Martyrs’ Day, transistor radios and childhood nostalgia
On 3rd March each year the nation commemorates The Martyrs’ Day, an occasion for memorialising the sacrifices made by our gallant compatriots in the struggle for independence from colonial rule precipitated by their resolute opposition to the imperial imposition of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in the mid-1950s. On this day in our history, a considerable number of people across the country lost their lives following the declaration of a state of emergency by the imperial authorities in response to the growing agitation for self-rule and the rejection of subjugation and exploitation at the hands of a foreign power.
Reflecting upon this day reminded one of those days before the advent of political pluralism in Malawi, when the national mood on 3rd March would be decidedly somber, silent and solemn with an enforced curfew policed by the erstwhile youth leaguers across the entire land. In our home, the highlight of the day always came in the afternoon when the dramatization of the story of John Chilembwe played on the only radio station of our era, the MBC radio (no stations One and Two then!).
The historical accuracy (or completeness) of that dramatisation is a question for discussion in a different context, what one finds impressive is the deliberate use of the medium of radio broadcasting which was deployed to engender a strong sense of shared national heritage through recapitulation of our (selective) liberation history.
Very recently I heard over the radio (cannot remember which one now, with so many outlets available, even in the car) that we were commemorating the World Radio Day, which the UN General Assembly appointed as February 13 (in our case I believe we were celebrating the impact of community radios in disseminating socio-economic development information and generally mobilising local communities for worthwhile causes).
The presence of community radios only goes to show the proliferation of radio stations across the country using the traditional platform as well as other more novel platforms such as the internet. There is as broad a range of choices as one cares to pursue based on your personal interests and sophistication of your gadget. In years gone by Malawi had only one radio station, MBC. One remembers with some nostalgia household names such as Philip Moyo (aMwala), Maria Chidzanja Nkhoma, Joyce Ng’oma, Davis Mussa (Ada D.E.), Benson Tembo, Nyokase Madise, Kafumbi Njewa, Franklin Titani, Brightson Kalilani, Before Gumbi (BG), Owen Lupeska, Chaipa Hiwa, Patrick Mphaka, James Chimera, Nelles Nkhoma, Geoffrey Kazembe (and many more too numerous to list here).
The radio in those days was strictly rationed: MBC ran its programmes from around 4.55am and shut down at 10pm daily. The Mbumba dances opened the airwaves, followed by Pamajiga and later Tadzuka, the Morning Basket and so on. Saturday evenings were quite special because of Kapalepale (Sewero La Sabata Ino) as well as Theatre of the Air; Sunday afternoons were always punctuated by Your Choice.
In our home, the radio itself was a prized small Rising Transistor apparatus which was running on three batteries (brands of the day being UCAR, Berec, Nzeru, Sun) which we had to ‘recharge’ by literally placing them in the sun when they ran out (I wonder whether that would count for green energy in today’s reckoning?)
What sticks out in my memory is that despite such limited airtime, there were still more stringent listening schedules imposed in our household by our dad. Under his directions, the family radio (the only one available, anyway) was for listening to the news bulletins and other relevant current affairs broadcasts (and indeed the Martyrs’ Day drama!) One got the sense that it was inappropriate to listen to the radio just for amusement (which might explain the gravitation towards books and comics instead: which in themselves opened a youthful mind to a world which was quite broader than the one we encountered within our very controlled environment).
Quite literally, the radio was a vital part of family life and entertainment and at that time became the most reliable source of our information concerning many aspects of our lives growing up. If your household had a little more sophisticated gadget you could catch the BBC on shortwave and other foreign stations which were (sometimes) considered subversive in that political context. Today, when one considers the sheer diversity of electronic gadgets for accessing information and the proliferation of radio stations (even on the local scene) we have to feel for the current generation and hope they acquire the capacity to discern truth from error and to enjoy life responsibly even as they too create their own memories.
