Have We Lost Direction??

I get very amused at the lack of thinking and general failure of some people's brains to function. There are things which anyone in leadership should possess and if they lack that, they are not worthy of the position at any level.

The basics include (among a great many things) honest, knowledgable of what they are supposed to do and the ability to discharge the duties fully and straight. If any of these lack, the leadership is questionable.

So can we say the current president and his group have these qualities?

Sata produced a payslip of the first lady as a teacher in Eastern Province. I honestly expected a mature approach to the issue than what we got. This is coming a few days after the president said Chiluba "was a damn good president"! The whole world knows of Chiluba's dealings and what is expected and what court cases are in place. That statement clearly made me see no hope in the judgement that will result from Chiluba's cases. I have always said the worst enemies to this country are the legal people as the courts have proven how cheap they can act at times when the president is involved. Do we expect a good and fair result for the people?... NO! We are better off sending such cases to the outside world as they have morals to look at the case and make a fair judgement! What nonsense we are doing in this country!!!!

The payslip action produced the most primitive reaction that any normal country would produce. Maybe we are not a normal country after all! Why would the interest shift from the payslip to the people who leaked it? I would in my normal thinking, expect the security wings to look at what the implications of such government day-light robbery would have on the first lady and her family. She is after all, a mere citizen of this country who should have the same treatment under the law. She should be looked at and people paying her investigated and locked up. The guy who leaked the payslip should be praised and he is a hero as he is protecting the interest of the country. The president should have been apologizing to the nation over this. But is he the kind? Is he worthy the position of defending the law and protecting the interest if this country? He must be really pissed as they have reduced the amount of money he wants to be milking the country out of. Thats why, the outside world will never regard him as a leader worth talking about - unless a monkey urinates of him, as it provides public amusement, the rest, they laugh behind closed doors.

You can't expect one called a leader to have a wife stealing money from a poor country. I really don't understand what curse this country has to be given such leaders! Under normal situations, you would expect the leaders to go out of their way and protect the country, save the little money and profits made even sacrifice to make Zambia a better place. Instead, they have loans and agreements which end up selling the country for a song! I'm ashamed at what they do. Believe me, when my fellow students here ask about my country, I simply say "we are a long way to civilization" and they laugh about it while my heart hurts like hell. I want to look people in the eyes and say did you hear what MY PRESIDENT said last night. Right now, I don't even accept him as a president of my country. He is a president of 'that country called Zambia'.

We need to look at things with normality and a sense of direction. We are heading nowhere and totally stuck with MMD! Any thing that comes out is day by day getting worse. I would be surprised really if Chiluba's went anywhere apart from proving me that the president is "Damn corrupt!". What will the payslip case lead to? How many people will lose their jobs so they can come up with more ghost workers! Can you imagine some funny NGO even supported the first lady that she is a victim of the system? I would never mention that NGO as it is not worth the energy to even type its name. Probably some RB created stuff to push more envelopes under the door! Do you think if such things happened in countries with worthy leaders, the president would be sleeping? He would be at pains to explain the case. Here is why:

The president is supposed to be in charge of all governmental departments. If not directly, he has people who oversee and report to him. His wife shares the same bed with him. Meaning, they are one and the same people making decisions with a bit of family input. Thats why they are the first family. If they such, how do you expect them not to know about the payslip? Is she lying to him about it? Or is he the one leading the whole process? Those are questions which should be asked. Because if they can steal government money through payslips, what payslips come from China for them to buy hearses? What country interest come from their trips? If none comes out, why are they leading the country. If she is doing that in secrecy, what president can be entrusted with a country who can't even see the wife stealing money. Who can he protect if his own house is cheating on the country?

We not only have none-leaders in place, but we may be the only country in this time of development to be heading to Kleptocracy!

My Political views

I write this blog as self-medication (and also, hoping it makes some people feel comfortable that they are not alone) for the disaster I see my country going through and all because of what these “leaders” claim to be doing the hard work when a lot more can be done. 2008 was a very bad year for Zambia. We lost our president and a lot of things were brought out about the “successes” that the MMD has achieved. On the other side, a lot of failures were highlighted. What I liked about the two was the evidence and alternatives which were offered on how this country can be moved forward. I thought the elections would bring a better way of dealing with our country's problems, but we merely wasted money in holding the elections as what was being said was just lip-service and the Mwanawasa legacy preached about was actually two sides and only one in being implemented.

"Mwanawasa Legacy"
Mwanawasa did two things for the country (as far as I'm concerned): 
a) Fight Against Corruption: He proved that he was a strong man of values and took on corruption of former leaders and made them feel the law. 
b) Ignored Poverty: He did not bridge the gap between the rich and the poor and had over 70% of the people living in poverty.

