Reflections on Rev. Nevers Mumba’s Presser: Divisions in Zambia and the Hope of Peace
AM. 15 September 2026 — Lusaka, Zambia
“We can never boast of economic development going forward if the nation is divided. We need to unite, hence the reason I have, in consultation with others, resolved that we should heal our nation starting with dialogue.” — Rev. Nevers Mumba
“The Return of a ‘Flawed Hero’ Rev. Nevers Dr Nevers Sekwila Mumba “
History, that merciless judge, delights in recycling its flawed heroes.
On 15 September 2026, Rev. Nevers Mumba — preacher, politician, diplomat, provocateur, husband, author, and now peacemaker in making— strode flamboyantly into the limelight once more, aged 66, determined to heal a Zambia cracked at the seams after the disputed 13 August poll.
Once Vice President of the Republic, now confidante of President Hakainde Hichilema, the Rev. Mumba has taken up the hottest topic in Zambia as his next project: dialogue and unity.
His words were fire and brim-stone, yet curiously conciliatory.
It was not mere rhetoric. It was a plea, a provocation, perhaps even a Damascus moment. Scepticism abounds, of course.
Some scoff at the idea of Rev. Nevers Mumba — a man whose political career has been littered with controversy — brokering peace. Yet biblical history reminds us: Saul became Paul.
The stone the builder refused became the head cornerstone. Sometimes it is the long shot that counts the most.
The Context of Division
The incarceration of leading opposition figures — Hon. Brian Mundubile, Hon. Makebi Zulu, Bishop Trevor Mwamba, George Chisanga, Patrick Mwansa, and others — at Mukobeko Maximum Security Prison, Zambia’s own Alcatraz, is the jagged rock standing in the way of reconciliation.
Cold cells, iron gates clanking, solitary confinement, curfews, and the monotony of prison garb — this is their daily reality. Brian, 55, and Makebi, 45, wake up alone in cells, no children, no family, only the echo of foot-steps and head counts, its painful.
Brian has five children two boys and three girls, 12-year-old twins that miss him, wife too. Makebi and others same thing.
That is the irony of our democracy: freedom for some, silence for others. Do you see the hidden hand of Rev. Mumba here? He has not said it outright, but I sense he wants noting but love through God and proximity to President Hichilema, I could be wrong.
Flawed Peacemakers in History and Zambia
Rev. Mumba is not perfect. Neither am I. Neither are you. But history is littered with flawed peace-makers who nonetheless healed nations:
• Biblical: Moses, who murdered an Egyptian yet led Israel to freedom; David, adulterer and schemer, yet the king who united tribes under one throne.
• Africa: Nelson Mandela, once branded a terrorist, emerged from Robben Island to reconcile a racially fractured South Africa.
• Europe: Henry IV of France, once a Protestant warrior, converted to Catholicism with the cynical quip “Paris is worth a Mass” — ending decades of religious war.
If these imperfect men could stitch together broken nations, why not Rev. Nevers Mumba in the Mundubile Makebi Hichilema dilemma?
Zambia’s Tradition of Healing
Zambia has always found ways out of its darkest hours. From independence in 1964 under Dr. Kenneth Kaunda, through the one party state, the tumultuous transition to multiparty democracy in 1991, and the peaceful handovers of power since, the nation has shown resilience.
Even in 2017, when President Hichilema himself faced treason charges, the international community intervened, and Zambia avoided collapse. The playbook exists. Dialogue works.
Rev. Mumba, with foot-prints in both ruling and opposition circles, and with the ear of President HH, could be the stepping stone to dialogue in the bigger scheme and maybe even more, we don’t know.
If he can push open the door between H.E Hichilema and Hon. Mundubile, who knows what other doors might swing wide — doors to dialogue and reconciliation, to unity, to economic revival and peace.
Voices for Dialogue in Zambia
Rev. Mumba is not alone. Citizens First leader Harry Kalaba, analyst lawyer Muhabi Lungu, Linda Kasonde, retired Bishop John Mambo, Bishop Lungu of Chipata and international observers have all called for dialogue.
Their chorus is growing louder. The world is watching.
As for moi — diplomat, analyst, author, and friend of Hon. Brian, acquaintance of the Rev. Mumba — I stand aside to support any initiative that closes the gap for dialogue and peace.
My dog in the fight is dialogue towards peace and unity for Zambia.
The choices are few: do we look a gift horse in the mouth because it is offered by a conflicted political character like Rev. Mumba, or do we seize the opportunity to free our brothers from Mukobeko and heal our nation?
The Irony of Silence in Zambia
Many who once stood with brother Brian and Makebi have melted away in just a month.
Loud silence is the cruellest betrayal. Some supporters will never board a bus to Mukobeko in Kabwe, never hear the clank of iron gates, never smell the damp concrete of solitary confinement.
They will cheer from afar but never visit.
I, however, desire nothing but to see brother Brian, hon. Makebi, Bishop Mwamba, George Chisanga, Patrick Mwansa, and others out of that supermax joint.
They don’t belong there in a democracy.
If the Rev. Mumba is the vehicle we have, a vehicle God has chosen, I have no quarrel with it.
The end to love justifies the means. The path to unity is the crowning glory. Economic revival follows.
Conclusion
Rev. Mumba himself admitted: “I am not a miracle worker. But if we can get the two opposing Zambian sides talking, we can move forward in peace and unity. The world is watching.”
Indeed, the world is watching. And Zambia, fragile yet resilient, must decide whether to embrace dialogue led by a flawed but passionate peacemaker, or to languish in division while its sons rot in Mukobeko
As a lover of peace, I choose dialogue, making love not war. I choose unity. I choose to back the Rev. Mumba’s ‘dangerous’ but welcome love call. We don’t know what other doors may open if this one cracks open positively.
For tomorrow, while you wake beside your wife, Brian, Trevor Mwamba, and Makebi will wake in solitude. That irony alone should compel us to act — and to support Rev. Mumba’s miracle prayer.
Epilogue
The Bible says: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” — Matthew 5:9 The Spanish remind us: “El amor es la llave que abre todas las puertas.” — Love is the key that opens all doors.
Give love a chance.
Amb. Anthony Mukwita, Author & International Relations Analyst.