I’M A VERY SAD ZAMBIAN TO SEE DEMOCRACY UNDER THREAT- Pastor Kennedy K. Mambwe

I’M A VERY SAD ZAMBIAN TO SEE DEMOCRACY UNDER THREAT

Firstly, I’m sad because in Zambia today, it’s very difficult to have open discourse, hold an opinion and express it without being scrutinized through political lenses. Contrary to the physical and ruthless street cadres under the previous regime, today’s cadres wear suits, make decisions in boardrooms and they hold positions of influence. In the UPND Government, we are experiencing caderism of self preservation, as long as it benefits the office holder, whether legally or morally wrong, they will do it indiscriminately.

If you want to discuss concerns in education, agriculture, the economy, governance or politics itself, you must be ready for ugly consequences. Today, citizens can’t express themselves freely without being labeled politically. The net effect is that people have opted to engage in whispered conversations, sharing and forwarding articles they come across in the digital spaces that resonates with their feelings on several issues.

Even though citizens may hold strong personal views about the state of governance, broken promises, high cost of living and a crippling economic malaise, they have generally resorted to this kind of “silent” behavior for fear of being isolated and targeted for victimization, segregation, demotion and or cyber bullying. Despite these real threats, citizens must be reminded and encouraged to exercise their constitutional right to freedom of expression and today, I take the liberty of my rights as a citizen to share my personal sentiments.

The high hopes that Zambians had in the current administration are diminishing fast as the first five-year term in office is fast approaching without a clear economic direction or turnaround plan. The much needed development to better the lives of citizens has become increasingly elusive under the UPND administration. While there has been much talk about CDF, debt restructuring, free education and the sale of mines, the impact of these actions is far from being realized or felt, definitely not before 2026.

It’s also true that the political rich elites are getting richer while the poor in our country are getting poorer while being used as door mats for the rich to step on, wipe their feet to enter into citizens’ sponsored opulence through voter patronage and manipulation.The cost of living is excruciatingly beyond the reach of 80 perfect of the citizens.

Going by the recent increase in fuel, electricity tariffs, inflation and an ever escalating cost of living, the economy is not showing any signs of rebounding in the short term, sparking fears of rising abject poverty levels and a widening gap between the rich and the poor.

It’s also disheartening to note that those in power, though they campaigned to fight and end nepotism, tribalism and regionalism, they are not making any deliberate effort to end the glaring evidence of the scourge, but are wantonly fueling what Zambians rejected in August 2021 through skewed appointments and an endemic and rampant tribal purging in the civil service.

If you ask most citizens why they are mute about these and many other issues frustrating them, they claim to fear a barrage of personal attacks from sponsored keyboard warriors using fictitious accounts and fake names in the digital spaces. These hired cyber bullies are hungry and unemployed innocent young people who are being abused by the powerful for self preservation purposes in exchange for bundles, talk time and table crumbs that are devoid of any youth empowerment.

In previous successive governments, civil society organisations took up vigilant positions to hold those in power accountable. Today, it’s sad to see advocacy groups infiltrated and their voices silenced complicitly as institutions of governance are being ripped apart callously without anyone to defend their existence and independence.

I’m a sad Zambian because democracy is evidently under threat when lines remain blurred between the executive, judiciary and the legislature in a society where some members of the fourth estate are compromised and timidly positioning themselves for business favours rather than serving national interest.

About the Author:
Pastor Kennedy K. Mambwe is an ardent advocate for freedom of speech and expression, Media independence and good governance.