The rest of the stories are things he worked on, which were started by either Kaunda or Chiluba so I can't dwell on them. So the legacy he left can only be one of the two. Poverty or fighting corruption. Presidential candidates were all promising to continue his legacy and I was not happy as they did not highlight which legacy they would follow. RB took over poor and I'm a sad man, as I expected, he took the legacy I wanted to get rid of. So we have poverty levels being unaffected and the fight against corruption will soon slowly head towards a stop. A disaster at any level for me!

My wish was to have a leader to tackle the poverty situation of the people and not enrich the rich few few at the expense of national development. All hope I had disappeared with RB coming into office. The man has no vision, no fight, no stance and a mere figure in state house. What has he got to offer the people? What has done for the country? He can't claim or boast about reduction in fuel pump prices. We are still the most expensive in the region. The drop in prices is but a global issue not his works! Has done nothing that he would claim he reduced the prices? There is a mine disaster right now, and he saw it fit to then take his clan for a holiday on government money? Is this the type of leadership we wanted? Will this solve our problems? Will this move the national? Will anyone apart from his clan benefit from his holiday?

My hope keeps being killed even with a simple change in daylight, I realize I'm still in a nightmare. It's like we have a government which aims at making sure people are not happy, can't celebrate anything and to live miserably!

Until I run out of words or something good comes out of my dear country, I will have to self-medicate through the internet whenever I can. I hope my busy life will have to fit in some-how.

This is the year that saw the birth of my dying hope. I hope to have a chance to bring back that hope that I have lost.

Continuity... What continuity??

I read a letter to the editor by C. Banda (Rupiah's Holiday), The Post dated: 26 th December 2008 with interest. He's one of the few who voted for Rupiah Banda for the sake of “continuity”. Much as I agree with him on a lot of points, I have my reaction to the issue.

We have to be careful as a country not to be fooled by politicians all the time. It is common sense that politicians will use anything they see as a weakness to get your interest in a person. RB cannot have a continuity of any one in mind both living or dead. Hes an individual on his own. It should be spelled out clearly that even one's twin will never replace the other as they exist on their own. So when the issue of continuity came up, I laughed as people took it, one can continue what the other did. Unless one used to the other's thinking, that is, the other person's brain, it is impossible. So on a physical level, I'm very sorry, that cannot happen.

Mwanawasa was in his own right, a person wit his own values, beliefs, approach and responsibility that no one dead or alive can take over from him. They can either build or destroy or take a whole new path far from his. It is human nature. I feel his pain to realize what some of us were saying as being true of what RB will do, and he didn't believe, only to be hit by reality after voting for him. The mere idea of voting for him on the issue of continuity has put a lot of us in misery and the country has been sent decades into primitivity. Who on this planet can believe a sensible person will side and be promoted by the likes of Mulongoti, VJ and Teta? These are the worst things to happen to Zambia at this time. I'm ashamed to be from the same country as the three. Now imagine what a person will do if hes backed by the three. Simple logic told us that RB was not a choice at any time. He neither has the qualities that we require nor the logic of what needs to be done.


So “your” continuity only looked at one thing, continuity in poverty (were more than 70% of the people live in abject poverty), continuity in delays in bringing plunderers to justice, continuity in leaders enriching themselves, and nothing to do with this country's development or positive progress. We were given a chance by God to change the course of this country by looking and valuing the developmental aspects and put leaders who will work on issues that will benefit the ordinary citizens and we failed. We failed the country, the people of Zambia and most importantly, we failed our children, grand children and great grand children. Continuity is meaningless if it means heading in the wrong direction. And thats where we are heading. His inauguration speech had all that people expected. He had nothing to offer during campaigns. I knew that and saw it, but thought everyone one else saw it. I was shocked to talk to some people some of whom are my dear friends on the issue and they told me they were behind RB. I laugh at them now looking at what continuity they thought they were getting. The joke is not on them only, its on me, my children, my family, my neighbours and the whole country. We have made this country be the worst place on earth to live in by wrong choices. We have totally messed everything up.


