Clearing an abscess

Clearing an abscess

The white tornado was at it again...
I arrive at school early, having arranged a meeting with the headmistress. We speak for about 25 minutes... I have a long list of items / questions / issues I want to discuss with her. Then I notice two men outside... elderly, well dressed, looking bright and wise. I get a positive feeling from them straight away. I go and introduce myself to them (‘I work for Abana (...), I am here for only three months (...), we would like to help the school (...) etc. My usual rhetoric. They tell me that they are the President and Vice President of the parents committee. Yeah, bingo.... I have been wanting to meet them for a while, as I have heard that they have potentially quite a lot to say about the running of the school... including the right to ‘sack’ the headmaster if there is evidence of mismanagement. I suddenly find out that there is going to be a meeting at 9:20 with all the teachers, the headmistress, Vincent (the executive secretary of the secteur – the local government authority (which also has a say in how the school is run). Vincent has just arrived. I go and greet him and remind him (once again...) of my position: the now assistant to the headmistress (ex headmaster, himself) should go; he should be replaced by a new person).I then go back to the two top representatives of the parents committee and, as calmly as I can, make that point again. Much to my inner delight, they both tell me that they fully agree with me. They have been thinking so for a long time...
The pace is picking up!!! I feel more and more that the upcoming meeting is very important. One hour ago, I knew nothing about it, now it is imminent and I am invited to attend. I am very happy to take the backseat and observe the proceedings. The meting is of course held in Kinyarwanda. Good!It is a school meeting and I, the munzungu in the village, am just the modest representative from a tiny NGO in a very far away country. The room is organised so the whole teaching staff sits in the audience and face the headmistress, the executive secretary, the president and vice president of the parents committee sitting together at the table. To day, the assistant to the headmistress is here – NOT a coincidence. He knows that politically he has to be seen at school to day...He is sitting in the audience and is trying to look professional... He takes a lot of notes. All the people at the table take turn talking very briefly. I occasionally hear my name and the word ‘Abana’ and muzungu being mentioned. being mentioned. Good, we are in the picture. At one stage, one of the teachers comes and sit next to me. He has ben appointed ‘interpreter’. I now feel as if I were at a plenary session at the United Nations...The translation is quite loose but clearly indicated to me that the proceeding follows the usual, very predictable pattern of going over general issues (enrolment figures, number of teachers etc.). After about thirty minutes, I am asked. to officially introduce myself to everybody present. I am now quite used to introducing myself and explain why I am here to anybody willing to lend me an ear in Rwanda! So I get up and start. I have decided that it is time NOW time to deal with the abbess in a more radical manner. ‘My name is blah, blah, blah, I am a volunteer with Abana, blah, blah, blah, my observations of the school are blah, blah, blah and the final conclusion I have come to is: the current assistant to the headmaster has to go and be replaced by someone else... NOW is the right time to discuss this and act!’ I sit down. I feel calm, strong, relieved, in my truth... SILENCE in the room. I have broken a pattern. I have upset a well oiled code of plenary session discourse at Rugerero. More SILENCE. Finally Vincent has the courage to follow up. He says that yes, he has been aware of some problems with the management of the school... The two parents follow suit... they agree with Vincent. The assistant to the headmistress is now talking for the first time. He is on the defensive. He does feel under attack from everywhere. Some teachers stand up and voice their discontent. Something is happening. I now have retracted in my outsider position. I observe. The abscess has been identified. There is no qualms about where it is located. The tooth will need to be pulled out. I will say one more thing. I get up and suggest that NOW is the time to democratically elect a new assistant to the headmistress... I nominate ‘Frederic’. Initial silence, a few smiles at my political incorrectness. Ten minutes later a secret ballot is organised. Frederic has accepted my nomination; another candidate wants to run as well, the old assistant to the headmistress declines the offer to run. Looks like he got the message! Frederic is overwhelmingly elected...
The mouth is a bit sore but you can feel already that the real pain is gone.
A tiny step for mankind, a huge step for Rugerero Primary!