|
They Are Back,
The White Tribesmen
By Yuyi K.
Libakeni
The third in
our series on The White Tribesmen. Read the previous ones
here
and
here
R.S.
Hudson,
joined the colonial administration in the then NR, after active
service, in 1919, as a probationer in Sesheke rising to the top
position of Secretary for Native Affairs serving the first dozen
years in Barotseland. His unrivalled proficiency in Silozi was
demonstrated in 1947 when, during the visit of King George VI,
Hudson acted as Silozi interpreter. He retired in 1948.
In those days much of the time of District Officers was spent
touring villages on foot or bicycles compiling village registers,
tax collections and general consultations with native authorities.
Largely arising from these tours, Hudson received several Lozi
nicknames: Ngenda, Kabalaminzi, Kabalamandu and Mapochi.
Ngenda
like muenyi means visitor, a constant visitor that he was.
Not that the Lozi discriminate again visitors. In fact, they greatly
respect them as the saying goes ngenda muwa luyumbula andambo,
a good visitor feeds his hosts (compare with the Bemba version
wikatamfya mweni akakwikushako; don’t chase away a stranger, he
might feed you)
Kabalaminzi
(counter of villages) and Kabalamandu (counter of houses)
relate to villager/house census’. The hut was the basis of native
taxation.
On his
retirement, Hudson joined the Colonial Office in London as Head
Administrative Services Branch in which capacity he visited Northern
Rhodeia in 1950. His subsequent ‘Notes on African Local Government
in NR’ was widely discussed here.
Later, riding
on his warm relations with the then Barotse Native Authority, in
1962, the Colonial Office dispatched Hudson to Barotseland on a fact
finding mission regarding the Barotse secession question. His report
‘Further Relations between His Majesty’s Government and Barotseland’
(Barotseland Report) was a major input in the shaping of the
Barotseland Agreement, 1964.
The English say like father like son, and the Lozi say sifeka
ni siyambula munu kafeka
muliyungu
and so
John Hudson
followed his father’s footsteps into the NR district administration
serving from 1950, his last position being the DC Isoka (1962-64)
where he led that tricky campaign to quell the 1964 Lenshina
uprising about which he has written a book appropriately entitled, A
Time To Mourn.
Earlier during 1959-62, John served as DC Kaoma where fate had it
that he should receive a daughter, Clare, in his official residence,
thereby making history in the district. Clare was the first
European child to be born at the Boma and, in particular, in the
DC’s house. Prior to that, all European deliveries were handled
outside the district, in Mongu or Lusaka. While his predecessor,
March, had connected Kaoma to Mongu through a bus service, John did
it electronically, he had a Police radio system installed in his
office giving him daily access to all stations in the province. He
also served in Kasempa and Kabompo for which he shows Higher
Proficiency certificates in both Lozi and Kaonde. For his love of
the people around him the Nkoya people of Kaoma named him
Mushakabantu, one who loves or calls people around him. (Mushakabantu
is also the title of a senior Induna at Mwene (Chief) Mutondo’s
court, Kaoma). Indeed even today it is not surprising to hear
Hudson’s name being called out on Radio Zambia’s Personal Call
Messages programme or seeing him and his wife, Greta, laying a
wreath on a grave of a departed former native colleague.
Heath FMN
popularly called Kambungo had alternated during the
1939-45-war years between Kalabo, Mongu, Senanga, becoming Resident
Commissioner for the province in 1961. There was a programme, as
part of the war effort, to provide latex or other rubber materials
for the manufacture of tyres for the army. This sticky material
known as Kambungo locally was then transported to Kenya- the
HQ of the East African detachment – some sources say it is for his
heavy involvement in this programme that Heath was so named. But
others say Heath always enjoyed, when on tour, the local thick
porridge, buhobe or nshima, made of cassava mealie meal,
which sticks like kambungo and is the traditional diet of the Luvale/Mbunda
peoples and other ex-Angolan migrant tribes, (puta ya malena ya
mwana cizambi, bwa kulya na kucipita a mixture of Lozi/Mbunda
praise for this nshima) With chicken, kasumbi mundeho, as
relish it is a meal reserved for important people like in–laws. It
was not only Heath who enjoyed this meal. In the late fourties, the
elderly Induna Muleta Nambao, the local chief councilor or Ngambela
of Senior chieftainess Mboanjikana of Libonda had developed a
passionate taste for this meal which he called pula mizengo.