Positive outcomes come from someone with positive things wherever he works, lives or found. No other way. What did RB do? Who was he found with? Has he ever contributed to positivity of the country? I doubt if there is a yes to any of that. No wonder I have no hope for this country with just the mere fact that he is leading it. It is such things that make other countries better. Our security wings (intelligence) should make it a point to bring out all the issues that a person like him have. They should not be a tool for a leader but a tool for the country. Obama was being protected when he was still a mere democrat candidate long before he won the nomination. Here, it serves the president and not the f**king country. What the hell are you trying to do. It is the country that you should work on. Chiluba was using the intelligence to steal the country's monies. Maybe I have a different meaning for intelligence but I expect the intelligence to even expose a head of state when he is doing wrong. But here it seems the intelligence is used actually to do wrong. Thats why all those who work for the intelligence hide the issue. It is because we know anything with “shu-shu-shu” is bad ending no matter how straight one is. Maybe we should even called it lack-of-intelligence and not intelligence.


The Post spent a lot of time bringing out these issues and I'm sure the intelligence was at them trying to find ways they can close it down. Close down the truth??? Only in Zambia!


Now we have people going on holidays claiming they have done a lot and need to rest. They carry everything maybe just leave chickens in the yard for the holiday on tax-payers' money. What work have they done? Reduce fuel pump price – which are expected because it is a global issue. And anyway, we are still the most expensive in the region! So what has been done there? Did he go to drill more oil so the pump price can reduce globally? Look at our roads – it is a disaster! I will be taking pictures for people to see what a country has become. I would never rest or even sleep if I was ruling a country in such a state. Kaunda should be ashamed to even greet his hand after what the country he left has become today.


I have seen him do three (3) things since he became president and none of which I can boast about it I was him.
1. Salary increment
2. Reduction of Visa fees
3. Holiday for his clan
is that worth celebrating over? We are a primitive country which have little or no values to look at that as development.

We have to put a lot of things to put in order to have any chance of making this country better than what it is today. It should never take a useless holiday to bring us to senses. We are not in any way going to progress with such leadership. Our priorities as a country are misplaced and totally messed up. Even our institutions don't know what they should do in making this country a better place to live in. we have lost a lot of ground with MMD in power than countries that were at war like Angola and Mozambique. They even have better structures than we dream about. You wonder what we were doing while they were fighting! They not only caught up with us, but they have even pasted us in development. Should Zambia be a mediocre country all my life? There has to be a better way to live than this surely.

Presidential Priorities

I'm a firm believer that anyone can do what they want. The limits to that lays strictly in them. I believe human capacity is determined by individual capacity which is affect by what they are. And to add to this, people are the products of their genes and environment. All these sum-up what one can do or can not do. I'm a little uncomfortable about the genes but have, with time, realized they could really contribute to what one can do. For example if your genes come from a family prone to certain genetic diseases, you can not avoid being affected by that disease. Quick to add, i'm a social scientist so i'm could be limited in my understanding of the genetics.

Having said that, I judge people on what they can offer, not what they promise to offer. The difference being that, the offer may be a result of people around them and not themselves taking that thing seriously. So if presidential candidates stand and say one thing when I know they mean something else, my better judgement should be to follow what I know they will provide.

My understanding of what one is worth is evident in what one unknowingly throws out as something he understands. Anything with links to being written for them or told about will carry the label of “I don't know this” no matter how convincing they try to be.

RB knew one thing about his priority when he assumes power, and he has implemented it. The rest are a mere suprise and shock to him that they should be addressed. My wife laughed at me when I said RB had no vision for his presidency as his scope was narrow and limited to just one thing – visa fees. He spoke with confidence and vigor about that than anything else. His entire being was focused on reducing the visa-fees. Even after being sworn in, thats the first thing he talked about. Don't believe me? http://appablog.wordpress.com/2008/11/02/zambia-inauguration-speech-by-president-rupiah-banda-november-2-2008/ And to that effect, visa charges have been reduced. How does that affect the Zambian in chibolya? Well, I will need to show you with basic tools of economics, and believe me, it does affect them and makes their life better off.

But surely, of all things that a president can take as priority, he chose visa charges!!?? why not looking at the poverty in the country that MMD seems to have ignored.

“there are game parks and warm hospitality to enjoy.
i want tourism centres all over Zambia.
i want the world to see how diverse and unique our country is.
i have already promised to reduce visa fees; this should welcome more visitors to our country.
i also want visitors to enjoy the fruits of our land.
our farmers play an important role in feeding us all. we will continue to support them in producing food surpluses.
the price of fertilizer and fuel has already come down.
these lower input costs provide a valuable window of opportunity.”

I wished I could look at the inauguration speech with a smile at how many good things he will do, but alas, nothing worth my pen! Tourism is more important than getting people put of poverty? Is it more important to show case Zambia to the world at reduced visa fees than making Zambians benefit from the fruits of their country? This is clearly a lack of substance on things to do when one is a president. No wonder we always rush to inauguration because in most if not all cases, elections have a rig stamp on them.

