🇿🇲 BRIEFING | Tonga Calls Hichilema “Fake Messiah” in Escalating Political Rhetoric
Zambia’s political temperature continues to rise ahead of the August elections, with opposition leader Enock Roosevelt Tonga launching a fierce verbal attack against President Hakainde Hichilema in remarks that reflect the increasingly confrontational tone emerging within sections of the opposition.
In a strongly worded statement circulated on social media, Tonga accused the President of presiding over “poverty, division, anguish,” while questioning the ruling party’s confidence ahead of the 2026 elections.
“Hichilema the pathological liar and Fake Messiah delivers poverty, division, anguish; and shamelessly says give me another chance,” Tonga wrote.
The opposition figure further challenged assertions by ruling party supporters that President Hichilema remains electorally dominant despite mounting economic frustrations facing many households.
“How, amidst acute poverty and cheats, is Hichilema – the fake messiah, going to win an election when he has delivered anguish and pain?” Tonga asked.
But it was another section of the statement that is likely to attract even greater political attention.
“Tell your Fake Messiah — one Hichilema, never to try anything outside normal; or witness to face the equal measure,” Tonga stated, before adding: “We only worship the Almighty living God.”
The remarks come at a moment when Zambia’s political discourse is becoming increasingly hard-edged as campaigns intensify across the country. Economic situation, youth unemployment, and the rising cost of living are now colliding with aggressive political messaging from both the ruling party and opposition camps.
At the same time, the language being deployed by some political actors signals how rapidly the campaign environment is shifting from policy contestation into emotional mobilisation.
The ruling United Party for National Development has continued projecting confidence following strong mobilisation during nominations and growing numbers of unopposed candidates in some regions. Meanwhile, sections of the opposition are increasingly framing the election as a struggle against what they describe as shrinking democratic space and worsening economic conditions.
What is emerging is not simply an election contest.
It is becoming a battle of narratives, legitimacy, and public emotion. And with months still remaining before ballots are cast, the political language is already hardening.
© The People’s Brief | Ollus R. Ndomu