African Freedom Day Message by Harry Kalaba, President of the Citizens First

African Freedom Day Message by Harry Kalaba, President of the Citizens First.

Fellow countrymen and women,

Today, we commemorate African Freedom Day—a day etched in the hearts of our continent as a symbol of emancipation from colonial rule, and a reminder of our right to self-determination. We honour the sacrifices of those who fought to free us from foreign domination, and those who envisioned a Zambia that would thrive under the rule of its own people.

But as we gather to remember, we must also reflect deeply and truthfully: what is the true meaning of freedom in today’s Zambia?

Are we truly free when we hardly run our own economy? When our key sectors from energy to mining, telecoms to transport are dictated by external interests, structured through multiple Public-Private Partnerships that rarely uplift the Zambian people?

Are we truly free when our nation remains trapped in an export-oriented economic model, exporting raw copper and importing finished goods, perpetuating a dependency that benefits others more than it does us?

Are we truly free when the majority of our people are economically constricted  to mining dump sites, eking out a living from what falls through the cracks of billion-dollar corporations? When land, resources, and opportunities feel more accessible to foreign investors than to the children of this soil?

And are we free when debt hangs over us like a dark cloud, when our sovereignty is mortgaged by decisions made behind closed doors—decisions that the ordinary Zambian neither participates in nor benefits from?

Fellow Zambians, freedom is not just about waving flags and holding ceremonies. True freedom is about economic independence, dignity in labour, equity in opportunity, and sovereignty in decision-making. True freedom is about building a nation where Zambians benefit first from Zambia.

This African Freedom Day, I call for a national mindset change. We must break the chains of mental colonisation that make us believe we are forever beggars in our own land. We must reimagine a Zambia that creates value, not just extracts and exports it. A Zambia where our people are empowered participants and not just passive observers in the economy.

Let us move from commemorating freedom to constructing it brick by brick, decision by decision.

The future belongs to a self-reliant, self-respecting, and self-determined Zambia.

Happy African Freedom Day!