Is DEC DG Mary Chirwa being used to settle political scores with ECL family?
Editorial
When other countries disrespect our current and former leaders, no one should complain because we ourselves are the first ones to disrespect them. The current happenings were the Drug Enforcement Commission – DEC Director General Mary Chirwa can issue and circulate on social media a public call out to the former First Lady Esther Lungu just goes to show how undignified our politics in Zambia have become.
In a normal and functional society, current and former leaders especially those that ascend to the highest executive role of the Presidency should be accorded the due dignity and respect. In circumstances were there are suspected transgressions, investigations should be done, concrete evidence collected and were the case is considered water tight, that’s when a public arrest should be made.
Moreover, the DEC DG would have conducted the interview with the former First Lady in a more dignified manner without circulating the summons on social media. Our constitution guarantees that suspects are treated as innocent until proven guilty by a competent court. Only a guilty judgment from the courts can confirm if the former First Lady had indeed committed an offense. The public summon of madam Esther Lungu can only be described as cruel and meant to embarrass and humiliate her and the ECL family even before a full court judgment on the matter is obtained.
We know that because our country today is heavily opinionated and divided on political lines, some of our uninitiated citizens will blindly support any action done to embarrass the former first family of former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu – ECL, in publicly summoning his wife and the former First Lady Esther Lungu, because it may in the short term seem to further the interest of the current President Hakainde Hichilema and his family.
But we are here as the Zambian Business Times – ZBT to tell you the blatant and bitter truth that these actions by DEC DG Mary Chirwa are only setting another demeaning political precedence for First Ladies which will only go to haunt the current First Lady Mutinta Hichilema and those that come after her in future. Those who have served in high and significant offices will tell you that it’s impossible not to make decisions or take actions that in future end up being misconstrued as unacceptable. This is one of the reasons why Presidents world over and even the Zambian President enjoys legal immunity.
These same people who today are calling for and endorsing demeaning treatment of the former First Lady Esther Lungu even before the court conviction is secured will be the same ones that will be calling for the public humiliation of the current First Lady Mutinta Hichilema when her time is up. Is this the precedence we want to uphold?
Leaders make and take decisions with limited information, and at times based on the trust of their advisors, ministers and state House officials. Do you think HH personally knows all these people he has appointed? Even the reports that are done such as the fit and proper tests are vetted by aides some of whom have interests in the appointments. It’s therefore naive to think that HH’s decisions and actions will always be above par as they are also a people process and people make mistakes.
This advise we are giving is not meant to defend the ECL family or prop up the HH current presidency, No. it’s for the good of our beloved country Zambia and its long term interests and dignity. Today it’s former First Lady Esther Lungu who is being embarrassed and summoned by DEC, we are afraid that tomorrow it will be Mutinta Hichilema to face the same music.
We want to end by quoting Boris Johnson – a once all powerful prime minister of the UK who stated on his inevitable resignation speech yesterday ( 7 July 2022) that “ no one is remotely indispensable in politics”. It’s therefore incumbent that as a nation, we start to mature and act in the way that there is dignity and fair treatment for all before the law. Respect for former leaders should be accorded whether we personally like them or not because we want that head of state position to attract the best sons and daughters of this country to serve.
This also goes to political appointees that include Ministers, Foreign office holders, DEC Director General etc, these are indeed powerful positions but the occupants only enjoy the power when serving in those offices. These powers are temporal. Immediately one is relieved of the job or there is a change of government, that power is lost, and at most times for ever. It is therefore a known maxim that we all remember that we do unto others what we would like others to do into us.- Zambian Business Times