Driving up to traffic light in Lusaka, one will often be
accosted by Kaponya (translates to those who run up and down the street!)
Kaponya have been around for years. They sell anything from rabbits and fly
swatters to dodgy CD’s, DVD’s, unusual underwear, football shirts, caps and
games of scrabble…in fact they sell anything that you really do not need at
that very moment when the lights go red and you are forced to stop. Whatever
you do never catch their eye, even worse never eye up their products, even a
mere flick of the eyeball on their wares and you are done for! When you are
least in the mood, the sun is at its strongest, hot, sweaty, irritable and in a
rush, you let your guard down and catch their eye and then by Jove they are
onto you…’ yes my friend very nice perfume, glue, batteries’….’hey just for
you, large saggy ‘Y’ fronts’…’yes mister…what about some gospel CD’s’…’ hey
Masungu what about my apples/oranges/tomatoes, they are most very
freshhhhh’…what about…’I really don’t want your fly swatter...no no thank
you…thank you but no…goodbye…I don’t want any tomatoes’! Now the more you do
this the more they come onto you, like mopane flies in the forest, they will
never leave you alone. I know them all by name now and wish them good luck and
I have made friends with many of them, its a hard life and one must give them
respect for the work they do and their perseverance. One man
in particular whose name is Lazarus sells the finest fly swatters and
football shirts south of the Nile, and always has a smile now matter how
hot the weather or hard his life, I hope that one day he lives the
life he dreams, he deserves to do well!
