Cockroaches everywhere

Barry Moody's atmospheric description of a Reuters correspondent's life in Dar es Salaam -- and its cockroaches -- in the 1970s, brought back many colourful and indeed pestilential memories of my own three years in Africa, a decade earlier.  

My first experience of serious infestation was in the Reuters office/flat in Conakry, Guinea, my first posting.  A full division of cockroaches formed a resident garrison, out of sight during the day but occupying the ground at night.  

If I came out of my bedroom in darkness, they were all there, carpeting the kitchen in particular.  As soon as I switched the lights on, they vanished in a split second, with a strange scuttling sound.

After a year or so, Reuters moved me over to central Africa, to cover Northern Rhodesia - about to become independent Zambia - and Katanga - trying to break away from Congo.

As a regional 'fireman' I flew over to Dar es Salaam in early 1964, to help our resident correspondent Graham Lovell, cover the revolution against the Sultan of Zanzibar and the mass slaughter, mainly of Arabs, by black Zanzibaris.

A side issue, for Graham and me afterwards, was a battle royal with Reuters accounts department.

The problem of covering the revolution was getting across to the island from the mainland, in the absence of any of the regular boat and plane services.

Before I arrived, Graham managed to pay a local fisherman to take him overnight to the island, on a very expensive wait and return basis.  The fisherman, of course, did not wait. Graham had to find another expensive lift back to Dar a few days later.

Meanwhile I flew from Dar to Zanzibar's primitive airport with two rival agency reporters in a Cessna piloted by a South African mercenary pilot, for a small fortune divided by three.  

On landing we were immediately surrounded by armed teenagers in ragged uniforms, thirsting for action.  We were held under guard for several hours and ordered to leave.  It was all quite tense.

Not much of a story for me, disappointingly, but at least I could justify the Zanzibar dateline. I carried on reporting with Graham from Dar for a week or so.

Graham (and I in support) won plaudits from London Editorial for our coverage, but we were both in trouble with Accounts for 'excessive and unauthorised expenses'.  

Graham had paid so much to the fishermen that he had classified his spending as 'boat purchase'.  Accounts refused to accept this without proof of Reuters ownership.  They also reprimanded me for failing to seek advance authorisation for my flight and not submitting copies of my ticket or boarding pass.

Enter Shahe Guebenlian or 'Gubby', who was already East African manager in my time, based in Nairobi.  He was a hard taskmaster, constantly badgering the correspondents for reports on Reuters business, but he was loyal to us in company politics. We were very grateful for his intervention after Zanzibar.  

Gubby managed to have the accountant dogs pulled off the Lovell/Somerville case.  Graham and I heard no more of our serious over-spending -- and it was serious in those days, when Reuters was scarcely turning a profit. ■