By The Rt. Rev. Dr. Musonda Trevor Selwyn Mwamba, President of the United National Independence Party (UNIP).
Zambia is critically ill and in intensive care. Our beloved country is fighting to regain her moral fortitude.
How did we get here, inside this cold, bare room where people and their countries most often come to die?
It has been an incremental, step by step, little by little encroachment on the fundamental values and principles of our great nation.
The symptoms have been building over time. Like a virus, we’re witnessing a tide of gender-based violence, staggering levels of corruption, institutional breakdown, a narrowing of the democratic space, human rights tossed aside – together these signs tell us that Zambia is very sick indeed.
Where did the rot start? We all know the proverb “the fish rots from the head”. And that’s the source of our problem. Without good leadership which is steeped in moral values that come from God and fundamental respect for humanity, our nation cannot prosper and develop.
As President Kenneth Kaunda never tired of reminding us: “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ and ‘love your neighbour as yourself’.
These are the foundational tenets of good leadership. Without them, a nation founders and fails.
But, sadly, our leaders seem to have forgotten or chosen to ignore them and that is why we find ourselves in need of critical care.
Morality in politics is essential. Years ago, President Ronald Reagan described how when he became Governor of California he began a practice, which he continued as president. It was simply that any issue brought to him was not decided on its political ramifications but rather on if it was good or bad for the people, that is, if it was morally right! Only on that basis alone did he made a decision. Morality was the deciding factor. This is the basis on which all good leadership decisions ought to be made.
Our leadership in Zambia has strayed from this as the vast majority of Zambians, 66% in the recent INESOR survey, believe the country is heading in the wrong direction, and that’s 20% more than in 2022, then clearly something is badly wrong. The frustration at grass roots level is palpable.
Millions of us are being pushed into abject poverty: skyrocketing food prices, crippling power outages, soaring unemployment, a rapidly depreciating national currency, eye-watering fuel prices together combine to produce a cost-of-living crisis, the like of which has not been seen before.
Instead of addressing the plight of ordinary Zambians with the seriousness it deserves, our government is tinkering with the constitution which serves no immediate benefit to our people. It only highlights the growing threat to our freedoms and liberties – the very heart of our democratic traditions upon which our country was founded.
Political figures from opposition parties across the board are being harassed, arrested and humiliated for speaking truth to power.
The recent death of President Edith Nawakwi of the Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) is not only a tragic loss but evidence too of the political harassment she endured in her last days. And this from our so-called ‘Christian’ nation.
And then there’s the case of Godfrey Bwalya Mwamba who is being denied his constitutional right to bail pending appeal even when his health is fast deteriorating. This shows a complete lack of compassion.
What we need are leaders who restore our trust in government and the institutions of state – the very pillars of society.
The natural trust and generosity of the Zambian people is being eroded by our government which is showing itself to be heartless and cruel. I sincerely hope our trust is recoverable for without it our country will continue to gasp for breath in life’s departure lounge.
We need to return to basics, to the wisdom of our founders. Our national motto One Zambia One Nation comes from the UNIP constitution. It’s a prayer, a vow, a vision for this country to develop and progress as one people under God. We all matter and we should all be guided by compassion and empathy for it is in these virtues that the best leadership lies.
Anyone who aspires to leadership in this country has to embrace those virtues with both arms; he or she needs to hear the voice of God, hear the voice of our ancestors and founders. This is the voice of love, peace, and unity.
The founders have passed on the baton to us. We should grasp it with both hands in order to rekindle the moral values in our lives and nation.
Our recovery from this critical state lies in the hands of our leaders. They need to demonstrate love, empathy and care. They need to manifest a politics of honesty, a politics of decency, a politics of civility, a politics of virtue, a politics of integrity, a politics of tolerance and respect for opposition politicians, a politics of service, a politics that upholds the poor and vulnerable in society.
I believe the ancient prophet Micah concisely defined good leadership in these ageless words:
‘He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.’
That is what good leadership looks like. Good leaders are the stewards of our moral conscience. They act justly and love mercy and are humble before God; and have the power to help resuscitate our great nation.
Those who have ears to hear, let them hear.
