Can we try to focus more on the process than the event

Depending on where you are as you read this, Eid el-Fitr was on Friday or Saturday. This special day on the Muslim calendar marks the end of the fasting period, which is a key pillar of the Islamic faith. Interestingly as if on cue, the end of fasting is celebrated with bountiful feasts in the homes of most Muslim families. What I always find interesting is how those of us who are not Muslims react when we realise our Muslim brothers and sisters are celebrating the day. These reactions are now much easier to follow thanks to social media with posts like, “I can’t wait for my Muslim friends to invite me for Eid so I can enjoy some pilau rice,”or the funnier ones like this one from a friend, “…and it’s the norm my Muslim friends are either offline or their phones can’t be reached.” Now do not get me wrong here, I wouldn’t mind a plate of tasty pilau complete with those pieces of meat that love to play hide and seek as you devour the meal. Unfortunately Idd found me in the unfamiliar territory of Rusizi in south western Rwanda with work commitments. However my point here is that this scenario clearly shows our love for the event and not the process. We don’t want to even know much about the fasting process but the food on Eid day is what grabs our attention. Our penchant to focus on events and not processes is very evident in how we react to so many other things. Take for example the announcement that Tanzania’s ruling party had chosen John Pombe Magufuli to be its flag bearer in the presidential elections slated for October this year. Many who commented on social media were focusing on his middle and second name and not the process the party had gone through to zero in on him and not others. Others started making comparisons with other EAC countries as if it had just occurred to them that when it comes to politics each EAC country has unique political dynamics at play. At the bottom of it all was the fact that many of us do not bother to follow what goes on in Tanzania if it is not about what Diamond was doing with Zari Hassan. So when we suddenly wake up and realise there is a big story from Dodoma whose process we ignored, we try to sound relevant in our ignorance. We can actually visit Tanzanian news websites every once in a while and learn something about what our brothers and sisters are doing. It is not really too much to ask considering the time we spend on sports websites digging up all the small details about the footballers who ply their trade in Europe or the time we spend following the situation in Greece or how El Chapo escaped from jail for the second time. The same can be said about Rwanda where on Tuesday July 14, a simultaneous session of the Senate and the Lower Chamber took time to review petitions calling for the amendment of the constitution to remove the provision that limits the presidential terms of office to two. At the end of the process, the members agreed to now move out and consult with the population on the matter of Article 101 of the Rwandan Constitution. What you have to note is that close to 4 million people signed petitions and presented them to parliament which then sat and reviewed those petitions and now they want to further consult with other citizens in a process likely to result in a referendum to change the constitution. As usual the crowd that loves the event and not the process took to social media with their own versions of what had happened. Many were talking about how Kagame had changed the constitution to get a third term. They missed the process and now want the event to suit their conclusions. By the way, did you know that John Pombe Magufuli’s wife is a Standard Five teacher at Mbuyuni Primary School where she teaches Geography, History and ICT? Oh, and her name is Janeth Magufuli so if she eventually becomes Tanzania’s First Lady she will be in good company since Rwanda’s is Jeannette Kagame while Uganda has Janet Museveni. Moral of the story, name your daughters Janet, it is a lucky name no matter how you spell it.

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Can we try to focus more on the process than the event