Ruhumbika

Silent Empowerment of the Compatriots, winner of the 1997 Tanzania Best Book Prize, is a powerful historical novel which forces us to re- think the whole notion of independence and the construction of a new society. It scans 50 years of Tanzania history through the lives of two families differently endowed. The family of Saidi son of Jabiri, which represents the poor workers, is running away from death which has decimated his family, the only thing of value, while that of Nzoka Mwanakulanga, representing the rising national bourgeoisie is in search of position, wealth and pleasure. These two families are juxtaposed as their lives mirror the country s struggles with the economy and politics, colonialism and demand for independence, commitment to nationalism, to give us a scathing picture of the fates of the classes they represent: the sinking into abject poverty of the working class and the rising into wealth and adoration of the national bourgeoisie.