Guest Blogger: Precious Kadodo
Kodak moment for Precious Kadodo (middle) during the 2021 University of Zimbabwe graduation ceremony. Besides her are Dr. Mupanga (left) & Advocate Martin Dinha (right).
WOW!
I just completed my 4 year sentence!
Now this one is a unique orthodox, a different true story of my journey at the famous University of Zimbabwe, (UZ) Law School.
When I was growing up, I never thought or dreamt of being a lawyer. I always wanted to be a dermatologist, even though I didn't know anything about the profession, I just fell in love with the sophisticated title.
My sister, Fadzai was good with numbers, and everyone in the family knew that one day, Fadzie was going to be a Chartered Accountant. The story was a little bit different for me, but after some mentorship sessions and career guidance soon after my ordinary level, I developed a passion and interest for law.
I was inspired by the stories of some of the successful female lawyers in Zimbabwe and beyond. When I was told about Beatrice Mtetwa and the incredible work that she was doing, I knew I had someone to look up to in the trade as an influential role model.
The history and background of Coghlan Welsh and Guest, among other leading law firms motivated me to pursue law as a profession. It was a daunting lifetime career decision to make, but today, I am glad, I took the right decision.
First year at varsity - 'Mafikizolo'
Getting a place to study law is a privilege, especially at UZ. Back home, family and friends were excited about my new journey. They started referring to me as ‘Advocate P.k’ on WhatsApp, while some referred to me as ‘Barrister Kadodo’ and my uncle would always say, ‘My Lady’.
Other people close to me also told me how they would deliberately commit crimes because now they had a lawyer in their corner. This was my situation and the euphoria in my backyard was heated up. I earned so much respect after my admission at law school.
When I arrived at varsity in 2017, I expected the same respect I was receiving back home in Masvingo to replicate itself, but to my surprise, things were different. I discovered I was just another girl from Masvingo, one of the most ridiculed places in Zimbabwe.
I would never forget my first lecture; Introduction to Law LB101, a module that Professor Lovemore Madhuku taught. As if the confusion and excitement I had was enough, Prof. Madhuku kept on telling the class that, 'Law is law, just or unjust, moral or immoral, law is law.'
This didn't make sense at all. How is law regarded law if it is unfair and unjust? I thought the role and purpose of law was to be fair to everybody, I mean after all, that's why we demand for the rule of law. Anyway, this is the very moment I realized that this was going to be one hell of a ride, a roller coaster expedition for the next four years.
My first year was a hassle, we were the 'mafikizolo's', the first year students on campus, fresh from high school. My classmates and I were very young and we were trying to get the hang of everything; from assignments, group discussions to presentations.
The learning approach was just different from high school, no uniform, no prefects, no assembly point, the list goes on. UZ was a different place altogether. I remember very well my first in class test in Contract Law. I didn't get a wink of sleep the night before after taking my favourite energy drink, Switch.
I was quickly introduced to the Cram,Pass & Forget (CPF) theory. I had to revise so many cases before that test, from Mangwana v Muparadzi to Smith v Hughes and goodness me the latin phrases were something else, consensus ad idem, animus contrahendi, and many others. My brains were put to a heavy test that evening.
My first moot court experience was amazing. The Eldorado-Chancer moot is a tradition at law school. During our year, the Contract Law class was divided into groups and we were given a set of facts to argue upon and also present submissions in front of the bench.
I was so excited, I felt like a lawyer, the demo session felt so real, it was like a proper court set up. I was one of the presenters from my group and you don’t want to know how that went. It was quite an interesting learning curve.
The year went by so fast and by the end of the second semester, I had become used to the very long library hours, the all-night group discussions, the dusty law reports and the "delicious" meals that were served at the dinning hall.
I also developed new friendships with Luminous, Takudzwa, Matthew, Masline and Tanaka. We are family now. We would go hiking together in the leafy suburbs of Mt. Pleasant just to gasp some fresh air when law school became too suffocating. On some weekends, my friends and I would go for swimming at Ashbrittle and obviously pass through Sem Levy complex for window shopping - we were in the capital city after all.
