catch the water that was coming up.
Their joy and excitement was evident as they began to sing. One man arrived with a drum and they really got into it. We were all teary eyed by the time the crew finished the job. After 10 to 15 minutes they drove off to Mlangali to begin the 2nd well. In that way we got to see them at both ends of the operation - drilling and cleaning up.
We saw them begin the drilling at Mlangali and came to recognize why these wells are so expensive. Three huge trucks bring in the equipment. One has the huge compressor that pumps air under great pressure to force out the material being drilled. The other has the drilling rig which looks like the ones we see in the movies for oil wells. The third is laden with pipes, length of drill shafts and the other materials and tools needed for the work. They are big, muscular 4 wheel drive trucks capable of traveling over extremely rough terrain.
The drilling is a carefully coordinated, almost military operation. The foreman stands on platform right beside the drill and directs everyone else. All the team members have a role and shafts are put in place, lining pipes are readied and tools are available at exactly the moment they are needed. The compressor and the motor of the drill truck make a lot of noise and the dust of the drill by product blows up straight out of the hole. They record where the first water is reached and continue down to 45 metres. A metal sleeve keeps the hole from collapsing and it is inserted at lengths as the hole deepens. Once the depth is reached they remove the drill and drop a white plastic pipe down inside the metal sleeve. The pipe is full of tiny slits that allow the clean water in. The sandy refuse that the drill has pulled up is dropped down the space between the sleeve and the white tube to act as yet another layer of filter and keep the slits from clogging with finer clay like materials. The sleeve is slowly removed and a short bit of the white pipe is all you see above the ground waiting for the next crew to come and construct the cement footings, drains and wash stand. After the cement has duly hardened then the pump is placed on and the well is operational.
When I gain the skills I will get our website up and running and post the videos I made of the operation.
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