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It’s not about maturity | Why librarians shouldn’t care

Siyanda

In secondary school I started the habit of devouring a minimum of 2 books a week, so that by age 19 I could claim shamelessly, and somewhat incorrectly, that I had read at the very least 500 books. I’ve recently spent some time thinking about the sources of said books, seeing as I could not (and still cannot, really) afford to so rapidly consume a new supply of them. 1. The library at my secondary school: a rag-tag collection of textbooks, sweet valley high novels and a list of books so random, they seemed to have been generated by some … Continue reading It’s not about maturity | Why librarians shouldn’t care

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On The Merits of Following Random-Ass people online

Siyanda

Last year I made a promise to myself to make my Twitter timeline more pan-African. To my roster of South African thought-leaders, I added Kenyan movers and shakers. And just when I thought I had mastered some of the subtleties of political thought in both these African giants, I took on the mammoth task of trying to “get” Nigerians on Twitter. I am grateful for how immediately my foolishness became clear to me. Twitter would not be an easy thing for me anymore. First of all, I had to quickly get a feel for the different types of humour that … Continue reading On The Merits of Following Random-Ass people online

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when you sit on a bench in main mall [Fiction]

Siyanda

  When you sit on a bench at Main Mall, Gaborone, you will see many things: two girls in matching tops holding hands, their faces turned to each other to trade girlish whispers; a woman bowing down to hand her grandchild a juice-box, his face glistening under six layers of Vaseline; a stall occupied by an unoccupied woman, her wares hanging on the wires beneath her shade. If you are sitting by the embassies, you may also see a stream of hopeful young people going in and out of the British High Commision, folders filled with letters and forms and … Continue reading when you sit on a bench in main mall [Fiction]

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Feelings: My IndieGoGo Campaign

Siyanda

Have you experienced this? You see someone manage to raise thousands of dollars for something crazy like a potato salad and you think “You know what? I could raise the money for something better than that!” Well, I did. I believed so much in my show Africa This Week With Siyanda that I was sure someone else would believe in it too! I was tired of being blocked by my glaring technical difficulties and wanted so much to produce a quality show that had the quality equipment to make that happen. But the night I hit “launch campaign” on IndieGoGo, … Continue reading Feelings: My IndieGoGo Campaign

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#RwandaDecides: Don’t be jealous

Siyanda

Don’t be jealous of the Rwandese!

Today the people of Rwanda decide if Paul Kagame can change the constitution to enable his term to increase another 5 years (possibly 30). That’s a long time. Many of us are weary with African leaders who cling to power forever and drag the country down with them.

The Rwandese issue is complicated (what country is not?), but they have a special history. In 1994 close to a million people were slaughtered in the space of one week. The fear of that happening again is ever-present in Rwandese life.

So…if indeed this is a free and fair referendum, the people will make the decision based on their desire to have a prosperous and united Rwanda in the face of their history.

They have a serious number of systems to ensure the country isn’t run like a night-club. Google their parliament systems, judicial systems etc, many are exemplary.

There are alleged human rights violations by the current president, Paul Kagame, google and read about that too.

Continue reading “#RwandaDecides: Don’t be jealous”

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Why we cry for Paris and not Nigeria

Siyanda

I know I am late. But wouldn’t it be strange if I called myself a blogger in 2015 without addressing this? If you don’t have time to read this (very, very short post) let me say my points can be summarized in the following gif: Why we get mad about Paris and not Nigeria Because then we can get behind a winning team. Because we are afraid of getting mad about Nigeria and watching nothing happen as governments walk past uncaring, unnoticing. Because we don’t think the people in those countries would even appreciate what we’ve done for them; how … Continue reading Why we cry for Paris and not Nigeria

Opinion5 Comments

How does the African family contribute to corruption?

Siyanda

We talk about corruption a lot. Sometimes we even discuss its causes, but often in very abstract, macroeconomic and historical terms. We talk about corruption in a very “big picture way.” However, for a time, I’ve wondered why we don’t zoom in. But not too far so that we are looking only at the psyche of the singular corrupt-or, but just far enough that we look at his family too. How does the African family contribute to corruption? This year we were given front row seats to the breakdown of football legend Emmanuel Adebayor’s family. In a move that many … Continue reading How does the African family contribute to corruption?

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Africa This Week With Siyanda

Siyanda

If you know me, in real life, then you know that I am obsessed with YouTube. If my TV set hopped of its stand and proceeded to nae-nae on the coffee-table, I wouldn’t even notice. My eyes would be glued to the YouTube video playing on my cell. That’s how 2015 I am.  This love has existed since my parents finally agreed to install an internet connection at home. So, a few years ago I took the plunge and started a little YouTube project where I uploaded videos of myself talking about books — my favorite topic. And after I … Continue reading Africa This Week With Siyanda