With the Dar es Salaam heat and the kind of work I do, I simply cannot afford to be without power.
Then there is the daily mission of getting to work safely and on time. Bodaboda, traffic, unpredictable roads and the general gymnastics of moving around Dar es Salaam have become part of the job description.
At home, food prices keep climbing.
At work, I am still working with essentially the same salary I had eight years ago.
So, yes, I am tired.
But I am also trying.
I wake up. I work. I pay bills. I raise children. I buy food. I look for water. I pay for electricity. I navigate traffic. I try not to be late. I try not to lose my mind.
Then I listen to our beloved viongozi.
And I am reminded that, according to our very old and very wise Constitution, sovereignty resides in the people.
Government derives its authority from the people, its primary objective is the welfare of the people, and it is accountable to the people.
So imagine my confusion when one of the stories suddenly making headlines is about a woman who allegedly approached a regional commissioner.
Apparently, according to the former Regional Commissioner, a woman named Sophia repeatedly sent him messages pursuing him. He says that after warning her, he eventually took the matter to the regional police commander.
Now, I am not here to tell anyone what they should or should not do about unwanted attention.
But as a citizen sitting somewhere in Dar es Salaam, trying to make sure there is water in my house, I had to look kushoto.
Then kulia. Then kushoto again.
Because surely I was not accidentally on the set of a drama.
Surely I was not watching an Indian film.
And surely this was not another one of those short AI-generated films that have suddenly taken over my algorithm.
A woman approached RC.
The RC reported her to the police.
And suddenly Tanzania has entered its own political rom-com.
We are now arguing if flirting with RC is by itself, a criminal offence.
But there is a serious issue here.
What should occupy the attention of public officials?
Because ordinary citizens have plenty of things they would like to report.
Water supply. Electricity.
Food prices. Transport.
Roads Salaries that struggle to keep pace with the cost of living.
Public services that sometimes require more patience than they should.
These are the things that keep people awake.
Not because Tanzanians have forgotten how to flirt, but because we are busy trying to survive.
Our Constitution says the primary objective of government is the welfare of the people.
So perhaps that is the conversation I want.
Not whether Sophia shot her shot.
Not whether some RC received the shot.
I want to know whether the woman in my neighbourhood can turn on her tap and actually get water.
I want to know whether the worker travelling across Dar es Salaam can reach the office without spending half her salary on transport.
I want to know whether the parent buying groceries can still afford the same basket next month.
I want to know whether someone working for eight years can reasonably expect their income to reflect the reality of the economy around them.
Because honestly, viongozi wangu, we are tired.
If we are going to have a national conversation, let’s at least talk about the things actually keeping wananchi awake.
As for Sophia and Mr RC…
Well, we already have Ben Pol’s Sophia Sophia. I think we have enough Sophia for now.
