Tackle widespread negligence, indifference to drive

Recently, my wife and I wanted to help a widow in her 80s obtain health insurance to manage high blood pressure and congestive heart failure. To enrol, she first needed a national ID number.

In theory, the process involved just four steps: visits to the neighbourhood chairperson’s office (ofisi ya mwenyekiti wa mtaa), the ward secretary’s office (ofisi ya katibu kata), a lawyer (for an affidavit), and the National Identification Authority (NIDA). In practice, it took 17 steps.

This frail woman had to be transported repeatedly to the same offices due to incorrect forms and vague instructions. One exception stood out: a manager at the NIDA office in Arusha handled his duties with professionalism, ensuring the ID was issued promptly once the paperwork was complete.

But the inefficiencies continued at the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). With her NIDA number secured, we approached the NHIF office in Arusha to purchase the Ngorongoro insurance package, which was best suited to her needs. We were told, with a shrug, that the package was unavailable. When we asked why, the response was, “Kwa sababu inafanyiwa maboresho” (“Because it is being revised for improvement”).

When we inquired about when it might be available again, they said they didn’t know and that we should just keep checking back.

This indifference to human suffering is all too common. A patient arrives at a hospital with a broken wrist. A cast is applied too tightly, cutting off circulation. When she returns in pain, a doctor casually says, “Hii lazima ilifungwa na mwanafunzi” (“This must have been done by a student”) – no apology, no accountability, even though the patient suffers permanent damage.

Disregard for people’s time is another widespread problem. Road construction projects start and stop at random. Roads are closed without warning; drivers only discover it upon arrival. Detour signs are rare, so motorists must find their own way.

This is perhaps one of the most glaring examples of negligence and indifference. It is common to see traffic officers standing by the roadside, completely oblivious to blatant and dangerous traffic violations happening right in front of them.

Instead of focusing on bodabodas, bajajis, and minibuses that speed, ignore red lights, and even drive on sidewalks, they conduct superficial vehicle inspections, often wasting the time of law-abiding drivers. These stops frequently serve as a pretext for soliciting bribes, accompanied by hints like, “Bado sijanywa chai” (“I haven’t had breakfast yet”).

Wasting people’s time is a widespread problem across various aspects of daily life. Even religious services, though scheduled for a specific hour, often start an hour late, with little regard for the commitments or time constraints of attendees. If those in charge announced they will be keeping time and then they DO keep time, attendees will also be able to plan accordingly.

The economic cost of this widespread negligence and indifference is hard to quantify, not to mention the emotional toll. But it likely amounts to trillions of shillings every day. Perhaps the Controller and Auditor General (CAG) could study and estimate these losses. Each year, the CAG uncovers hundreds of trillions of shillings in misused public funds.

Yet the cost of inefficient spending may be dwarfed by the damage caused by negligence and indifference. Unless these problems, and many others, are addressed, Development Vision 2050 will remain little more than a dream.

Richard E. Mshomba is Professor Emeritus of Economics, La Salle University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. ([email protected])