BEYOND THE FLAG AND NATIONAL ANTHEM: THE UNFINISHED JOURNEY TO ZAMBIA’S TRUE
By Anthony Kasandwe, MP for Bangweulu Constituency
As Zambia marks yet another Independence Day, the air is once again filled with song and celebration. The flags rise high, the anthem echoes across the nation, and the memory of the freedom fighters who delivered political liberation is rightfully honoured. Yet, beyond the festivities, a deeper reflection beckons: has Zambia truly attained the full meaning of independence, or have we merely completed the first chapter of a much longer story?
True independence, Kasandwe argues, must go beyond the symbolic gestures of sovereignty. It must be a lived experience he freedom not only to choose leaders but to live lives defined by dignity, opportunity, and purpose. He questions what freedom means to citizens still bound by poverty, hunger, and inequality. “What does sovereignty mean to a mother walking miles for clean water, or to a child studying by candlelight?” he asks. Political independence, he notes, must be secured at the water tap, in the classroom, and in the clinic.
He points to access to essential socio-economic services as the foundation of genuine freedom. While political self-rule laid the groundwork, Kasandwe emphasizes that it is quality education, affordable healthcare, and social protection that give citizens the tools to build their futures. Citing development economist Amartya Sen, he stresses that true progress is about expanding people’s capabilities their real freedoms to live the kind of lives they have reason to value.
The Bangweulu lawmaker further calls for an inclusive and equitable society where no one is left behind. Independence, he says, loses meaning if it fails to uplift women, youth, persons with disabilities, and rural communities. “A tree cannot thrive if only its highest branches receive sunlight,” he writes, underscoring that the nation’s true strength lies in the empowerment of all its citizens.
Kasandwe concludes that political sovereignty must be matched with economic empowerment. When prosperity is concentrated in the hands of a few, he warns, it breeds a new form of colonialism internal dependence. The MP calls for economic diversification, innovation, and fairness to drive Zambia’s next phase of liberation.
“This Independence Day,” Kasandwe writes, “let us celebrate not only the heroes of our past but also commit to being the architects of our future a future where independence is not just a date in history, but a daily reality for every Zambian.”