DETENTION REFLECTIONS (DAY 4): WHO RULES MATTERS; WHEN A WICKED MAN RULES, PEOPLE MOURN
Greetings from inside Twin Palm police station cells!
There is a misconception amongst Mr Hakainde Hichilema and his UPND government that leadership and governance is all about praise singing, agreement and harmony. This is why some of us get into trouble for speaking the truth.
Mr Hichilema must realize that politics are about plurality and diversity. Even Christianity is not about united voicing Bible verses or speaking the Lord’s Prayer in unison. Division, not unity, is a significant theme in the Bible. For instance, Prophet Jeremiah, from the Old Testament, was persecuted for saying what God told him to speak to the people. Jeremiah was opposed for saying what people did not want to hear from God. It’s not just Jeremiah, many of the prophets of God in the Old Testament received reproach, ridicule, mocking, and even death for speaking up. Our Lord Jesus Christ was also persecuted for saying and doing what other religious leaders and people rejected.
As Christians, should we shut up or speak the truth about what is harmful to society? Should we let lies, gossip and manipulation to be more widespread than the truth? Jesus answered this when he warned his disciples that they should not fear persecution for speaking His words because they will prove true even if those offended by them reject them. Jesus and his words are meant for the good of others, even if they sting. Therefore, persecution, beatings, being placed in jail, or fed to lions will harm or kill your body, but it is God who saves your souls for heaven, not other people. We tend to fear others and things we cannot control, but God is to be feared above all else.
That said, it is important for Mr Hichilema and his league to understand that political happiness, national prosperity, growth and stability are directly connected to the nature and moral character of any nation’s leadership. In essence, every nation’s peace, justice, stability and good fortune entirely depends on the quality, category and spiritual outlook of the leadership they elect for themselves. If those elected into leadership are materialistic or nonspiritual, unmoved and cold-hearted then that nation is destined for disaster.
Let us also not forget that every leader is an echo of their spiritual life, belief and background. There is no person who reproduces what is not in the heart. And what is in the heart is a creation of one’s spiritual journey, belief and childhood. Therefore, human beings are a product of what lies deeper inside them, predominantly, the awareness, recognition or belief that there is a supernatural being (God) greater than myself. So, no matter how hard they try to disguise their narcissism, cruelty and wickedness; genuine and Godly leadership is not hard to discern, distinguish and respect. As the Bible says in Proverbs 29 v 2: “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked man rules, the people mourn and lament.”
Clearly, the Bible instructs us that the one who rules matters! If that is the case, do the people ruling us today possess any noticeable traits of decency, justice or righteousness? Are citizens rejoicing or lamenting since their ascendency? It goes without saying that currently the nation craves for a God-fearing, truthful, kind, compassionate and virtuous leader. Of which, Mr Hichilema falls far short of these qualities.
May God help Zambia!
Fred M’membe
President of the Socialist Party