By CIC Investigations and Research.
LUAPULA PEOPLE DON’T JUST GROW.
(Research Version a real life story by Chate Mbolela)
“I BLAMED THE TONGA INFLUENCE FOR MY ORDEAL!”
After being fished out of the bush I had been holed up for over six hours. As l lay on my hospital bed my mind started running through the whole episode. The male nurse had just finished suturing the two open wounds on my head and advised me to rest. The more l tried to sleep the more my mind got congested with the ‘WHY ME’ question. It was past mid night of 21 April 2011.
I kept wondering why it had to me. Why should the people of Mansa that l had so much in common with go to the extent of almost killing me when all that l was trying to demonstrate to society was that we can all achieve what we put our minds to through hard work. My hot pants were soaked as it was a rainy night. No shirt,no shoes, no spectacles and above all very hungry and very thirsty.
I started to ponder over the safety if my family. Was my mum safe at her place?I started lamenting and cursing myself what made me decide to stay home in Mansa among people who don’t appreciate hard work and progress. A society that has decided to criminalise hard work. After a deep reflection, l blamed the Tonga influence for my predicament. Clash of culture. lt has backfired lamentably.
I’m MBOLELA CHATE ,born and bred in Mansa. Went to Mutende Primary School then St.Clements Sec School.On 2 Dec 1987 l enrolled as a fresher at UNZA School of Natural Science to study Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science.
I delayed to graduate because of family commitments.
Whilst at UNZA I developed a lot of interest in doing business.
l realised lately that l was in the wrong school. l should have enrolled in the sch of humanities to study economics or school of business at CBU. l remember at one time l told a lie to my School Dean Prof. D.Theo that l had lost my dad so l asked for leave from school.
l told a lie because l wanted a bit of time on my business. Up to this day I feel very guilty for the lie l told.
University is a cosmopolitan society.
You interact with people with different backgrounds. lt was at UNZA that l came to learn about the Tonga culture;get highly educated first then use the book knowledge acquired to promote your investment.
The time l was graduating we had ventured into poultry farming.
After school was done l sat down with my parents and told them l would want to venture into the unknown and uncertainties. I told them that l would not seek employment but instead l would seek deployment. Whilst deployment comes after one retires for me l was retiring myself soon after school. l explained to them that l wanted to emulate the Tonga culture; get educated first then challenge the world.
Surprisingly my parents gave me a green light and with their blessings l set out to challenge the world.
The role distance l took that time was very alien to Luapula and was seen to be highly irrational. With University education one decides to be on the street. But l was resolved and determined to prove a point.
After l lost my dad in 2006 l was derailed a bit. Dad was my pillar in the day today management of business. Dad died when l had just enrolled once more at UNZA, school of humanities to study economics and development studies by distance. By the time dad was passing on, l had taken over decision making in business.
I remember watching on ZNBC late Dr L.Mwanawasa on his farm and then his mother on her farm as well. From what l saw l got challenged. I constructed some chickens runs at mum’s(now late) place for her to manage whilst l run the bigger part.
We diversified into piggery, fish farming and banana production. In no time we were leaders in all these portfolios in the province.
In 2009 we had first riots in Mansa. People looted goods from Amico shops accusing him of involvement in ritual murders. Amico is the biggest Investor in Mansa. Sensing danger of what was brooding in Mansa l wrote the civic leader, the Mayor of Mansa with a copy to the police Provincial Commanding Officer Mr A.Mbewe to engage the community and explain to them the importance of having investors in society in relation to job creation. As usual my letter was thrown in the dust bin.
On 19 April 2011 there was false alarm of abduction and a riot broke out. Amico shop was once more looted.
On 21 April 2011 at about 16:00hrs l took animal feed to my farm. Shortly after a boy came calling and warning that a vicious mob was descending on my farm to loot. And that should they find me l will be a dead meat. l refused to be a coward. l vowed to stay on and meet the confrontation. Another lady came and brought the same warning. She begged me to leave the farm. At that point l called the police for protection. They told me they were overwhelmed. No option l drove off leaving my investment of many years to go up in flames.
As l was driving home l came across a barricade made by another mob at a village called Sunday. When l came out of my vehicle hell broke loose. Twice l was hit at the back of my head and twice l fell to the ground. ln no time l had no shirt, no shoes,no money on me and no phone. Twice I was hit with a bottle in the head. The previous day they had burnt someone to death so there intention was to put me down and burn me as well. Every time they floored me l would quickly get up the pain was getting too much for me to bear.
