MAKEBI ZULU: FROM KAUNDA SQUARE STAGE TWO TO THE ROAD TO STATE HOUSE
Makebi Zulu’s story is not one of privilege or inherited power. It is a story that many ordinary Zambians can relate to, a story of struggle, sacrifice, determination and hope.
Born in 1981 to Pastor Alex Benson Zulu and Joyce Nguza Phiri, a hardworking marketeer, Makebi grew up in Kaunda Square Stage Two Compound in Lusaka, where life was never easy and every meal came through hard work.
As a young boy, he did not grow up surrounded by luxury or comfort. Instead, he spent his early years helping his mother bake and sell vitumbuwa, dondos and samosas at Kaunda Square Market and in buses around Lusaka.
Like many children from humble Zambian homes, Makebi learned very early that survival depended on hard work. He understood the pain of waking up early to hustle. He understood what it meant to help put food on the family table. He understood the value of every single kwacha.
Those difficult experiences shaped the man he would later become. They taught him humility, discipline, resilience and the importance of never giving up despite life’s hardships.
Makebi’s education journey began at Lusaka Boys Primary School before he proceeded to Munali Boys Secondary School. Through determination and focus, he later earned a Law Degree from the University of Zambia (UNZA), proving that a child from the compound could rise through education and persistence.
After serving at the Ministry of Justice, Makebi established his own law firm and gradually built a reputation as one of Zambia’s respected legal minds.
But even after achieving professional success, he never forgot where he came from.
Driven by a desire to serve the people, Makebi entered active politics in 2016 and contested the Malambo Parliamentary seat. He won the election and was later appointed Eastern Province Minister, a role that demonstrated the confidence and trust placed in his leadership abilities.
Throughout his legal career, he also served as personal lawyer to former President Rupiah Bwezani Banda and former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, gaining valuable experience at the highest levels of governance and national leadership.
To date Makebi has continued to protect the legacy and dignity of the late President Edgar Chagwa Lungu.
And today, Makebi Zulu stands as one of the youngest Presidential Aspirants ahead of the August 2026 General Elections, representing a new generation of leadership that many Zambians have been longing for.
For years, ordinary citizens have watched politics become a cycle of recycled leadership, where the same names move from one political party to another while many families continue struggling with poverty, unemployment and the rising cost of living.
Across compounds, markets, bus stations and villages, people are crying out for leaders who understand their daily realities, leaders who have walked the same difficult roads they walk every day.
Makebi Zulu represents that hope.
He represents the young man who sells vitumbuwa in buses. He represents the child who is growing up in the compound. He represents the ordinary Zambian who understands struggle not from stories, but from personal experience.
His journey from the dusty streets of Kaunda Square Stage Two to becoming a Presidential Aspirant is a powerful reminder that leadership is not determined by where one starts in life, but by vision, integrity, courage and commitment to serve others.
As Zambia approaches the 2026 elections, the nation faces an important choice, to continue with the old political cycle or to embrace a fresh generation ready to bring new ideas, new energy and transformational leadership.
And that transformational leadership is in Makebi Zulu.
For many ordinary Zambians, Makebi Zulu’s story is more than politics. It is a story of possibility. A story of perseverance. A story of hope.
And above all, it is proof that even a child from the compound can dare to dream of State House.
CREDIT: ZambianEye