Crtd 05-08-31 Lastedit 07-01-21

Classical African Business Doldrums

The Desert Of Indolence, Lies And False Promises
 

Two weeks after my advance payment for finishing the hull, and this is already three weeks ago now, the sudden burst of carpentry at the shipyard died down. Even within these two activity weeks, Jeremia came with a proposal from Mr. Daniel: since the mast had to dry before mounting we had better order it now. Why not order mast, gaff, steel and rope wiring, make the rudder, and I could pay the advance needed: TSh 0.5 M (Euro 400). Fortunately I could say in truth that due to different circumstances, there was no money available at the moment.
Work at the yard died down. Why? Was Daniel perhaps simply broke and my advance for finishing the hull used for other needs?

To avoid a hard confrontation I just told him about the wrong size and that I would first go home to think what to do.
The rest of the day I considered using the small cabinet, but there were too many malfunctioning applications. I also considered getting rid of Jeremia completely, because as far as the dhow had made any successful progress, this could not be attributed to me having appointed a muddle-head like this as my controller. Then, I conceded to myself that a mistake like this can not arise from ill intentions, and that the next carpenter/controller might as well be a disappointment. I had started to know Jeremia and perhaps should exploit this investment instead of writing him off and jump down to the foot of another learning curve. Anyway, if he should be written off, there was no haste.
The next day I went to Jeremia's workshop, said we had to redo the cabinet and find out what had caused the error, if we still intended to work together and avoid it in the future. We had the plan to cooperate in the finishing of the dhow's interior (beds, cabin, kitchen, desk etc.) After lengthy discussions, in which I scented he tried to flee from the subject, the error turned out to be simply that Jeremia had taken my written number "" in "8 inches" as a one ("1"), so the whole width had become 18 inches. Jeremia maintained that the East African number "four" was written "4". He calculated the cost of redoing the cabinet, TSh 42 000, Euro 34 and nothing on his face implied any readiness to take some of the damage. Realizing Euro 34 is nothing for me and a fortune to him, and this was a mistake, not cheating, I decided to pay.
Days went by. Then Jeremia called to say he had made another mistake and needed another TSh 56 000. I suggested him to work and we would talk about it later. I asked about the shelves which were now three weeks (300%) late. They would be ready soon.
Finally, we were invited to collect the shelves. It turned out to be one set instead of two (no doubt Jeremia knew that), and half mninga half mkola, very bad quality planks with large tears, and the back was covered by old grey hardboard carrying the rings of the kitchen that had used it for putting hot pans.
Where is the other one? I asked one of Jeremia's men.
There is only one.
I went to Jeremia. Jeremia, we clearly agreed you would make two. I paid for them!
Dejected, Jeremia stared to the ground.
I left with the shelves.

The next day Jeremia called me. Had not I promised to pay another TSh 56 000 for redoing the cabinet? Had I forgotten?
I am coming right now, Jeremia.

Jeremia, I said on arrival at his workshop, can we sit somewhere?
We both smiled but did not really look at each other.
We sat down in a small office near his workshop, each at our side of a desk.
Jeremia was now quick to admit he had been wrong in making only one pair of shelves. The  problem had been that he had wanted to make very good chairs and table, his quotation for those had been too low and thus he had run out of money.
It took him somewhat longer to admit that mixing mninga with mkola is a decision to negotiate with the client, especially if he has ordered mninga.
Then, I showed him a number of telephone numbers East African people had hand-written for me, containing the number four written "". Now, he also admitted this should have consulted me on this.
Then, I said I understood it is difficult for him to offer taking part of the damage of the mistakes, but that it was a bit easy just to leave the damage to me without further ado. I told him thus far the damage was one missing pair of shelves, one far substandard pair of shelves, TSh 42 000 I already paid for redoing the cabinet and now he wanted another TSh 56 000. I proposed to accept the substandard pair of shelves, to waive the second pair without reimbursement, and to leave the TSh 42 000 for him to redo the cabinet, but no more TSh 56 000. His should now just properly finish the cabinet with good wood, though I would allow him his choice between mninga and mkola.
Jeremia agreed.
Silence.
I feel very bad about this, Jeremia said. I can understand you are angry.
I am not angry, I said, I am disappointed.
With big eyes of distress Jeremia gazed out of the window.
What is it, Jeremia, I asked after a while.
I wanted to say something, but I forgot, Jeremia said.
If it is important, you can call me and we can talk about it, I said, putting my hand on his, by way of announcement I was going to leave.
But it was clear I was too soon.
This TSh 56 000, Jeremia finally said, can you give it to me as an advance of my wage for supervision of your dhow building?
I put down 60 and we wrote it in the dhow book.
Smiling, still not looking straight towards each other, we shook hands and said goodbye.

Meanwhile, even I myself was nose-diving money wise: for many weeks, I had already been asking Kees van Vianen to give me the remainder of my deposit, for $3500 for paying my dhow advances. The answer would be, after display of some thoughful facial expressions: "probably end of next week". But it had remained "end of next week", one week after another. My money should be on the account of Kees, brotherly shared with his business, the best company  in town, but, the "end of next week"- ritual dance made me realize to my bewilderment, that it had had sunk with the total balance of this account to barely enough to monthly pay his worker's wages. The money for my boat was now busy building another one, a fast Tanzanian patrol boat, not unlikely later to become used to go and harass me in pirate-like semi government operations on the lake. I was funding the future enemy, and meanwhile quickly approached the end of my cash. I saw this risk three weeks earlier after repeatedly not getting money I asked for with no or suspiciously casual and airy explanations. So, I had quickly started the formalities to open a bank account and had wired money to it as soon as I was given the account number. But the account's balance remained zero, even though the money had quickly left my Dutch account. The entire mass of all transaction codes proved insufficient for the receiving bank to find the money.

