HH: FROM BANKRUPTCY TO BUMPER HARVESTS
By Farai Ruvanyathi,
24th August 2024
Why Some Critics Must Either Be Blind, Jealous, or Just Plain Bitter
It has been a remarkable four-year journey for Zambia under President Hakainde Hichilema since that historic day on 24th August 2021, when he took the oath of office before a roaring crowd at Lusaka’s Heroes Stadium that nearly caused a sonic boom. His task was nothing less than herculean: to stop a runaway nation sliding into economic collapse, social chaos, and lawless disorder.
And stop it he did.
Policies That Speak for Themselves
What President Hichilema has achieved is nothing short of extraordinary, or, as some Zambians say with a smile, “something that makes his critics either blind, jealous, or strangely bitter.”
His policies have not only impressed Zambians but also inspired peers across Africa and beyond. The Constituency Development Fund has moved resources directly into communities, with locals building schools, clinics, and desks for learners who once sat on the floor. Rural maternity hospitals now have running water and solar power. Social cash transfers and cash-for-work programmes are transforming the lives of women, youth, and the most vulnerable.
Free Education: The Flagship
Over two million children who once roamed the streets are now in classrooms. Expanded school feeding programmes ensure they learn on full stomachs. University and college students once left in the cold now receive bursaries and meal allowances again, boldly reinstated after the previous regime “proudly” cut them.
Even serving civil servants can access part of their pensions to start small businesses, while retirees are finally being paid on time.
From Bankruptcy to Stability
When Hichilema took office, Zambia was bankrupt, the first African country to default on its debt in the pandemic era. Investors avoided the Southern African Nation like the plague. His first two years were spent painstakingly restoring credibility by restructuring debt and negotiating with diverse, sometimes uncooperative creditors.
At the same time, he dismantled violent party militias that had turned bus stations, radio stations, markets, even cemeteries into zones of terror. Zambia was on the brink of becoming another Haiti or Somalia. He pulled us back.
Defeating Drought, Delivering Harvests
When the worst drought in a century struck, Hichilema declared a state of emergency, took tough decisions, and rallied farmers to keep planting. No one died of starvation.The following year? A record 4 million tonnes of maize, the highest harvest in Zambia’s history.
The Economy Roars Again
Debt restructuring restored investor confidence. Mining companies that once threatened to leave stayed put. Last week Hichilema commissioned a mine whose expansion is bringing in a whooping $1.5 Billion! This year, Zambia is on track to produce nearly 1 million tonnes of copper, a milestone not seen since independence.
Tourism has surged, attracting 2 million visitors. The Kwacha has grown stubbornly boorish against major currencies. Inflation is heading toward single digits.
Law and order has been restored not by fear, but by justice.
A Freer Zambia
The political climate has transformed. Opposition leaders openly criticise the President without fear. Criminal defamation of the Head of State has been scrapped. The death penalty has been abolished. All in just four years.
So, About the Critics…
And yet, some still shout that Hichilema has “failed lamentably.” One wonders: are they blind to the facts, consumed by jealousy, or simply allergic to progress?
Because for the ordinary Zambian, the evidence is plain: hope is back, dignity restored, and progress undeniable.
This is what a lot of Zambians don’t know.The economy was in ICU if pf continued.If they were in power today civil servant were not going to have salaries today.They left the country bankrupt matako.Only gullible people and the blind ones knows nothing.pf destroyed the country more than you know.They defaulted paying the internal and external debt.Many Zambians are blind they still dont know that pf destroyed the country in an aggressive with impunity.Many Zambians dont know that building an economy and the GDP is a ripple.