Second year at varsity – 'Catastrophe'
Procedural courses dominate the bulk of year two at law school and these are deemed hard and difficult by the majority of law scholars, especially Civil procedure. Our seniors would tell us how a lot of students failed Civil procedure and to make matters worse, the institution suspended supplementary examinations in 2018, it was a do or die situation.
It was a must to pass all the modules. I had to be on my A game and during the vacation I committed myself to remain focused on my studies so that I could perform better but something bad happened. I never saw this catastrophe coming. Why me? Why now? Maybe life is life, just or unjust, moral or immoral, I told myself.
I woke up at Avenues Clinic, lying helplessly on the hospital bed, after sustaining injuries including two broken bones on my left arm. My father was battling for his life in the Intensive Care Unit, (ICU) and Fadzai was healing right besides my bed. A horrific accident occurred along the Masvingo-Harare highway, when my father and sister were taking me back to school. I had to undergo surgery and after that surgery the recovery process was intense and painful,
I had to go back to school almost after six weeks of pain and suffering. I had to continue and soldier on with my studies. I went back to class with so much psychological trauma, emotional unrest and my body had scars, stitches and bandages. I was just not okay. I was a charity case at law school. I wasn't ready for school. I was on the brink of giving up. The wounds were still fresh and so were the memories, but I was strong, I had to be. I didn't want to defer. That was never an option, missing lectures for the whole year, no! No Precious, no!
I had to catch up with the syllabus, engaging my lecturers, while at the same time attending occupational therapy sessions. It wasn't easy, it's never easy but I managed to pass all the procedural modules. I had a strong support system and somehow everything went according to my plans. My industrial attachment at Masvingo Magistrate Court put a lid to my dramatic second year.
Third year at varsity - 'the variant'
There is an invisible bridge that exists at law school. This bridge separates the second and third academic years respectively and it takes hard work and perseverance to cross the bridge. One of the prerequisites of advancing to year three, was passing all the first and second year courses. I crossed the bridge with some of my fellow learned friends, while others found it challenging and threw in the towel only to pursue other career paths.
I honestly thought my third year would be a better experience, but little did I know that there was a beast called ‘Accounting for Legal Practitioners.’ This module was a variant on its own. Unlike Fadzie, I have always been allergic to the calculator and numbers but somehow, I pulled through. I changed my attitude towards the subject, it was the mindset shift that made me believe that, accounting is not difficult.
The year 2020 ushered in Covid-19 coupled with a series of lockdown restrictions that soon became the new normal. E-learning already existed at university but the new normal exacerbated the use of the platform because learners and lecturers were stuck at home. We had to adjust, wearing of masks, social distancing, washing our hands and temperature tests.
Finally, to close of my third year at university, I joined one of the leading and oldest law firm in Zimbabwe, Coghlan Welsh and Guest. I had a good time there. It was an all time world class opportunity, working and spending time with some of the finest legal minds in the country.
Final year at varsity – 'Labour
One can imagine the labour pains that women experience during birth, that was my typical fourth year. No pain-no gain they say, something beautiful always comes out as a result of pain and sacrifice. It wasn't easy, its never meant to be easy, but finally, I had my first born; my very first degree.
If asked how the final lap was, I would mention three things that stood out for me; dissertation, conveyancing and notarial practice. This trio drained the life out of me for the love of having the three titles. I endured through notarial practice and conveyancing and the outcome was fulfilling. One thing that kept me sane was the fact that I was almost crossing another bridge and this time, I was fast-approaching the finish line, I held on to that and I won.
When my final results were released, I was more than joyful, I felt content, blessed, proud, grateful, excited, satisfied and fulfilled. I'm fully aware that, while I have completed this phase of my life, the next chapter awaits me. One that requires not only talent, but work ethic, determination, hard work, passion and so much more that I’m still yet to discover.
On December 10, 2021, special graduation day, I became a lawyer and not a dermatologist. The Law degree came home in Masvingo, and I whispered;
MAMA I MADE IT!
@KadodoPrecious