EMMANUEL MWAMBA CALLS LUSAKA MAYOR A CLOWN
Emmanuel Mwamba calling the newly elected Lusaka Mayor, Chitambala Mwewa, a “clown” says more about the state of our political discourse than it does about the Mayor.
Chitambala Mwewa is not simply a social-media personality who suddenly appeared in politics. He is a businessman who comes from a family with an established business legacy. He inherited a business from his late father and has been involved in maintaining and running that enterprise. He has now also won a competitive mayoral election in Lusaka, securing 200,029 votes.
Emmanuel Mwamba has his own career record, and it should be judged on its own merits. He worked at Zambia National Commercial Bank and subsequently held a series of government positions, including Permanent Secretary in several provinces and at the Ministry of Information. He later served as Zambia’s High Commissioner to South Africa and Ambassador to Ethiopia, while also representing Zambia at the African Union and UNECA.
So if Mwamba wants to debate Chitambala’s qualifications, let him present the evidence. What businesses has Chitambala failed to run? What civic responsibilities has he failed to discharge? What policies has he proposed that deserve criticism?
But calling an elected Mayor a “clown” is not an argument.
And there is an important distinction in how we assess people’s records: one person’s career has largely been built through political, civil-service and diplomatic appointments; the other’s record includes running a family business and now winning an electoral mandate from the people of Lusaka.
Public appointments are legitimate careers and should not be dismissed. But neither should entrepreneurship and private-sector experience be dismissed simply because someone later entered politics.
If Mwamba believes Chitambala is unqualified, he should tell Lusaka exactly why—with facts, evidence and a substantive critique of his record.
Insults are easy.
Building something, managing it, preserving it and then putting your name before voters is a different matter- Zambian Dispatch