We had a discussion on the promises that the candidates had before the elections. RB and HH were lacking in substance or had ideas of what to do but lacked the simplest idea of what to do. Two points were taken from Sata which had substance and could have had a great impact in the country. Regardless of who is ruling, if Sata's ideas are taken up, a lot more could be achieved in this country. So sad that the one person with ideas is also old to take the presidency and maybe bring something worth talking about. I know a lot of people have nicely been brain washed by MMD to think Sata has everything bad about him. Yet none of them have achieve or even come closer to what he has done for this country. Even Kaunda could not cite one thing that is bad about Sata except that he is good as a minister but not as a president. RB is not even good as a mayor if we go by what he has done. I judge people by their works not by which chap disgraces them in public! How many blogs have been written about Sata and what they fear he can do. Not one of them talks about what he has done for the country – because all has been for the benefit of Zambians. During the last campaign the two important points I took from what he was saying were:
1.Setting up of hydro-power station in northern part of Zambia to supplement current supply of power
2.Establishment of another oil refinery for oil originating from Angola.

Hydro-Power Station
Current supply of power from ZESCO is insufficient hence the constant blackouts that are a daily routine in the capital city. I was shocked to land in a country in total darkness and yet we have enormous sources of hydro power. We live like rats or primitive villagers chasing for caddles every single day. MMD then proudly tells us, we are moving forward in development. It would be something worth talking about if the power shortage was as a result of major industries consuming all the power. But it is due to lack of planning and fore-sight. One more power station in the northern part would do wonders regardless of how many tourists come as a result of reduced visa fees!! Wake up, we need to move forward not deal on making this country any more primitive than it is today. Aren't we ashamed to visit other countries and you wonder how they have been moving and we have been going backwards?
Angola has better infrastructure than we dream about. Yet, it has been at war longer than we have been independent!
We need more and more energy for our industries and for sure, Sata has substance in his vision for a hydro power station in the north. What is that land doing if left neglected all this time?

Oil Refinery
INDENI is always down the greater part of the year. Thats not a secret. We have a refinery, but people in Livingstone find it cheaper to buy fuel from Botswana and even Zimbabwe (when it has). We are very expensive. There is a lot of oil being ferried from Botswana to Zambia on dug-out canoes. I have used this fuel, and for sure it is cheap regardless of what profit the people bring it in add on top and despite the risks! What has gone wrong with our country???
we are now backwards, primitive and shameless under MMD. We need to change our focus and see a future with the good priorities and brighter future for our children.

We need to judge these people based on what they can do. With RB, the efforts to rid this country of corruption will be reversed. A lot of current court cases with start being thrown out and slowly make way for kleptocracy to take over democracy that we have. He was the second mistake to this country. The first being Chiluba's second term.

RB will expertly mislead us to doom in a shortest time that we can imagine.

Lies and Holding a High Office

Lies and Holding a High Office

I'm not a man who respects liars or lies in any order. I believe every success is totally rooted in a man's ability to carry out things and duties without resorting to lies. I respect he who tells the truth even if that truth will hurt them or the people involved. After all, only the truth shall set you free. I believe every respectable office in the land is about truth and what it has to offer.

Headlines of “Rupiah is running a govt of conmen” really touches me. Not because who said it or because it was printed by a paper which is controversial, but because of the content it has. Its not long ago that we had people promising to deliver one thing or the other and I must confess, we cannot talk about the losing candidates on what they promised, because, they have not been given a chance to deliver what they promised. So by virtual of losing, they are immune to any attack. But what is of greater concern, is what they answered when the winner issued such statements of what they will deliver. We were told fuel, mealie meal and other goods' prices will be reduced when RB takes office. Assuming he was not in govt when the prices were being increased as if the government of the day only knew two ways of doing things – increase and increase prices. I would forgive anyone who makes a statement on what they will do when they get into power and fail to do so when they do due to complexity of government. But one who is a vice president and acting president should not make statements just to buy votes. It not only becomes wrong, it is betraying people in the country. It is an insult to assume you can say what you want and when they give you a mandate you simply run away from it. It is failure to stand by your word, failure to show what they voted you for. Failure of being anyone of standard. It is merely failure in all areas as lack of truth leads to lack of trust. And without trust, it is a journey died before it even starts off.

I knew the reduction in prices was a lie. I told people to mark my words when those things where being said. I can safely say, I have more truth than a leader of a country. I should be trusted more than the president – afterall, I said mealie meal will reach K100, 000.00 mark before the next budget. Prove me wrong!

