Magufuli: I don’t like the man but I like his name

Tanzanian Presdent John Pombe Magufuli

To have a strange name is not a new development in politics. The fact is that politicians want recognition and a special identity. That’s why, Mike hunt, Krystal Ball, Dick Mountjoy,  Dick Armey, Robin Rape, Dick Swett.

Our brother in the close neighborhood is no exception. Tanzanian President has an amusing name. The name Magufuli is just enough because it says it all.  It may not be an award winning name to the Tanzanians and the rest of the world but it communicates something to a large section of Ugandans especially those that share linguistic dialects with central region.  Magufuli is likely to be a wonderful president basing on the reforms he has embarked on in his country.

The Ugandan Parliament once had a member whose name was also interesting. The late Hon K. Wesonge (RIP) was another politician on our soils with a thrilling name.  He was never comfortable every time journalist abbreviated his name by knocking off five letters and retaining only the first letter K.  He always wondered why the media people chose to trim off letters a, m, a, n and a from his name.  Let’s not forget that the honorable was representing Manafa district (constituency). What a coincidence!

In a 2002 psychologists from the State University of New York at Buffalo, led by Brett Pelham, found that people’s first and last names may have an impact on the jobs they end up in, thanks to a phenomenon called “implicit egotism.”

The essential idea behind implicit egotism is that people should prefer people, places, and things that they associate (unconsciously) with the self…people’s positive automatic associations about themselves may influence their feelings about almost anything that people associate with the self. If Your Name is Dennis, you are more likely to become a dentist.

There is a local politician in my parish called “Embwa Tekamwa”- literally meaning a dog is not milked. I once asked him why he chose such a name but he answered my question with a question:  Why not?

There is something that politicians are not telling us.  When Mobutu, the late President of Zaire (now DR Congo) named himself “Kuku Wazabanga” many people thought he was joking. But he later proved that he deserved the name when he become the cock and ruled and controlled the hens for over thirty years.

Next time you meet someone called Volcano try your best not to annoy him because your skin cannot contain the temperature of magma.  This warming strictly goes to women who easily jump into bed with any man; if the man’s name is Anaconda think twice before you jump into bed with him. People who have watched that movie “Anaconda” can testify; the snake is terribly long and big.

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