LOSING IS NORMAL

Losing is normal (this article was published in The Daily Times) By Ananiya Alick Ponje In any kind of competition where there is supposed to be one ultimate winner, and two or more people are competing, the stark reality is that the rest become losers after the winner has been identified. This is something that cannot be compromised. Therefore it beats any level of rationality how two or more people can become ultimate winners in a competition whose sole aim is to find one winner. Victory is indeed a very inspiring and sweet thing in almost every life circumstance and loss probably is the hardest thing. Loss becomes even more painful if one cannot instantly accept it. Yet there appears to be no defined remedy for a loser other than the individual will to accept it as a necessary aspect in a competition. One just needs to accept it and move forward, for such is the greatest wisdom a loser can display. If every person who loses in a competition never accepted defeat, then the essence of competitions would be non-existent. It would be as good as not having competitions at all, otherwise why waste time and energy having competitions where no one will accept defeat. But to date, competitions or elections, to be more technical, are the best process of choosing a leader and there appears to be no direct theory which can disapprove of this. In 1994, father and founder of Malawi, the late Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda must have stunned many Malawians, especially those who think it is imprudent to concede defeat. He conceded defeat in the presidential elections and congratulated Bakili Muluzi even before the official results were out. It is no denying fact that Kamuzu showed the greatest extent of statesmanship when he made such a very 'unusual' gesture. It was a gesture which many other individuals, especially politicians, are supposed to imitate. Yet today, there are many instances where losers fail to concede defeat. After winners in the 19 presidential and parliamentary elections were announced, some disgruntled losers in a number of constituencies failed to concede defeat. They took their grievances to courts of law instead of accepting that they had lost and that it was time to move forward. They are busy with cases, where in most cases it is usually unlikely that the victory medal may be taken from their colleagues who were initially announced as winners and be given to them. In such cases where losers do not accept defeat even after the courts have ruled against them, they will still hold grudges against their victorious colleagues and this will subsequently create enmity between or among them. Yet what is required is that losers and winners should work together for the sake of the citizens. In other situations, innocent people become victims of circumstances, especially in cases where the two individual's factions engage in fighting. This is really very pathetic - people dying just because someone cannot concede defeat. Thousands of people died in the Kenyan post-election violence just because someone could not concede defeat. Sometimes for the sake of lives of citizens, conceding defeat is the best thing even if doubts on the victory of the announced winner are founded. After the results of the 1999 presidential elections were out, violence erupted in the major cities of this country just because Gwanda Chakuwamba could not concede defeat. And the scenario culminated into the death of one innocent kid in Blantyre's Chilobwe Township by the name of Epiphania Bonjesi. The ten-year-old girl had nothing to do with politics - she was years away from the legitimate age of voting, but she paid the price for profane desires of some disgruntled politicians who could not concede defeat. Voters also need to accept their candidate's defeat. In fact it is absurd to expect that everyone will vote for your candidate. It is competition, that it why there are competitors. Some parliamentary candidates who lost in the recent by-elections are still disgruntled about their colleague's victories. But the best thing they can do is to concede defeat. That is what is required for our country to move forward.