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Readers Have
Their Say
That Cairo
Road centre-isle trees are beautifying may be a lot of "codswallop"
and "claptrap" (your comments in the July issue), it will take a lot
more than trees to beautify Cairo Road - lest we forget, beauty is
in the eyes of the beholder, but ugly goes right to the bone.
I wrote a
letter - published - to a local daily about the lack of a driving
culture in Zambia compared to that prevailing in old towns of
Europe, where a greater flow of traffic is experienced in narrow,
winding, streets than the broad avenues of Lusaka. A driving culture
is about driving maturity and respecting the rules of the road.
Rules of the road evolved so that all drive in a way predictable to
others, thus minimising misunderstandings and accidents.
We should
eliminate obvious bad driving practices before condemning the Lusaka
road network design.
In my opinion,
the most common and greatest cause of traffic congestion in Lusaka
are perceived to be:
a) not
respecting the "right of way", compounded by;
b) being "kind
to others" - a humanism week hangover?
c) double
parking;
d) absence of
"intelligent" road traffic signs i.e. give way, stop, keep left, no
right turn, no u-turn, no parking, no access to heavy trucks, no
trading etc.
Where are the
Traffic Police when you need them? Probably busy with, so-called,
"road blocks". How many times a day must a vehicle be checked as to
whether its hooter, indicators, head-lights, windscreen wipers etc
are functioning? How many times does an I.Q. need to be tested
before being certified?
Suggestions:
- the City
Council Roads dept., or whichever institution is responsible, should
first of all place appropriate road traffic signs at all
intersections and, repeatedly, along the length of roads;
- Traffic
Police should place personnel (in randomly changing teams of 3, to
reduce chances of unilaterally beneficial opportunities), at all
such intersections to enforce the compliance of the Law. That would
certainly make more economic sense than harassing motorists for
petty vehicle malfunctionings;
- not allow
heavy truck traffic in the town centre between 06.00 hrs and 19.00
hrs - this should also apply to Malambo Road;
- remove
sidewalk traders (especially along Freedom Way), a major cause of
traffic hindrance. Trading should be encouraged in appropriate
locations in each residential areas, rather than the town centre;
- establish a
vehicle clamping unit to clamp those vehicles hindering the smooth
flow of traffic, as when double parked. The wardens responsible
would be remunerated on a commission basis, payable each day from
the takings. The administration management should be privatised and
work to agreed daily targets.
- make Cha Cha
Cha Road parking only on one side of the road, thereby gaining an
extra lane;
- do away with
the present subscribed parking lots and increase the parking fees -
the longer one parks, exponentially higher the rate;
- create an
extra lane, each way, by removing - yes, removing - the Cairo Road
centre-isle. There would be sufficient width of isle remaining to
place closely spaced giant pots (say, 1.5 m dia. and 2 m high) of
mature, flowering, shrubs and bushes along the whole length of Cairo
Road. The existing trees are an ungainly sight, regardless of the
reason of their origin. I have vague memories of the days of the
open drain.
J Liva
This is a
motivational letter to vent my frustration about motivational
letters. I am doing a consultancy for a large financial origination
that provides many grants for the country and finances a large
majority of the Foreign aid Organizations in Zambia.
One would
think that a country which is desperate for financial aid and a
private sector that battles to get loans would jump at the
opportunity given half the chance. Maybe it explains why we are
still stuck in the third world.
After spending
three weeks trying to find an appropriate contact in the ministries,
or a telephone number that actually works you have to speak to on
average twenty people to find someone who has some small inkling as
to what you are talking about, You are greeted with many yeses and
promises and assurances from this person as long as you take the
next step. The next step is to write a motivational letter to this
person requesting the information you require. One takes a deep
breath at this point and thinks, “AHH finally I am getting
somewhere!!”
