Interview
The Toyin Falola Interviews Holds Panel Discussion on Rethinking African Literature In The Modern Era
Panelist
Mwamwingila Goima Peter is an author/writer of children’s and adult literature using Kiswahili. He loves different arts, especially drama and music. Mwamwingila was born in Tanzania in 1981, the fourth of five children in a family of an economist father and an accountant mother.
Although his father played a great lot in molding him to become who he is today (literature man) by giving him bedtime stories during his childhood, he and his father did not enjoy that for quite long enough since his father wanted him to take mathematics in studies and to be like him. He could do something that led them to separate because he preferred art subjects, English and History. They were enemies until when it was declared that he could never turn out to be an economist or a mathematician but an artist. Finally, his father admitted him again as he was his favorite child.
Mwamwingila did several music performances on stage and studio recording sessions between 1996-2009 (bongo flavor music), as well as acting on stage and in a drama film known as OLAIBON and LAYON as one of the key characters, a film by DHAHABU ARTS GROUP, directed by Mashaka Mkeso also known as Robert Mashal. In 2004, the film was aired internationally on various channels, including Movie Magic in South Africa. Afterward, he became interested in film preparation and started learning about script writing before he turned to book writing.
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In 2009, he started putting his literature into writing. After ten years, he published his first children’s book Chifu Mtalimbo following a special request by his son Mtalimbo, who asked him for a gift on his birthday. The boy specifically mentioned to him that he wanted Waswahili tales and not otherwise.
Because of his love for children, he made one for him and, since that year, has been publishing one after another. His published literature works are Chifu Mtalimbo, Kisa cha Punda na Pundamilia, Kisa cha Simba Mtu and Babu yangu anajua kila kitu -1. All these he wrote to promote tourism in the country.
Kisa cha Gian na Siafu is a story that teaches children knowledge about ants. In contrast, Kisa cha Panzi na Kunguru explains the importance of good governance, a lesson that helps children and adults understand better why Africa has endless civil wars that lead to a lack of peace and security. This book is also in an audible version and the most listened to by children and adults on several patriotic occasions. Although some people described it as a political novella, he suggests that it should be used to encourage children to adhere to good behaviors in daily life, such as respecting one another and selecting friends to associate with.
He has also been facilitating other writers, encouraging them to pursue their ambitions, mentoring various independent writers and those under the Mtalimbo Books Project, and serving a contract with Tanzania Fasihi Fund – TAFF, a community-based organization to mentor children who learn to write stories. Under the children’s writer program, he managed to recruit six new talents and help them by molding their ideas into stories and later publishing their collection of stories in two different books.
In 2021, he was detained in the most dangerous prison in Tanzania as a civil prisoner. This act was a major setback to businesses and his career since he lost communication with different people and organizations. Still, to him, it was a rare opportunity to learn about life in prisons.
While in prison, he managed to start a class and spend his most precious time teaching local people and foreigners how to read and write. He also taught people how to write storybooks and entertained other prisoners with novels that his friend Husein Wamayma brought him. The writers under his incubation had lost hope of achieving their writing goals, and some even abandoned writing. Still, when he got out, he managed to assist in finishing his previous project. One of his students published a book titled for TUMAINI (HOPE) about inclusive education for children with special needs.
Life in prison was severely difficult for him as he was trying to set time to write, but few arrogant jailmen could not like the idea of him spending time writing. He fought and was wonderful. He managed to write about eight children’s stories and three adult novels within six months. He is recorded saying he has never done this, yet he doesn’t think it will ever happen again. He counts it a miracle of writing speed.
At the moment, he is on the special committee of which he is one of the appointees to mobilize more writers to join together for the national writers’ association. He has been one of the writers who keep on encouraging more people to write to further African literature.
Mwamwingila took several courses, including Database Management and Designing from the University of Dar es salaam, Business Management and Entrepreneurship, Sales and Marketing, Crime investigation, Service Marketing, Legal Studies, ISO Management System Audit Techniques and Best Practices Assessment from Alison College, UK.
Mwamwingila believes in achieving his goals by assisting other people in achieving the goals first. He is born to help others, and his happiness always comes after assisting the people in need, no matter how difficult.
Please join us for a panel discussion on Rethinking African Literature in the Modern Era by the Pan African Writers Association (PAWA):
Sunday, August 7, 2022
4:00 PM GMT
5:00 PM Nigeria
11:00AM Austin CST
6:00 PM SAT
7:00 PM EAT
Register and Watch:
https://www.tfinterviews.com/post/pawa
Falola is a Nigerian historian and professor of African Studies. He is currently the Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities at the University of Texas at Austin.
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