Dyson Gonthi: Cultural activist, radio personality

He is not sure as to when he was born, stammering several dates before he finally settles for June 6 1942. But he is certain that he was born in a family of 10 at Kasiya Village, T/A Chilooko in Ntchisi.

For those that lived in the 1980s, the name Dyson Gonthi rings a resounding bell as it was a name of note when it came to radio drama and cultural events.

While a student at Ntchisi Secondary School, he headed the student’s body of the Ntchisi Students’ Organisation.

In 1964, as a Form Three student at Robert Blake Secondary School, Gonthi staged The Coming, a play in which he played Kamuzu Banda. The play attracted the attention of authorities as it was a unheard of to imitate the then president on stage.

“When I revealed my intentions to stage a play imitating the president, I was discouraged by government top officials but I did not listen and went ahead with the play,” he said.

“I did all this because I was carried away with the coming of Kamuzu and politics in general such that the police were also on my neck looking at me as a threat to the government which was contrary to my thoughts and intentions,” he explained.

After completing his General Certificate of Education (GCE), he got a seasonal job with Admarc and briefly worked in Nasawa in Zomba.

Thereafter, he joined the Malawi Post Office as a letter sorter.

From there, he joined the Ministry of Local Government as a valuation assistant.

At the age of 18, the ever inquisitive Gonthi travelled to Zimbabwe to seek employment and adventure and, upon arrival, the Zimbabweans did not take a liking to him and deported him back to Malawi.

Upon his arrival from Zimbabwe, Gonthi, with his passion for journalism still intact, travelled to Zomba on foot for an in interview at the Malawi News Agency (Mana) where he was eventually employed as a reporter.

“Journalism back in the days was so strict and reports were restricted in terms of reporting. Government reporters were strictly for government there were others that concentrated on other areas of reporting,” he said.

While working in Nsanje, Gonthi received a job offer from the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation.

It was at MBC where he shone and rose to become Chichewa news bulletin editor.

A few years with the state broadcaster seemed to have left Gonthi all worked up. He left for the National Insurance Company to work as a sales executive but the love of journalism was always bubbling under and he went back to MBC in 1982.

“I went back to MBC after a call from the top bosses.

“To my surprise, going back in the newsroom gave me fear because by then, it had been occupied by a new generation fresh from journalism schools,”

But that did not deter the multi-talented Gonthi who got down to work on two radio programmes – Kalondolondo, aimed at unearthing historical information, and Nzeru Nkupangwa, centred at teaching people various cultures.

Gonthi also featured in Mama’s Restaurant, Malawi’s first ever TV soap opera in which he played Chisale.

For some time, he also anchored Tilondole Ananu, a culture-oriented programme which was beamed on MBC-TV.

As a cultural activist, he enjoys the gule wamkulu due to the moral lessons it imparts.

He also likes chisamba, a traditional dance involving women and teaches about life and death.

Currently, Gonthi is the director of Dygo Cultural Troupe, a dance group. He also heads the Culture Heritage and Development Centre based in Chief Jonathan’s in T/A Kapeni in Chileka, Blantyre.

He is also a church elder at Peak Hour Church as a result of the evangelical training he undertook at the Haggai Training Institute in Singapore.

Gonthi also works part time as an anchor at Star Radio on a programme Chiyankhulo which is centred on the importance of language.

He also anchors Miyambo, a programme on Matindi FM which describes various cultural aspects of Malawi.