The next day Jeremia called, because he thought it would be good to have a meeting with Mr. Daniel.
The meeting would be at Jeremia's workshop at one o'clock.
No Mr. Daniel.
Mr. Jeremia invited me in his now notorious little office and briefed me on Mr. Daniel's proposals: the price of the cotton used for sails used to be TSh 800 per m². Now another shop where Mr. Daniel is negotiating starts to quote TSh 1200. But the 800 quote is still made elsewhere. We need 600 m² of cotton. Now, in his contract with me, Mr. Daniel assumed the 800 price, and if he is to meet his total cost we should quickly buy 600 m² of cotton for the old price.
This would amount to a cotton futures market speculation with a expected profit of TSh 240 000 (Euro 220), I calculated in silence.
Then, Jeremia, continued, we could also do the mast, gaff, wiring, rudder.
The same list that popped up in four weeks ago, this time not because the mast needed to dry, but now because the expectations of the cotton market.
Since I had no money, I did not need to form an opinion on this. But I did ask some details: 600 m2 seemed a bit much to me. Jeremia did not know the answers, so we had to wait for Mr. Daniel.
That was not exactly my idea. I left for shopping, saying I would come back later.

Of course, I made it a LOT later. Mr. Daniel was around. The little office now being occupied, the meeting was in my car.
Mr. Daniel expanded on his proposal, Mr. Jeremia translated. I first asked them many details about cotton, cotton prices, how much we needed, yes 600 m², no 600 ft²? No 600 m². The total lengths of the wires turned out not yet to be calculated, prices unsure, I was give a quotation for mast and gaff, asked the lengths and diameters, about which one was again not too sure, the proposal seemed a bit immature, but the one thing was clear: money was needed. The two were enthusiastically soliciting the rich man's money unaware that he was broke too. But the technical and market details of the money soliciting arguments could suit me in case they would again try to bring me in a screw type situation by over-quoting prices and thus seducing me in the role of profitable dhow parts supplier to my own shipyard. So I let them talk and made notes.
After half an hour I showed myself satisfied with the information and shifted the subject to were exactly we were at the yard and what was still to be done to finish the hull, paint it en launch it.
Now, could put away my notebook: they neatly told me what I exactly knew but wished to hear once more from them: a hell of a lot. Three rows of planking all round, the framing and planking of the entire stern, the mast thwart, bindings, the heavy board top beams (three at each side that is 120 meters of heavy beam). The filling of the joints with cotton (Kiswahili: "blanketi"), sandpaper the whole bloody hull until it is smooth to paint, then three layers of underwater oxide paint, and two layers of two component epoxy paint mixed with saw dust (to avoid its hardness cracking the wood after drying, the local trick which we decided to follow).
More than 5 weeks, I said.
Jeremia and Daniel agreed.
Do you now when we said five weeks ago we would launch the hull? I asked.
Jeremia did not remember. Daniel did not understand the English of my question.
Today. I said. Smiling

Jeremia also smiled and translated question and answer to Daniel. The smiling of the gentlemen clearly was, as it is expressed in my local language, Dutch: "sheepish".
What I now have learned here, I said, also in working with you, Jeremia, is to work in small steps. That assures the money is not running out before its job is finished. So, for me, the rig is much too far ahead. I paid for the hull to be finished and launched. I first want to see that work done.
Jeremia smiled. But the cotton...
If Mr. Daniel had wanted to be sure of the cotton price, he should have finished the entire dhow half a year ago as he promised by contract. But I have good news: the cotton price can also go down.
Jeremia smiles. But...
Jeremia, I am paying you to be my controller. If you want to work for Mr. Daniel he should pay you and not I. By the way, will my redone cabinet be ready tomorrow, as you promised yesterday?
No, you see, I have problems...
You do not have to tell me. When will it be ready?
Tuesday.
OK, gentlemen, thank you.
Clearly, Daniel was broke, Jeremia was broke, they were talking as one man, so who knows they had planned simply to share the booty had I paid. But they had not reckoned with Kees.
Daniel, I 'll come to the yard tomorrow to take a look.
Jeremia looks undetermined.
I am only going to look, Jeremia, the talking has been done just now. I can go alone.
Warm smiles and handshakes at goodbye. Both realize that I could end cooperation with Jeremia as soon as the cabinet would be finished, and with Daniel after the launching of the dhow, when I could just tow it away and finish it elsewhere. They are not eager to come to that point so I thought myself not likely to see a cabinet and a floating dhow soon. So Jeremia has a time and money consuming innocent uncle in a criminal court case with the odds against him, and Daniel has no power in the saw mill and urgently needs 600 m² of cotton. (after three days "the power was back" but "the saw ribbon had broken")

Bastards. But now I know the game. We are now in the stage where both sides are in the defense, but they shall be the first to become desperate to score.

At home some short but serious axiomatic plane geometry on the basis of upsizing existing dhows from perpendicular photographs resulted in a sail surface not of 600 m² but between 142 m²!