Chawa is a Swahili word for lice. Prefix “U” in the noun Chawa, makes it an adjective. Lice are small, wingless parasitic insects that live on the skin of mammals, including humans.
The parasitic nature of lice has made the word Uchawa being used with a symbolic meaning, which refers to the practice of gaining favour through flattery rather than merit. It focuses on praising those in power for personal gain. This slightly differs from the literal Chawa, which does not praise the host.
The word Chawa, for Sycophancy, started less than ten years ago and is now getting stronger. It started with celebrities, and it is now in politics. Uchawa had a negative connotation when it started. It is now taken positively, and people are fine being called Chawa.
In the political arena, there was a group dedicated to praising President Samia Suluhu Hassan called Chawa wa Mama. Chawa wa Mama can be directly defined as Mother’s Lice, which is Mother’s Sycophants. The Swahili word for mother in Tanzania’s political arena means President Samia, which is a compliment for her. Chawa wa Mama was launched in January 2023.
Uchawa is now getting stronger and stronger. Some more people relate it to being connected to people or expanding networks. It is for this reason that I have taken the initiative to differentiate the concepts.
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Expanding your network is always recommended in a professional setting. But there is a difference between being connected to people who can help you grow and being a Chawa. Now, let’s break this down.
It is important to connect to people when expanding your professional network. But when connecting with people, you always tell them how good you are in your profession, your accomplishments, and achievements, and how ambitious you are about your goals. This is contrary to what Chawa is doing. They tell what the person they want to connect to has accomplished and how good they are in their professions.
Expanding your network involves seeking ways to get somebody to see potential in you. In Uchawa, you just show how potential somebody is. While in Uchawa, the aim is to be favoured in some issues, the aim of expanding your network is to get connected to people in your profession for mutual benefits.
The key difference is that true networking builds connections based on one’s abilities and achievements, while Uchawa relies on sycophancy, ultimately weakening the integrity of professional relationships.
Anyone can praise anyone; we do that in many accounts, and everyone does that when eulogising. Praising someone without showing what you can do makes you just someone who seeks favouritism instead of connection. You just need benefits even when you do not deserve them; in the long run, this is harmful.
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On the other hand, expanding your network does not seek to get the undeserved but to use availability heuristics. When you are professionally connected to a person, and there is a need for a recommendation, you will be among the recommended people based on your shared profile.
A person can ask before connecting to expand their network: “What profile of mine will I present when meeting a potential person?” This question motivates a person to work on himself/herself and improve so that he/she has something to present when meeting people.
It doesn’t work like that for a Chawa who does not need to know their profile. You need to be ready to praise the one you’ll meet. This means a person seeking connection will improve himself/herself in various issues to improve his/her profile, while a Chawa needs not to improve himself/herself. Ultimately, we find stupid people in potential positions because they were just Chawas.
It is essential to recognise the stark difference between the concept of Uchawa and the practice of expanding one’s professional network.
While expanding your network is about showcasing your abilities, achievements, and potential for mutual benefit, Uchawa seeks personal gain through flattery and favouritism without self-improvement or merit.
The long-term consequences of Uchawa can be detrimental, as it can lead to unqualified individuals occupying important positions, thereby undermining the integrity of the professional environment.
True networking requires effort, self-reflection, and a focus on mutual growth, making it a far more sustainable and respectable approach to building connections than the hollow praise associated with Uchawa.
Francis Nyonzo is an economist interested in social justice and digital rights. He is available at francisnyonzo@gmail.com. These are the writer’s own opinions and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of The Chanzo. Do you want to publish in this space? Contact our editors at editor@thechanzo.com for further clarification.
One Response
Thanks Francis for a great article. Just to note something I recently learnt that the word chawa as a sycophant / trouble person started back in the 70s as seen in this song by Jamhuri Jazz Band
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eLifIn4BCI