We as a country have taken on a very bad angle to the way we do things. We have lost the thing that matters the most – truth!! I remember during the run up to the elections how The Post Newspaper was hit left right and centre by people who even claimed to be intellectuals. But one thing only mattered then and does today – was the paper lying? If it was the truth and they attacked the MMD candidate, they served us very well. If they lied about anything, I'm sure MMD has enough steam in them to do what they do best, silence the paper in any means necessary tactic. Look, no matter how much it hurts with what the Post did, if it is the truth, it justifies the attacks! And now, its the people who are feeling and being hit by the character that was being attacked. Can someone say they lied? Who is lying now? Have we seen what they promised as a party? Has there been any change in the lives of the people? Would the people change their voting pattern based on what has happened?

We have to take a lot of things to heart when we dealing with politics in a country totally covered with poverty and hunger. Yes, I know most of you think the roses and ice creams topped ideas which were being delivered by the MMD about the performance of the country are real, but if I post pictures of how Chibolya looks, which is a few metres from Cairo road, you would be shocked! But poverty is real. MMD inner circle will not tell you that. If NEC executive committee member Judith Kampijimpanga would say MMD has lost grip with grassroots, signals a very bad situation in the country. All roads which had tar in the townships when UNIP lost power are total gravel. Even Kabulonga considered to be a very high residentail area or suburb has totally dilapidated roads and drainage systems. 4mm rain is not good for the city as it will produce floods. We are the “most peaceful” country in the region and the most useless. We have the worst infrastructure, the worst working conditions, the most pathetic living conditions and yet we could be a bread basket of the region and Africa as a whole.

We shouldn't look at the issues of improving the country as an impossibility. We should put our house in order. Stop the lies and work for the people. Lets put as priority the needs of the people and not the salaries of political office bearers. I think we should teach ourselves that political office is a service to the people, the country and humanity not an employed for people who have failed in business and marriages. I feel disgusted to hear political office holders working so much to improve their living conditions at the expense of the people. We are not fools to say these things. We are educated and have taken personal interest in matters that affect the future of our mother Zambia. We actually serve the country more than the political office bearers do. The whole system is so wrong and disappointing I wonder how someone in government can even claim to know anything about running a country. Take for instance this situation:

Government is a non-profit making institution, and in simpler economics terms, it is a drain of resources of the country as it contributes very little if an revenue but consumes a lot. So public institutions are considered the same, be it ministry of Finance, Bank of Zambia, etc. Private institutions on the other hand exist merely to make a profit. This profit is what gets them involved in the business in the first place and will keep them their for as long as profits are being made.

So Economics 101: if a Bank of Zambia manager's salary is compared to a private bank like Barclays, who would be earning more? Let me simplify it, based on the fact that, a private institution, all things equal, will aim for the best brains and skills in achieving the most profits out of any market they are involved in, and will use the salary to encourage all the best brains to its ranks, unlike a public institution. I can forgive any Zambian, by saying who can earn more than one for Bank of Zambia? Its this wrong economics that is driving the economy deeper and deeper in a hole of poverty and economic mis-management. BOZ is known as the Banker's paradise and not the biggest private bank. A Minister of a third world country earns more than a CEO of a big company. But thats the economics of Zambia. A country led by an “economist”.

The simple logic: A non-profit making institution will never have resources to pay its staff better than a profit making institution. It simply wont have the resources. The Zambian economics simply take us under and with no way out.

You can't have people fighting to get jobs in government and not the private sector. What are they looking for in the public sector? Who will be making money for the country? Who will be providing the country with needed taxes and revenue for the country to mint gold? So when someone said I have taken these changes to parliament because it was too high, we expected a logical reduction, not a justified reduction. Workers are earning K250,000.00 per month and live in houses they are expected to pay K650,000.00 per month, when political office bearers are having in excess of K60,000,000.00, and live in a government house and have plenty of services and tax free allowances. It not only is unfair, but, its criminal for people to be led like this. They truly deserve far better than what they have for a government. This country has resources which can make living standards of the people far greater than things are today. We must start generating a culture of truthfulness and give people what they deserve. And as leaders we must not only say the truth and lead by example but cherish the truth so that it guides our everyday activities.

No country should have leaders who will lie out of anything. Some leaders were fired for lies that they told under Mwanawasa government, but now are back signing and dancing in money which Zambians are dying to work for. They are taxed more and more to sponsor the posh lifestyle of these same leaders. Very sad and shameful. We have to get rid of this lying government for a better Zambia.