HICHILEMA’S CONNECTION TO UNZA IS NOT ONLY ACADEMIC, IT’S UMBILICAL

HICHILEMA’S CONNECTION TO UNZA IS NOT ONLY ACADEMIC, IT’S UMBILICAL

By Michael Lombe

Thousands of University of Zambia students yesterday, led by their representatives, marched to State House in a rare display of solidarity for a sitting Head of State. They called him, affectionately, “Bally our friend.”

In Zambia’s 60 years of independence, no President has commanded such genuine student support as Hakainde Hichilema. During Kaunda’s era, students and the ZCTU were the lone voices of opposition. In the PF years, student meal allowances were abolished by then-Minister Nkandu Luo. Hichilema not only restored them, but swiftly revived abandoned hostel projects, easing decades-old student accommodation struggles.

To understand this enduring bond, one must return to the formative days of the young Hichilema. He often recalls that his very first trip to Lusaka was when he was admitted to the University of Zambia on a government bursary under Dr. Kenneth Kaunda. A rural boy, raw and determined, he embraced academic life with almost monastic discipline.

While some of his peers spent allowances at Lusaka’s legendary night spots, Valentino, Studio 22, Moon City, Hichilema chose the library, the lecture hall, and during holidays back to his rural home. With characteristic wit, he would tease his friends:

“You’re spending your precious allowances on beer, which your bodies will eventually pass into the toilet.”

It was more than a joke; it was a philosophy. Where others saw instant gratification, he saw wasted opportunity. Where others saw allowances, he saw capital. Friends narrate how he used part of his student allowance to buy a plot in Kalingalinga, hired locals to mould bricks, and joined them on weekends to build his first house.

This training, born of a humble rural upbringing and sharpened at the University of Zambia and Zambia National Service military training, formed the discipline, resilience, and kindness that define his leadership today. It explains why students feel an instinctive connection with him. They see in him not just a President, but one of their own, a man who walked their path, faced their temptations, and chose diligence over indulgence. “Bally wapa UNZA”.

Students, by nature, are not easily deceived. Their support is not manufactured; it is genuine. And so, when they march for Hichilema, they are not merely chanting slogans. They are affirming solidarity with a leader whose story mirrors their own aspirations: that through discipline, hard work, and kindness, greatness is possible.