So when the old man showed no signs of retiring inspite of his age,
gossip went round that it was the prospect of missing this
kambungo meal (his home village was far from the trading points
on the river) that held him back from retirement and they spoke of
bwa pula mizengo bo bu hanisize Muleta ku ya kwa Kulu kulu,
the meal that has prevented Muleta from retiring to his village.
Jones HL,
nicknamed Hanyinyani-Hanyinyani, Lozi for bit by bit was DC
Kalabo 1938-9. However, the entry in the District Notebook talks of
“walking on toes”. Indeed, Jones tip-toed his way to the Secretariat
in Lusaka to become Administrative Secretary, one of the top four
positions after the Chief Secretary, landing a CMG in the process.
On a number of occasions during the 1959/62 Benson-inspired
government, Jones acted as Minister.
Ivor Lance
was a trader in Senanga, who was a ceaseless talker for which he was
given the nickname of Kalomo–ka–Mbeta.The name is derived
from a legend described in an old Silozi book of that title. Once
upon a time there was marooned on the island of Mbeta on the
Zambezi, south of Senanga Boma, a magnificently beautiful girl. She
lived with her mother. From far and near men came to seek her hand
in marriage but only one prince was accepted on condition that he
moved to the island. Beautiful and married to a prince, she soon
became arrogant and haughty. She was named Muoli wa Mbeta
(the Queen of Mbeta). Ku mbeta in Lozi is to beat drums as
the Litunga’s drummers, bambeti, do, non-stop,
throughout the night. Hence Kalomo ka Mbeta, the mouth that
never stops talking.
Morgan, SW DC
Kalabo and Senanga during the early fifties was named N’goko,
a typical Lozi porridge cooked with fresh milk. On the surface
n’goko will appear to be cold while the inside would still be
steaming with heat. The name is applied to a silent burner, one who
does not immediately show his annoyance but carefully chooses his
time for reaction or revenge! In short, still waters run deep say
the English and the Lozi, n’goko liombola balulu’.
March RJN
served as DC Kaoma in 1954-59. March always demanded, and was keen
to ensure, that every case reported to him was fully investigated
and the culprit bought to book. When his favorite clerk was
involved in a case of malicious damage to property (he burnt down
his friend’s furniture on suspicion of coveting his wife) everybody
thought March would let his friend go free. To their surprise, March
investigated and prosecuted the case, sentencing his friend to an
appropriate period in prison – and the name Kamangilila – one
who holds for good and never lets go – stuck on March. This
seemingly Chinyanja word, ku manga is pure Siluyana/Nkoya,
meaning to tie. It was during his time that Barotse Transprt Ltd
included Kaoma on its Machile–Mongu bus route. The bus body was
fitted to a lorry chassis but as March commented, “it gave a degree
of comfort, it was no longer necessary to weigh most carefully the
question of sending a patient to Mongu by road, the journey taking
one day, once a week”. Before that, the journey took two weeks and
was risky, requiring a “Risking letter” for each passenger. When the
House of Chiefs was established in 1963, March became its first
clerk.
M. Mitchell–Heggs
was DC Senanga during most of the late 1930s and Mongu 1954. He was
nicknamed Libalala as he was tall and handsome. The
Litunga’s Limulunga Palace is known as Libalala, constructed in 1930
it is still an imposing structure. Mitchell-Heggs later joined the
Judiciary as Resident Magistrate, Lusaka. In 1952 at the height of
the colour bar, Mitchell-Heggs stuck out his neck and appealed to
his fellow Europeans to learn local (Native) languages. For his
part, Mitchell Heggs had higher Language Certificates in Lamba, Lozi
and Bemba. |
October
2005