Tido Mhando's Removal from TBC: Used and Abused

So the infamous Dunstan Tido Mhando is gone!I was a bit shocked to learn that,not because he did or did not deserbe the boot,but rather the fact the the guy had been running TBC as if it were an extension of the CCM-owned Radio Uhuru.You wouldn't blame him,would you?He had to serve his masters in the government who shamelessly disregard the fact that state-run bodies are funded by all Tanzanian taxpayers (minus mafisadi,of course) regardless of their politicwl affiliations.

Tido has simply been used and abused.I'm sorry to say this but anyone,journalists included,who allow themselves to be used by some unscrupulous politicians could find themselves deemed useless once their service is no longer required.We all are aware of how,for instance, our artists attract inexplicable attention from our politicians come elections,only to hear the same cries of "tumesahauliwa" after the elections.Our ever important politicians can't afford to be seen sorrounded by a bunch of wana bongoflava.They had afterall done their job and got paid,so no more reasons for them to hang around with such important people in our society.

Of course we could blame such selfish crooks who never shy away from taking for a long ride whoever willing to attend to their needs but I think the latter deserve a share of such blames simply because they wouldnt be on the receiving end of such dirty games had they resisted being manipulated in the first place.Njaa?kujikomba?Blind faith?or sheer stupidity?

Back to poor Tido,he just reaped what he had sewn.I simply don't get it when I hear some people suspecting that his removal would bring TBC back to the 'Radio Tanzania era'.What they overlook is the fact that before he took the TBC post,Tido was working with one of the best,and hugely transparent,media house in the world,The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).Some people.Some of us expected that Tido would have brought "the BBC effect" to Tanzanian media but you and I know how he fared.Of course,I understand it wouldn't have been easy for him to transform an exceedingly biased,pro-ruling party state-owned media into an independent,fair and balanced organisation but at least he could have tried.Praising him for allowing opposition parties candidates to take part in "Jimbo kwa Jimbo" is totally missing the point.Why?Because that's actually what a public funded media organisation is supposed to do.Let us not forget what TBC behaved when Chadema inaugurated their general election campaign.And who was TBC's top boss when that was happening?

Rumour has it that Tido was brought to TBC by a certain bigwig who's currently not in the government.If such rumours are true,then why should we feel sorry for someone who got the job not on merit but rather because someone out wanted Tido at the helm of TBC for the bigwig's personal interests to be realised?

I just hope Tido has learned a lesson that political conmen would never hesitate to use and abuse anyone who is willing to be manipulated.For these cons,any tesource is like a condom: needed before and during sex,but something to disposed of immediately after the act.It's my hope that a decorated professional like him would never again allow any politician to take him for a stepping stone.There were some rumours that a certain fisadi who's aspiring to vie for the presidency in 2015 was planning to recruit Tido as his proposed TV/radio chief.If the rumours eventually turn out to be true in the future,and Tido grabs the offer,then we surely haven't seen the end of saddening chapters in Tido's professional life.