The joy in giving is its own reward - Sadio Mané of Senegal sets huge examples

What a week! It started off with early morning calls from various TV and radio producers.

They wanted my take on a variety of news items. One request came from Cape Coast and I was supplied with a video about a bullying incident at Adisadel College in which a new student was hurt.

They wanted to know my views regarding the reintroduction of corporal punishment in schools.

A second request related to footage of a certain school whose classrooms were flooded during torrential rain.

They wanted to know the role of the district assemblies and the Members of Parliament (MPs) in such eventful circumstances.

The last request was unusual; it wasn’t related to the kind of educational issues I tend to speak about in interviews.

Sensing reluctance, and still keen on claiming my indulgence, the producer proceeded to send me news clips and videos about huge stashes of monies in various currencies in a minister’s house. 

At this point, I was completely lost.

The producer was insistent and now sent me a resignation letter from the minister in question, and then followed it up with a presidential acceptance of that resignation.

Still realising I was tight-lipped, he now forwarded an invitation by a government prosecuting office to the person in question.

The turmoil did not quit there.

It rages on! Who knows how it will all end?

Producers, presenters

My relationship with TV/radio producers and presenters started in 1995 when I returned to Ghana from the United States (US).

In the beginning, my writings and recommendations were used as news items on some radio and TV stations.

Then followed various requests to present and debate on issues about education and best practices considering my experiences teaching abroad in a discipline I love so much.

In the process, I have developed a keen interest and respect for the young people who have made it their lives’ work in writing, oral communications, and both print and oral journalism.

They need support, mentoring and exposure to give off their very best.

My beef is where I’m misquoted, or a headline attributed — either by design or erroneously — to me.

Once, after an extensive interview with a leading daily, I requested to see the report itself before its publication.

In short, I ended up writing the whole thing afresh.

The views had to be recaptured with the appropriate language, the quotations had to be exact, and the conclusions had to reflect properly.

Quality and precision — both in journalism and teaching — do not exist in a vacuum.

They have to be caused.

Sadio Mane

Short of war, there’s hardly any buzz in the world to match the explosive excitement that comes with a goal scored in any tense soccer game.

Arousing such bursts of ecstasy, the great strikers make a fortune as they captivate the throngs of fans that crowd the stadia to witness such magnificent soccer skills.

Watching Sadio Mane score goals is a case in point.

He’s a joy to watch whether playing for FC Metz (France), FC Red Bull (Austria), Southampton FC (England), Liverpool FC (England), Bayern Munich (Germany) or the Senegalese National Team.

Born a Muslim in Senegal, he was seven when his father died.

Today, he’s regarded as one of the best players in the world and among the greatest African players of all time.

He’s seen often making “Du'a” before the start of a match.

Though he earns millions of dollars a year, some fans were shocked to see him with a cracked iPhone.

He responded as follows:

"Why would I want 10 Ferraris, 20 diamond watches, and two jet planes? I starved; I worked in the fields, played barefoot, and I didn't go to school.

Now I can help people.

I prefer to build schools and give poor people food or clothing.

I have built schools and a stadium, and provided clothes, shoes, and food for people in extreme poverty.”

From tabletop research for this column, I found that in 2019, Mané donated huge sums to build a school in his hometown of Bambali, Senegal.

In March 2020, he donated to the national committee fighting COVID-19 in Senegal.

In 2021, he helped finance the construction of a hospital in Bambali.

In addition, he financed the building of a school, a petrol station and a post office for his local community.

Lately, he commissioned a monthly stipend to each family in his hometown of two thousand people. 

After building a maternity care unit, Mane is reported to have said: “I remember my sister was also born at home because there is no hospital in our village.

It was a really, really sad situation for everyone.

I wanted to build one to give people hope.”

Let’s face it: at the end of the day, the world consists mostly of two types of people: those who tend to give freely to society following the divine angels of their nature; and those who strike Faustian bargains to pilfer from society what they see as entitlements.

Unfortunately, we tend to have too many of the latter these days.

I remember a comment from a very notable politician who once said in essence that people should stop criticising the emoluments for politicians, but rather run and win seats to deserve the perks.

It’s so clear now that if candidates were half as articulate in helping this nation progress as they were in campaign promises and speeches, Ghana would be neck to neck with the Asian tigers in the quality standards of living.

The missing links are commitment and honesty!

The writer is a trainer of teachers, a leadership coach, a motivational speaker and a quality education advocate.

E-mail: anishaffar@gmail.com