Kazombo getting back to what he knows best, teaching
* Over 181 comments and 300 likes ? 21 hours after he posted pictures in action on Facebook
* Great work, setting the bar really high for servant leadership! Well done
* Those kids will love you for the rest of their lives — they are in fact lucky kids
By Duncan Mlanjira
Twenty-one hours after First Deputy Speaker of Malawi Parliament, Madalitso Kazombo posted pictures of himself teaching mathematics to Malawi School of Certificate of Education (MSCE) students at a school in his Kasungu East Constituency, he received 181 positive comments and 300 likes ?.
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A former teacher himself, Kazombo just wrote: “When the Deputy Speaker becomes the Maths teacher, welcome to the program of youth empowerment in education” prompting Frank Chunga to say this is really “leading by example, you can’t compare this man with anyone else. He is there to serve people not to shine”.
Blandina Rudo Khozi said the students themselves will “have a story to tell” in future as this is a rare moment — to which Jimmy Mbalame agreed, saying: “In our history you have a place. Those kids will love you for the rest of their lives. They are in fact lucky kids.”
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John Mnyehere Chipeta described it as great inspiration for the kids and it is “setting the bar really high for servant leadership!”
Joseph Kaluwa added his voice: “You once taught me Maths at Ergo CDSS during a weekend in 2018. You said I was good and indeed I got 1 in maths, thanks to you Honorable. Keep up the good work.”
Fredrick David said: “Just when I was giving up on Malawi, there you’re energizing me. So we still have people who are not only passionate about Malawi but also real patriots. You’re really are Kamatcheni, I salute you.”
Back in class
George Mberenga Mtanga was inspired such that he has pledged donate academic books “in the soonest time once some donors respond to our proposal” as others took cognizance that mathematics has always been Kazombo’s favorite subject ever since.
Peter Dimba said he got 1 point in maths in 2000 but he “can hardly remember some of the tricks to which Titus Divala agreed, saying: “I am in your shoes! My maths at all levels has been great but I doubt I can be as confident as Hon. K in front of a class. Once a teacher, always one!”
A few weeks ago, the First Deputy Speaker got concerned when 60% of the students who sat for the 2020 MSCE exams failed — the worst in the past decade as described by Minister of Education Agnes NyaLonje.
Kazombo immediately took to social media asking well-wishers to assist 100 school girls in his constituency to re-take the exam in September and he was rewarded when Malawi Relief Fund (MRF)-UK came forward to donate K4 million to the cause.
Kazombo’s appeal became more visible when girl-child advocate, Cathie Matula adopted the campaign and her vigor attracted the attention of MRF-UK.
Kazombo receives the donation from Matura on behalf of MRF-UK
Matura, a communications consultant for corporate affairs, used her connections and network to reach out to as many people as possible “with some responding to only offer teaching services for revision”.
“That was a relief and I went further looking for exam fees and finally landed this gold from Malawi Relief Fund-UK, of whom the Honourable MP and myself are very grateful of and we all owe them some respect,” she had said last Thursday when the donation was delivered to the beneficiaries.
“The girls are happy and they have pledged to revise as hard as possible in order not to disappoint — something that made me and MRF-UK proud of,” she had said.
The campaign Matura initiated
The exams were supposed to have been taken in June last year but failed after schools were closed in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic and when schools were opened, the Form 4 students were given just two weeks to prepare before sitting for the exams in October.
But when the exams were being administered in October, massive leakage and cheating was discovered — prompting the government to cancel them and re-administer fresh ones that were taken in January this year.
The fresh exams were declared by the Ministry of Education as free of leakage but they yielded very discouraging results as almost a 60% failed — prompting Malawi National Examination Board (MANEB) to announce the extension deadline for registration of candidates for the 2021 MSCE examinations to April 16 to give an opportunity for those that did not perform well in the 2020 exams to re-take through the September process.
MRF-UK’s country coordinator Yakub Valli, said they are greatly honored to assist, hoping that the girls will take this seriously and make all of those that have been involved in this initiative proud.
“The future belongs to the youths and some have gone a step further to say the future is female which is true,” Valli said. “Malawian women are well known for their hardworking spirit.”
MRF-UK has been involved in many other projects across the country aimed at alleviating poverty in giving out food handouts; providing new houses; carrying out livelihood projects; providing access to clean water, the gift of sight among many other projects.
“However, it is interventions like this that stand out unlike the others where we are giving a priceless gift of an education to a girl-child,” Valli said.
MRF-UK manages a Talha Scholarship that reaches out to more 240 students in various universities and colleges in which over a 100 females are in teacher training programmes.
Yakub Valli, MRF-UK country coordinator