When l told them it would be useless for me to go to sch spend so much time on the table only to retire into engaging in ritual murders.
l realised l was dealing with illiterates who never appreciated school let alone meritocracy.
“we re bearing children only for you to kill.” they lamented.
With no shoes,no shirt bleeding all over my body l was being paraded as a ritual murderer in the village.
MBOLELA CHATE the intellectual,the footballer, the football coach (coached Emmanuel Mbola, and Hon Bowman Lusambo),the team sponsor (Chicken Warriors F.C) and above all the CEO had been reduced to a commoner. Walking bear feet.
Then two men came and felt for me. They feared that there was a big mob on the way coming to finish me off. So they grabbed me by the hand and we disappeared into the bush.
We run for about thirty minutes .When l looked back l saw some smoke l realised my vehicle had been set ablaze. I knew after that they will come for me. We increased the pace at which we were running.
We had done about two kilometers thinking we were out of danger so we decided to start walking. Suddenly we heard some strange noise. The two men who had accompanied me on the journey fled leaving me to battle for my life. I couldn’t fight l was in pain and grossly fatigued. The four boys got me by my pants and started drugging into the field of cassava. One boy whilst he was pulling me started to give instructions to his friend to go back and inform the mob coming behind that l had been burnt to ashes.
The boys hide me in the cassava plantation and went to call their father who had given instruction to rescue me if they found me alive.
When their father came he made calls to my young brothers who in turn contacted the police. The police had no vehicle so Mr Kasongo then Prov.Manager for ACC came with 8 armed police officers. l was rescued about 23:30hrs.
l was soaked,very much in pain and cud not walk.l was put on a bicycle to get out of the bush to the vehicle. I was driven straight to the hospital.
The next day l was discharged. l was told mum for her safety spent a night at a guest house, My family spent a night at our neighbor’s place.
At the farm chickens and pigs were looted.
When l went to the police station to give a formal statement l met Mr A.Mbewe the former Commanding Officer for Luapula who by then had been transferred to Lusaka to head CID at national level. l reminded him that some one had sometime back written a letter to him warning about what had happened today. He told me yes he remembered. I told him it was me the victim of what l had feared would happen to the business community.
After meeting mum, l went home to reunite with my family. When l looked at my two kids innocently playing l felt for them. Today they would have been wearing a new tag of orphans. All this because their dad supplanted a Tonga Phenomenon alien to Luapula and it has burnt his fingers. Clash of cultures.
But when l look back to reflect at what happened yester~year l feel it was not in vain because many more graduate students in Mansa are staying home and venturing into the world using me as a role model.
Members of the Red family l have told this story not that l desire sympathy from you. It is out of urgency of the time. My prayer and wish is u could adopt my predicament as yours and set out to do something about it.
I was attacked when poverty in Luapula was at 65% and parents would afford to send children to school. Today poverty is at 81% in Luapula meaning a lot of our children will be out of school. This will imply more illiteracy in Luapula and revolution of ignorant understanding.
Luapula because of poverty has been earmarked by PF for all sorts of rigging. Bicycles being sent to Chienge to take advantage of people’s ignorance to manipulate them. Let’s fight this.
If at all we allow PF to bounce back to power using Luapula when we are well aware of their plans and tactics then all of us will be guilty of letting down our next generation. Every generation works for and on behalf of the next generation. What happened to me l fear should not happen to another person. It is still traumatising. Together we can fight illiteracy.
I’m in touch with the people in Nchelenge and Chienge .They are battle ready to mobilise but the only constraint are finances.
While Hon Lusambo parades himself as bootlicker number one for ECL, l too l’m not ashamed to parade myself as beggar number one for UPND Luapula.
So brethren if you have faith in HH like l do, if you have hope in HH of changing the way things are being run in our country as l do then let’s put our hands together and ensure we escort him to State House come September 2021.
I know the journey we started together maybe long and costly. The slope of frustration may be steep and we are likely to face false starts but please don’t leave Luapula behind. Hold weakingly Luapula by the hand and race together to the finishing line.
Members of the Red family we all serve the UPND so if we can’t fly let us run,if we can’t run let’s walk ,if we can’t walk let’s crawl,if we cannot crawl let’s keep moving for HH and the future generation.
Regards.
(be a cheerful giver. send your donations to Mr Aaron Mulenga UPND District Treasurer on 0979708320 and for gender and accountability notify Chienge Women Chairlady Bertha Chitalu on 0971036336 or myself on WhatsApp 0964657530).
CHATE ‘SHI MPUNDU’ MBOLELA.
Proofreading and Edited by CIC Editorial Section.
CIC PRESS TEAM