THE CHAMPIONS OF CHANGING SUITS

 

Adeladius Makwega – MBAGALA

 

On September 3, 2026, Mwanakwetu remembered Father Fidelis, the priest who supervised the construction of St. Anthony of Padua Secondary School in Mbagala, within the Archdiocese of Dar es Salaam. The school was formerly known as AMET.

 

I know those of you who attended this school during its early years will help me answer this question: What did AMET stand for?

 

I am waiting for an answer from Sauda Lilingani, Demetria Makwega, and others wherever you may be.

I was only fortunate enough to attend tuition classes at this institution during the days of Professor Robert Mfugale, Dr. Komba, Brother Linuma, Mr. Sagala, and those days of Accountant Marandu.

 

I also remember that in 1989, among those who sat for the entrance examination to join this school, Edwin Ngutu, popularly known as the Luo Boy, came out on top. He obtained the highest marks of all. Unfortunately, he did not eventually join this school. He went to Kibasila Secondary School, where he later performed well in a government school.

 

For those who remember, the institution's original buildings were located in two different places. First, they were at the Spiritual Centre in Mbagala, an area then known as Mbagala Msalabani, now known as Mbagala Mission. Later, activities moved to Mbagala Zakhem Parish.

 

After construction had reached a satisfactory stage, the school was moved to its present location, near Mbagala Makuka and Mbagala Sabasaba.

 

Today, my reader, allow me to tell you how Father Fidelis, who was of Italian origin, supervised the construction of this school.

 

Every morning, he would wake up, say his morning prayers, and then lead the morning Mass. After Mass, he would speak with a few parishioners and then head straight to the construction site.

 

When he arrived, he had many questions.

“Why have you built it like that?”

“Why are the children stepping there?”

And sometimes he would insist firmly:

‘I do not want to see you building this place badly!’

After that, he would return to his residence to attend to other responsibilities. But in the afternoon, he would return to the construction site again, inspect the work, give instructions to the workers, and make sure things were proceeding as he expected.

 

In the evening, from around 4:30 p.m. until sunset, he would once again be at the construction site.

 

That is where he would finish his day.

Only afterwards would he return to his residence.

I remember this very clearly.

Why?

Because Mwanakwetu and several other children of that generation lived very close to Father Fidelis. We saw him. We knew him. We saw how he conducted himself.

 

My reader, you may say:

 

“Mwanakwetu, are you bringing us nothing but a church story today?”

Absolutely not!

 

I have a serious point to make to every one of us.

On September 3, 2026, while I was travelling in a public bus, a man said something that immediately made me remember Father Fidelis.

He said:

“You know, Magufuli studied Chemistry, and he also understood Mathematics. For a long time, many educated people had a habit of avoiding Mathematics. But Mathematics is a subject you cannot escape.

 

“You can give a contractor a construction job. A building may require eight reinforcement bars, but instead he puts in six and a half—or only four—and then cuts them in such a way that they appear to be eight. To the naked eye, you may see eight bars, but in reality, they are only four.Any construction project must take seriously the expertise of the person supervising it, but it must also take seriously the heart and commitment of the person supervising it.”

 

He continued:

“You may have the expertise, but you can make a deal with the contractor while a public building is being constructed, and that contractor ends up building your private house at home.‘Boss, this is the ratio I am using here. Do not put obstacles in my way, and I will build your house for you. At that point, the man has the expertise, but greed has taken over, and the public project suffers.”

The man in the bus continued:

“Magufuli had his people… Kuandika, Mfugale and Kijazi. They guided him well, and the work was done properly. When you combine that with President Magufuli's determination to question and scrutinize things, public affairs were moving very well.”

 

We were still inside the bus, and Mwanakwetu was listening carefully.Then, unfortunately, the devil himself seemed to interfere with this discussion!

The gentleman got off at a place where a major sports-ground construction project was taking place. And so Mwanakwetu did not get the chance to hear the rest of his argument.

But even those few words were enough to take me back into history.

 

While travelling, Mwanakwetu remembered Father Fidelis of Mbagala and the construction of St. Anthony of Padua Secondary School in late 1989, as I narrated earlier.

