The Sunday News
Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
WHEN one plans for a function be it social or political, there is an important guest whose duty is to co-ordinate all proceedings. Such is the life of a master of ceremonies, sometimes referred to as director of ceremonies.
Hailing from deep in the remote end of Lupane District, right on the boundary of three districts — Lupane, Binga and Gokwe, comes 31-year-old Obert Dube. Dube is proud to call himself 41 — a tag he has grown to be known with.
Forty-one is the district number for Lupane. The poet who won a Nama award for best poet in 2010 has grown to be the MC for most events, some high profile.
To many, poetry has never been really a profession they could think one could settle for.
The country has only had a few stage poets, one notable one being Albert Nyathi who has, however, gone quiet since the Senzeni Na days.
For Dube, what started as a service at school turned out to be a career line for him. Dube says he has managed to build a decent life and home for his family which he takes care of from proceeds of being an MC and poet.
“It all started in 2009 when I was a teacher at Mosi-oa-Tunya High School. There was a tree planting event and the teacher who had been assigned the duty of being the MC didn’t come. I volunteered to take the challenge and people were impressed. That became a turning point for me as the school started using me as its MC,” said Dube, a father of two.
“I can say my career as a master of ceremonies started concurrently with poetry. People used to say I was talkative and that developed into my talent which I was to later realise. When I started I used to feel that people think that ngiyawumana but I later realised they loved what I was doing and they encouraged me.”
Since then Dube has been director of ceremonies especially at events organised by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education at district and provincial level.
Most people having weddings in Victoria Falls and Bulawayo, have sought the services of Dube.
He has also officiated at functions presided over by the executives.
A few years ago he was the master of ceremonies at the installation of Chief Mathuphula in Tsholotsho where the late
Vice-President John Landa Nkomo was guest of honour and then the inauguration of Chief Mswigwana where Higher Education Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo was present.
In 2012, Dube was to be director of ceremonies in front of President Mugabe when the Head of State launched the Community Share Ownership Scheme Trust in Hwange.
“I had been invited as a poet and when one of the MCs didn’t pitch up, people from the Ministry of Education who knew what I was capable of doing advised that I be seconded to be the Co-MC. At first I was scared but it all happened because I was used to it. The President was also impressed,” said a hilarious Dube.
Maybe Dube has got a rare talent. He brags of being multi-lingual.
“I speak all languages and that has come as an advantage to me. I can speak in Ndebele, Xhosa, Kalanga, Tswana, Sotho, Venda, Nambya, Tonga, Tshangani and Shona and tribalism has never been my concern as I strive to speak every available language in Zimbabwe,” he said.
“I like learning languages because I have learnt that one has to adapt and adjust to any environment and that can only happen when you know the local language. I don’t want to get to a place and appear a stranger.
“To prove this, some people don’t even know which one is my home language. At one point there was a wedding in Harare where they wanted an MC who could speak Shona only and I went there as they believed I was Shona. I did everything in Shona to the end and came back with my money, it was perfect, everyone loved it.”
Dube says wherever he is invited as an MC he always recites one or two of his poems to market himself.
“I can say I am a comedian, poet, entertainer and singer. Wherever I perform people ask for my contacts and I get a lot of calls people inviting me to officiate at their functions especially weddings. I used to hunt for functions but now they look for me. I have also been invited to be MC in Botswana and South Africa,” he said.
Asked about how he charges his clients Dube was evasive.
“I can’t talk about charges, that’s personal between me and my clients. Some offer high and some offer low and I don’t mind because people are different though I have set standards.”
Academically who is Obert Dube?
He has worked as a temporary teacher where he realised his dream and is now studying towards a Higher National Diploma in Human Resources Management and Public Relations.
“I have worked in hotels and as a teacher. Right now I am doing job-related learning at the Victoria Falls Municipality in the Human Resources Department as I am studying towards Human Resources and Public Relations with IPMZ and finishing this April,” he said.
As a developing artiste, Dube says he is also now busy proof-reading his novel called Impilo to be published soon.
He said he is also working on a collection of all his poems to submit to a publisher so they can be used as a set book in Ndebele. The 2010 Nama award winner with poem Uhambo Lwami has three albums on his sleeve, the other ones being We are One and Half Time. He is currently working on a new album he says will be out soon.
Dube has fused his poems with instruments into music and has collaborated with well acclaimed musos such as Zimbabwe’s jazz artiste Jeys Marabini, Phuzekhemisi and Mbuzeni both of South African maskandi music.
He, however, bemoans lack of recognition in the industry.
“Whatever we do we do it for our fans though in return for a living. I have built a house out of my poetry and MC job and I take it as a progression. I get shocked when people look down upon our work, that’s art and it should be respected,” said Dube.