But no, that
would be too easy, wouldn’t it. You then wait two weeks for a
reply, the reply being, “We do not have access to the information
you required.” To which you make another phone call to find out who
does have access, and woe and behold the whole process starts again
with someone else who does exactly the same thing. Even the
ministers don’t have access to the information. Is this the ministry
of health or the MI5? Central statistics cant even you give you a
complete copy of the 2001 census, in 2005. Eventually I gave up on
the ministries and went to see COMESA, and some NGO’s who did not
follow the ministries’ trend. They were helpful and obliging and
assisted me with information quickly and efficiently, and to that
avail I say thank you and it was a pleasure to work with you.
“Yes!! No more
dealing with ministries and the private sector part of the research
won’t be half as bad. They are more efficient.”
That’s right,
you guessed it - whoever taught that philosophy is wrong. Well wrong
when it comes to Zambia anyway. My research started with the
telecommunications networks in the private sector. I dialed Celtel
first, their reception number, and was patched through to the call
center, only to be told to dial the number that I had just dialed to
get through to reception. This happened numerous times before I
lost my cool, explaining to them that number you are giving me is
the number I have been dialing and can someone please assist with
the correct number. Four supervisors later and an explanation why
and I am through to the reception. Where once again the whole
processes that the ministries proscribed as standard treatment of
someone offering help applied, Speak to twenty people, write a
motivational letter and we will then tell you, “We are unable to
assist you.”
Telecel was
next, the reception answered only after a couple of “all trunks are
busy now please try your call again later.”
Me: Good
morning my name is frustrated consultant and I work for
big money, I am doing research on the telecommunication sectors
in order to facilitate some grants to better the communication
systems in this country, can I please talk to Mr XXX in your
research department.
Telecel
Receptionist: In order to speak to Mr. XXX in the research
department you have to write a motivational letter explaining why
you want to speak him.
Me: Thank you
very much goodbye.
This appears
to be the latest and most efficient way of Zambian Government and
indeed the private sector ensuring that nothing is done. My advice
is not to ask questions when banks turn down loans or government
agencies that come looking for foreign aid money are turned away.
They don’t do it because they don’t want to have to write a
motivational letter in order to help someone out. As far as I can
see the motivational letter should come from the organization
looking for help, not the other way around.
This will be
the last motivational letter I write.
Frustrated
Consultant
I regret that
having been under hibernation due to weather I missed some of the
issues including your April 2005 issue. Having read the nice
historical article, Bridging The Falls, I desire to comment briefly.
While the
article gives credit for the design of the Victoria Falls Bridge to
Hobson and Freeman, other writers give it to Sir Douglas Fox (vide
Mosi-oa-Tunya : A Handbook to the Victoria Falls, ed. DW Phillipson,
p97). And while confirming 12 September 1905 as the official opening
day,
Phillipson (p98) and the Central African Post (July 10, 1952) speak
of Prof. Darwin officiating, not Miss Pauling!
And who was
Harold Pauling? If this be the railway contractor, what about George
Pauling mentioned by Phillipson (p97) and LH Gann in his book A
History of Northern Rhodesia (p126)? By the way, Sapele Road, that
runs past the old Lusaka Railway station (or Commuter Station or CR
Bus Station) was originally named Pauling Road after George Pauling.
Can the Railway Museum reconcile these, please
Yuyi K
Libakeni
‘The Cape To
Cairo Railway’ by George Tabor names Hobson and Freeman as the
designers of the steel arch. Various other sources, including the
American Society of Civil Engineers name Freeman as the designer.
Freeman was employed by Douglas Fox and Partners. According to these
sources, Freeman eventually became a senior partner in this firm
which was renamed Freeman, Fox and Partners in 1938. Perhaps the
Railway Museum can shed more light on this. Harold Pauling was the
cousin of George Pauling. He, together with his brothers, Henry,
Willie and Percy and George’s brother, Harry, joined forces under
the company, Pauling and Co. It was said that one or another Pauling
was responsible for almost the entire railway line between the Cape
and the Congo. |
August 2005