By Editor
Compulsory National Service is coming back. According to Defence and National Service minister, Dr Hussein Mwinyi, registration would start in the coming financial year.
The arrangement is not unique to Tanzania, nor does it reflect an ideological leaning, rather it is a way for the nation to build unique values among its people.
It is practised in developed and developing countries, a reflection of the importance that nations attach to it.
The revival of the programme follows public outcry who appreciated the positive work done in inculcating into the country’s youths the values of patriotism, solidarity and equality as alluded to by the minister in his speech.
He said the government recognised the importance of National Service as a vital institution in maintaining national unity, especially in providing training and fostering patriotism, solidarity, equality and physical fitness.
The youths, fresh from school, joining the camps constituted dependable production brigades, not to mention that they were also a reserve army, ready to take arms to defend the nation in times of need.
And this they did, when Uganda’s dictator Idi Amin invaded the country in the late 1970s, successfully beating back the enemy and helping to rebuild the country after the ravages of the war.
Many of those who served in the compulsory programme, are still wondering why it collapsed, given the huge labour force it commanded in the form of the young, energetic recruits joining the camps every year.
It is clear that something went wrong at the institutional and management level, leading to the collapse of the programme.
It will be recalled that the camps engaged in production activities, such as farming, livestock keeping, building brigades and furniture making to name but a few.
They were a major productive force in the nation and a reliable vocational training ground for many young people, who later went out as skilled labour to join various enterprises in the country.
But many also remained and provided a resource base for the camps to run their operations without necessarily running back to the government all the time.
Under no circumstances should this be allowed to happen again.
The minister has assured the public that the institution that is coming back next year will be different from the one we had known before as a nation.
The programme is coming back against the background of a changed social, political and economic setting, calling also for adjustments to meet the requirements of the times, without diluting the core values of the programme.
We expect the youths coming out of the camps to reflect those values.
It is our hope that this time around, the management weaknesses that led to its collapse will have been exhaustively addressed, so that National Service becomes not only an institution of promoting a sense of patriotism, solidarity and equality, but also a national production reserve in times of peace.
The camps should also build up capacity and become ever more efficient, self-sustaining entities, given the potential labour force at their disposal every six months of the year.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
You got to consider the dynamics of aggregating a large number of youths in camps etc. In those days UKIMWI was not a problem.
ReplyDeleteI love this, wacha wawafundishe jinsi ya kuwapindua mafisadi. Bravo!!!
ReplyDeleteMakosa makubwa yalifanyika kuondoa JKT.
ReplyDeleteMimi binafsi nilikuwa nasubiri kwa hamu kujiunga;badala yake mwaka huo ikafutwa. Nadhani ni vizuri kuwa na Hii National Service; inaweka watu sawa; watu wananolewa namna ya kupambana na maisha kikweli.Wengi wa wanafunzi wanasoma Day schools siku hizi; hadi wanamaliza; na hivyo maisha yao haswa ya kujitegemea yanaanzia chuo.Hii inawafanya wengi wanakuwa hawajui jinsi ya kuyakabili maisha; tofauti na waliosoma shule za bweni. Wale wa shule za day; wengi hata ukikutana nao kokote wanaonekana wana maarifa kidogo sana ya maisha; ubinafsi mwingi na majungu kwa sana.JKT itawanoa vizuri watu wa namna hii. Safi sana.
Mimi nimesoma shule za bweni muda wote; na chuo nilikuwa naona watu tuliotoka shule za bweni tulikuwa tunaelewana poa. Hii imekaa sawa
Hii kali, watoto wa masikini wataenda, watoto wa vigogo huwa hawaendi.
ReplyDeleteMambo ya kulazimishana yashapitiwa na wakati. Uzalendo ni mambo ya hiari, ukichunguza utagundua viongozi wengi wa TZ hawana uzalendo. Watoto wao wanasoma ughaibuni na kuchukua uraia wa huko. Wakirudi TZ kazi ameshapangiwa sehemu za wawekezaji wakubwa. JKT liwe jeshi la kulipwa sio kama ilivyokuwa wakati wetu kuwa hupati elimu ya chuo kikuu kama hujapitia JKT.
ReplyDeleteSirudi ng'o.......ughaibuni kwa kwenda mbele. watu huku wanalipwa kujiunga na jeshi.....unabembelezwa kwanza halu wanakuuliza...unataka hutaki? kujiunga ni jambo la hiari. wapo wanaopenda jeshi kama sehemu ya maisha yao....wengine wanabaki hospitalini, benki, shule, umachinga mtaani, wanasiasa, wakulima, N.K. kuwa mkakamavu unakwenda kwenye chumba au uwanja wa mazoezi....umuhitaji afande chacha akupeleke mbio kwa sababu ana hasira ya kulipwa mshahara mdogo.TUANGALIE TUSIJE ONGEZA IDADI YA MAJAMBAZI BARABARANI BAADA YA VIJANA HAWA KUKOSA AJIRA BAADA YA MASOMO. THEY WILL BE ABLE TO SHOOT....THEY GOT TRAINED.
ReplyDeleteraia ughaibuni.
daa mimi nimekosa haka kanafasii aisee
ReplyDeleteWakati ule waheshimiwa viongozi wetu walikuwa wa mstari wa mbele kuonyesha mfano kwa kuhudhuria JKT wao wenyewe. Kumbukumbu zipo zinazowaonyesha Hayati RM Kawawa, Hayati Sokoine na wengineo walipokuwa wakihudhuria JKT.
ReplyDeleteSasa itakapoanza, tunataka kuwaona Waheshimiwa Rostamu, Kabwe, Januari Makamba, Mnauye na wengineo wakionyesha mfano kwa kuhudhuria JKT, katika ile Batch ya kwanza tu. Halafu na wengine tufuate.
Hapa mnaonaje wadau?
Mdau,
Ughaibuni.
My thought to this is 99% of the students and their parents have loans to pay back and these students are known to seek part times jobs in assisting repayments.In today's generation such ideologies have very little impact-eitherway!!
ReplyDeleteSiungi mkono hoja ni mambo ambayo yamepitwa na wakati. Iwapo serikali inashindwa kutatua tatizo la umeme itawezaje kuwarisha hao watoto watakaokwenda jeshini ambako kuna huduma mbovu za malazi, chakula, afya na mengine mengi. Walishachemsha na haina haja...kikubwa wafikirie mambo mengine ya maana. Mimi siwezi mpeleka mtoto wangu uko.
ReplyDelete