Nyayo Za Obama

About the Book

SWAHILI: Katika Nyayo za Obama msomaji atasoma juu ya mambo makuu matatu: maisha ya rais Barack Husein Obama kuanzia kwa wazazi wake na jinsi walivyokutana, hitilafu zilizowatenganisha, utoto wake na hadi hapo aliko kwenye kilele cha siasa ; nchi ya Marekani iliyompa fursa, hasa kuhusu uanuwai wa watu wake, siasa yake, na sifa zake mashuhuri za masoko makubwa ya kimataifa na hisani yake kwa nchi zingine; na msomaji atamaizi nafasi pekee lugha ya Kiswahili iliyo nayo katika kufungamanisha jumuia za mataifa ya Afrika ambayo mengi bado yanatumia lugha geni kwenye fasihi rasmi za kisiasa na kisheria, na pia ni lugha pekee ambayo vyanzo vyake ni anuwai ya kutosha kuzungumzwa kote barani. Mwishowe, kuna orodha ya msamiati mpya uliotumika katika fasihi kwa minajili ya kuneemesha welekevu wa mada za karne ya mitandao na utandawazi. ENGLISH: Nyayo za Obama is a literary piece of work that tells the story of US president Barack Obama, starting with his ancestral connections in Africa to the nation of liberty, opportunity and justice for all- the United States of America. It is a compilation of anecdotes that tracks his life through a variety of socioeconomic and geographic influences which shaped his vision of himself and that of the world around him, and how he walked a tight rope of racial diversity he found in his life. It discusses his early career as a community organizer and how that experience led him to a meteoric political career and seemingly insurmountable challenges he had to face, first in his own state of Illinois and eventually on the natioanl scene. The book discusses the Obama’s political success in the context of a nation that, though still suffers the social-economic scars of slavery and racial preferences, has beeen steadily changing in many ways for the better, enough to allow the election of its president from a race that was once doomed to slavery and human indignities. It highlights the salient qualities of its kind of democracy predicated on the founding documents and economic freedom which makes it the market of the world; it informs about the nation’s history as the most charitable nation in the world and the champion of the rule of law and equal opportunity for all. It is written in the Swahili language, which is the lingua franca of several nations in Eastern and Central Africa regions of the continent, and the most important African language south of the Sahara desert. It will be among few books in Swahili that provides expositions about the United States and its history and the changing face of its people, economy and its role in the global village. The book comes with a list of vocabulary of English translations of some of the words that have been used but may not be common in the available Swahili litereature.

About the Author

Safari Ohumay ni Mmarekani mzaliwa wa Tanzania mashambani katika kijiji cha Bashay Mkoani Manyara. Kabla ya makamo ya miaka 30 alikuja Marekani jijini Washington DC alikoajiriwa na Benki Kuu ya Dunia mnamo mwaka 1978. Kwa miaka 18 iliyofuata alikuwa msimamizi wa miradi na programu za maendeleo ya miji na muundombinu katika nchi kadhaa za bara la Asia zikiwemo, Indonesia, Srilanka, Bangladeshi, Burma, Papua New Guinea, Nepal na Pakistan. Katika bara la Afrika aliwahi kuhusika na uchanganuzi wa awali wa miradi katika nchi za Swaziland na Malawi, na hapo baadaye alihusika na miradi ya utalii katika nchi ya Kenya. Safari anaishi katika kitongoji moja cha jiji la Washington kwa upande wa jimbo la Maryland. Baada ya kurudi kutoka Afghanistan alikokuwa akisimamia programu za USAID chini ya mwavuli wa usalama wa majeshi ya Marekani, alianza kufunza Kiswahili kwa watumishi wa serikali na wanajeshi wa idara kadha kupitia kwenye mikataba na vituo vya kufundisha lugha. Safari alisoma shule za Tanzania, akapata shahada ya kwanza katika chuo kikuu cha DaresSalaam, na shahada ya juu katika chuo kikuu cha Hult Kitengo cha Biashara ya Kimataifa, kilichoko kule Cambridge, Massachusetts, Marekani.