Uncle Joe, we will miss you

I didn’t see that one coming nor did anyone of you reading this, not even himself envisaged his star to fade away quite as quickly and easily as that. Just like that, in a snap of the finger and Joseph Habineza is no more, not dead but just out of the picture. He’s now ex-sports minister! The ex honorable minister shocked the nation when he resigned from his post after pictures of him posing in ‘compromising’ positions with some female ‘friends’ of his, were leaked to the interned early this week. When you look at the pictures, there is nothing to suggest that Mr. Habineza or Uncle Joe as he is/was commonly referred to by the youth of this nation with whom he had a good rapport, is doing anything not so common in any liberal society. In fact, those condemning the former minister for ‘having fun’ with the four beauties as the pictures show, should bury their head in shame. Does being a minister take away someone’s right to having fun with whomever they wish to? Maybe he chose a wrong place and a wrong company, who knows. Addressing the press a day after the photos had been splashed all over the internet, Uncle Joe defended his right to ‘having fun’, after all, according to him, the photos were taken three years ago at a private house party he had been invited to. I don’t want to start crucifying our good former minister for something that most men do every now and again, but simply because all of them haven’t been caught, it doesn’t mean those coming forward to through the first stone are any cleaner. Or are you? Indeed, if I were Uncle Joe, resigning would be last option because by quitting just because photos of you posing with grown up girls, who are fully dressed and with very little to suggest any immoral intention could be taken by some people as a sign of admitting guilt. Mr. Habineza has come out and strongly denied any suggestion that he may be having an intimate affair with one of the girls in the photos, and to me that’s good enough reason to take hi word until someone else comes up with something different to suggest otherwise. However, much as I don’t find anything wrong with Uncle Joe interacting with the youth of the nation, boys or girls or both, but as someone in his position (or his former position) he should know or should have know how best to go about his ‘socializing’ without having to pose for photos in the manner he did in the leaked fateful pictures. Despite his sudden downfall, Uncle Joe has been one of the most, if not the most popular minister since he was appointed five years ago, and with way he was going about his business, it was hard to foresee him leaving the scene this way but life is such an unpredictable beast. It can eat you alive while staring in your face. Though he leaves the scene in the worst fashion possible with reputation damaged, lost job and possibly a battle to save his marriage, which is the most important thing to a married man, he won’t be short of sympathizers, who will like to suppose that the ex-minister is just a victim of circumstances. I know he didn’t do any wonders at the sports ministry, but as someone who has been around him during his time, I think he’s gone too soon as he still had a lot of unfinished business on his desk. As a sports journalist, who enjoyed a good working (not personal) relationship with him, I’ll miss his charisma, the good quotes and story angles he used to provide for my stories like no other. nku78@yahoo.com