Mwanakwetu said to himself:

“While Father Fidelis was supervising that construction, he did his work with his whole heart. I do not know how much technical knowledge he had about construction. But one thing I know: he had the heart to follow up.”

And this is where we arrive at the real issue.

 

After getting off that bus, Mwanakwetu said to himself:

 

“Today you are working in a public institution. Right next to you, there is a major construction project taking place. You are the person entrusted with that project on behalf of the public.

Do you even know what is going on?

 

“You may be supervising a project worth billions of shillings, yet you have never even walked to the construction site to see what is happening.

“You have no heart for follow-up.

“You have no time to ask questions.

“You have no interest in knowing.

“You do not even have the courage to question the contractor.

“But at the end of every month, your salary arrives.”

And that is where Mwanakwetu says:

 

WE CANNOT CONTINUE LIKE THIS!

Father Fidelis, even though we do not know the extent of his technical expertise in construction, visited the project site three times a day.

Now you, my dear fellow, pull yourself together!

You have an education.

You have a position.

You have a salary.

You have authority.

You have professionals around you.

You have a contractor.

You have a project consultant.

You have public money.

BUT YOU HAVE NO HEART TO FOLLOW UP?

We people of Mbagala may not have much power. Our only power may be to curse you and insult you so that you change.

But this is not merely negligence.

 

This is negligence that directly touches the public trust placed in you.

The blessings you have been given, the office you have been entrusted with, the suit you wear, the tie you put on, the shoes you polish, the car you drive, the air conditioner you enjoy in our office, and the clerk who runs errands for you—none of these things make you a project supervisor.

What makes you a supervisor is accountability.

You may not be an engineer.

You may not be a technician.

But you must have the courage to ask:

“Why did you build it this way?”

“Why did you put it there?”

“Why is the work delayed?”

“Why were these materials used?”

“Why was this money spent?”

“Why is the quality of this work unacceptable?”

That is what supervision means.

Otherwise, you are simply a leader wearing a suit.

And you people who wear suits—and sometimes those fashionable African-print shirts—don't you build houses at home?

Let me ask you again:

Don't you build houses at home?

Of course you do!

You know exactly how to supervise the construction of your own house.

You become a champion when it comes to saying:

“I want an automatic handle on the front door. When I arrive, it should open automatically.”

“Put air conditioning in every room.”

“Do not install ordinary tiles. Use American tiles.”

We see you. We know you!

But when it comes to a public project?

Suddenly, you disappear.

The government provides all the money for the project.

The current system provides the contractor with a consultant.

The experts are there.

The contracts are there.

The money is there.

But the project is poorly constructed.

Mistakes are ignored.

The work is delayed.

Then, later, people start talking about demolishing parts of the building that have already been constructed.

How does this happen?

When it happens, who takes responsibility?

The contractor?

The consultant?

The supervisor?

The head of the institution?

Or does everyone simply point a finger at someone else?

No!

Public responsibility is not a hiding place.

If you were entrusted with supervising a project and failed to supervise it, you must be held accountable.

If your negligence increased the cost of the project, you must be held accountable.

If your negligence delayed the project, you must be held accountable.

If you saw a mistake and remained silent, you must be held accountable.

And if you knew what was happening but chose not to follow up because you were too busy wearing your suit and sitting in your office, then do not be surprised when citizens ask you:

“What did your suit contribute to the construction of this building?”

Mwanakwetu says it plainly:

People who cause losses to the public through negligence should not be rewarded as though they have done an excellent job.

Losses caused by the negligence of public officials should not end up merely as observations in audit reports.

Accountability must follow.

So, my friends, those of you who recognize yourselves in this article, I appeal to you:

CHANGE!

Learn from John Pombe Magufuli.

Learn from Father Fidelis.

You do not have to be an engineer to be a committed supervisor.

You do not have to know everything.

But you must have the desire to know.

You do not have to build the project yourself.

But you must follow up on the person who is building it.

You do not have to be a technician.

But you must have the courage to ask questions.

Otherwise, you will simply be a leader who is good at changing suits.

And eventually, we will have no choice but to ask God to take you early so that you may face judgment for what you failed to do.

Remember:

“THE CHAMPIONS OF CHANGING SUITS.”

I wish you a good day.

makwadeladius@gmail.com
0717649257