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Adeladius Makwega – MBAGALA
“Her complaint concerns the way the operations section is being managed, where men with less expertise and fewer working hours than she has are being given opportunities and promotions simply because they are men. That is not fair.”
Mwanakwetu heard those words very clearly.
Two passengers—a lady with beautifully braided dreadlocks and a man who did not appear to be much older than her—were speaking freely inside the daladala. They spoke as if there was nobody else around listening to them.
It was Saturday, September 5, 2026. Mwanakwetu had boarded a daladala heading toward the city centre to do some shopping.
“You know, they have even taken away her travel permit. Whenever you ask about it, they give you no proper answer. How can someone as highly skilled as her not be assigned duties that match her expertise? If they don't need her, why are they holding on to her travel permit? They should simply give it back so she can look for opportunities elsewhere.”
Mwanakwetu was sitting quietly in the bus, with sleep slowly creeping up on him. But the conversation between these two passengers—whom he suspected might have been husband and wife—immediately drove the sleep away.
His ears became fully alert.
The conversation was like eating ugali, beans and a piece of very spicy meat; every sentence made Mwanakwetu even more eager to hear what would come next.
From the way the two were dressed, they looked extremely neat and well-presented. They carried a bag, their Kiswahili was polished, and even their English was impressive, with good grammar and clear reasoning.
That fascinated Mwanakwetu even more.
Why?
Because Mwanakwetu himself is a teacher of both English and Kiswahili. He holds a teaching diploma from Kasulu Teachers' College, where he studied between 2001 and 2003.
The two passengers continued talking freely, apparently assuming that Mwanakwetu was just an ordinary elderly man from Mbagala—a simple “madafu seller” who probably knew nothing about English.
They were mistaken.
Mwanakwetu was dressed in faded jeans, a worn-out checked shirt and sandals on his feet—but his ears were fully on duty!
“You know, Captain Neema Swai is not being given long-haul flights. She should be given major flights because she is highly skilled, especially when it comes to flying large aircraft. But that is not what is happening…”
Mwanakwetu became even more attentive.
“And whatever they are doing, they know exactly what they are doing. That is why, in my opinion, they have even withheld her travel permit. Perhaps they know she could secure an opportunity with another international airline and leave.”
Mwanakwetu began asking himself:
Who exactly is Captain Neema Swai?
The man continued:
“My dear, don't you remember that female engineer? When she realized that her career was being held back, she packed her bags and left. She went to work for a company involved in skydiving in the national parks. She felt that things at ATCL were difficult, with bureaucracy and unnecessary obstacles. If a leader cannot assign someone duties according to their expertise, then they should simply return that person's travel permit.”
By now, Mwanakwetu had completely forgotten about the shopping trip.
ATCL?
Captain Neema Swai?
Those two names began spinning around in his head.
That was when Mwanakwetu realized that the conversation was about Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL).
But one question remained:
WHO IS CAPTAIN NEEMA SWAI?
The two passengers continued talking while Mwanakwetu pretended to be listening to music.
The truth was different.
He was not listening to music.
He was listening to every single word.
At one point, the man gently removed something from the woman's hair. A moment later, he wiped some lipstick that had smudged on her face. The woman responded by playfully tapping him on the head, almost as if saying thank you.
Mwanakwetu smiled to himself.
When they reached a stop, about two stops before the final one, the two passengers got off.
The back seat was left empty.
Mwanakwetu was left with two names:
ATCL and Captain Neema Swai.
After reaching town, Mwanakwetu completed his shopping. But his mind was no longer on the things he had gone to buy.
He wanted to know more.
He began looking for information about ATCL and Captain Neema Swai.
Later, during his search for more information, he met one of the people connected to ATCL and got an opportunity to speak with him privately.
Mwanakwetu pulled him aside and said:
“You don't know me. I am a secondary school teacher. But love is troubling me badly. I am standing before you because I have one problem—I want detailed information about Captain Neema Swai. I want to marry her!”
The man laughed.
“Since you are talking about marriage, this is a matter of good fortune,” he joked. “I will give you some information, but please don't mention my name.”
Mwanakwetu laughed, agreed to keep the man's identity confidential, and the conversation continued.
The man expressed his personal view that Neema was highly capable and that, if there were challenges concerning her work, the matter deserved to be investigated fairly and based on evidence.
From the information he gathered, Mwanakwetu learned that Captain Neema Swai had received her education in different parts of East Africa before pursuing professional flight training in South Africa.
According to the information he obtained:
“She studied in Juja, Nairobi, then attended Kaboja Secondary School in Kampala, Uganda, before continuing her flight training at Blue Chip Flying Academy in Pretoria, South Africa.”
Various reports have also described her as one of the Tanzanian female pilots who have made significant progress in the aviation sector, including involvement in operating large Air Tanzania aircraft such as the Boeing 767-300F.
However, some of the claims concerning her working environment, promotions, flight assignments and travel permit remain allegations that require confirmation from the individuals concerned and the relevant authorities before they can be regarded as established facts.
Mwanakwetu has one fundamental point to make:
ATCL is a public institution.
Therefore, if employees or members of the public raise concerns about how duties, positions, promotions or professional opportunities are allocated, such concerns should not simply be ignored.
They should be followed up, investigated and answered transparently.
Mwanakwetu therefore calls upon the Minister responsible for the relevant sector, together with ATCL's management, to look carefully into the matter and ensure that every employee receives fair treatment based on ability, professional qualifications, experience and performance, without discrimination of any kind.
Because, at the end of the day, this is not merely about one person's name.
It is about protecting the reputation of our national airline.
And whenever ATCL is criticized, Mwanakwetu believes that part of the reputation of our nation is also being called into question.
And what about the famous statement:
“I WANT TO PROPOSE TO THIS FEMALE PILOT”?
Mwanakwetu would like to make one thing clear.
He was never seriously planning to marry Captain Neema Swai.
It was simply Mwanakwetu's clever way of opening the door to a deeper conversation and learning more about this Tanzanian female pilot.
But, as Swahili people often say:
“Gossipers will always have something to say.”
So don't start saying:
“Mwanakwetu is now moving to the Pare region!” 😂
To Captain Neema, if you ever happen to read this article, please understand one thing:
Mwanakwetu did not set out to disrespect you.
He first heard your name inside a daladala, became curious about who you were, followed the trail of information, learned about your professional journey and said to himself:
“This is a woman whose story deserves to be known.”
And that is why he wrote this article.
Not merely because of your name.
But because behind the name Captain Neema Swai is the story of a Tanzanian woman who entered a demanding profession, took to the skies, rose to an important level and became part of the story of Tanzania's aviation industry.
And now…
“I WANT TO PROPOSE TO THIS FEMALE PILOT!” ✈️😂
But the greater truth is that I simply wanted to know more about this woman of the skies.
Wishing you a wonderful day.
📧
makwadeladius@gmail.com
📱 0717649257
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