Khama\'s 5 Ds; Magic Wand for the Zebras
Source : Kutlwano
Author : Ndingililo Gaoswediwe
Location : Gaborone
Event : Feature
In the world of sports, teams or contenders are either categorized or recognized by numbers and alphabets. For instance, in football teams are put in groups or pools and tagged with alphabetic letters. These numbers or alphabets seem to carry something beyond just being tags. Take the Zebras. During the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, they were in Group K with Tunisia, Malawi, Togo and Chad. The Zebras finished at the crest despite being pitted against powerfulopponents.
The year was 2011 and the eleventhletter of i have donewonders for the national soccer team.According to dajuana.com, “K” representsextremes, never in the center – people under this category go from one end of the spectrum to the other. Thus, the Zebras moved from the extreme of being “The Whipping Boys of Africa” to the extreme of being named 2011 African National Team of the Year. Under this category are very forceful people, who get their point across with their energetic interpretations.
Their strong wills lead them on to greater goals and because of their steadiness,some “K`s” may feel as if they are taken for granted, although they can never be. Such has been the case with the Zebras. While many took them for granted and tagged them “The Whipping Boys of Africa” they uncharacteristically worked their way out of this disparaging name tag to claim the scalp of one of Africa`s football power house Tunisia inan opening match.
That seemed to have opened the floodgates for the Zebras and those who doubted that as just a fluke never had time to recover from their “delusion” as the boys in Blue, Black and White surged forward in a winning streak that garnered them an unshakable fan base and unprecedented recognition.
Now the the “K” era is over. Thus begins a new chapter where the real story of the mighty Zebras should be told when they face their much fancied rivals Ghana, Guinea and Mali in a group summed up as the group of death – Group D. As a matter of conjecture and given the Zebras recent record in the qualifiers and preparatory matches can we read something into the letter “D”?
In contemporary Tswana society, thefourth letter of the Roman alphabet isassociated with failure. For example,when a child obtains Grade D in school,they are given disparaging tags suchas “Donkey”, “Dull” or “Dimotlhotse”literally suggesting that one has dismallyfailed. However, such may count as mereperceptions or myth for the Zebras. The Zebras have shown ability to subvertconvention and achieve unprecedentedsuccess. Perhaps the letter “D” may, onceagain, prove to be their lucky charm.Being in the group of death may yet againturn them into executioners – doing thekilling instead of the dying.
In the realm of business, Da JuanaByrd argues that the “Ds” are known fortheir shrewdness and knowledge.“Ds” are able to apply the knowledgethey have gained through life to the business world. Their concentration isalways on what their heart desires. Theyare able to endure when others mightgive up. A sense of determination drivesthem to higher goals.
Consequently,born and bred in a society thatharbours negative connotations about the letter “D”, President Lt. Gen. SeretseKhama Ian Khama`s five Ds haveinversely added anothr dimension tothe matrix of views or beliefs.The “D” in President Khama`s way ofdoing things derives from Discipline,Dignity, Democracy and Development.Seemingly not enough, PresidentKhama added another critical element– Delivery to make the “Ds” five innumber. Remember when the Zebraswere drawn into Group K during the qualifiers there were only four teamsin the group. The fifth was added muchlater in what aroused doubt as manypundits doubted whether the Zebraswould make in a five-teams group thatcomprised two power houses in Tunisiaand Togo.
Again, when the countdown toAFCON was officially launched 50 daysremained, inadvertently tying thecountdown to Jerome Ramatlhakwana`sonly goal against Chad. The Big Animal(Zebra) as he is affectionately known,struck exactly 50 minutes into the game to seal the Zebras` berth in Gabonand Equatorial Guinea.can we then conclude that feats wereonly coincidental or wonder whethersuch was the work fate?
Thus, followingthis sanguine leader`s set of “D`s” inthe order of Democracy, Discipline,Dignity, Development and Delivery, thusemerges some form of pattern that onecan plausibly argue has been the Zebras`mantra of success.
First and foremost, democracy forms acritical cornerstone of good governance.The Zebras fulfilled their dream simplybecause they operated in a democratic environment. Invariably, the Players arefree to air their views anytime, anywhere,whether it`s about allowances or anythingelse. Like President Khama said, there isno success without discipline. The Zebrasare one of the most disciplined teams inthe continent if not the world. Off or onfield, the boys always uphold principles of good discipline.On the field, none of the players wasgiven a red card during the qualifiers.
Throughout the season of the AFCONqualifiers, players never boycotted a gameor misbehaved in any manner. The boysstood the test of time to earn the stripes vand are a brand that one can withoutshame associate with.They are not like the so calledcelebrities who are infamous for scandalsand blunders. None of the players wasever involved in such. For this reason, itwas simple for the team to preserve itsdignity. People have accorded the mightyZebras honour and respect even beyond the region.
Combined, such attributes precipitatedthe fourth “D” of development in theteam to earn a place among the top16 teams that make AFCON 2012.The players displayed a high sense ofmaturity and commitment during games.Each time the team played, signs ofimprovement were invariably visible.Since the team has brilliantly delivered in the qualifiers games, will they makeit at the 2012 AFCON finals? Thus, nowis the time for the fifth “D” to kick in.However, they can only do that withsupport from all corners and spheres of our society.
