MMD TO BOYCOTT CHILUBA’S MEMORIAL
…Allowing Nevers to Speak is an Insult to Chiluba’s Legacy…
On behalf of the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD), we wish to inform the nation that we will not participate in tomorrow’s State-supported 15th Memorial Service for our founding President, Dr. Frederick Titus Jacob Chiluba, who went to be with the Lord on the 18th of June, 2011.
Dr. Chiluba distinguished himself as Zambia’s Second Republican President, serving the nation from 1991 to 2001. As the father of our modern democracy, he courageously dismantled the one-party state, restored fundamental human rights and championed press freedom. He boldly transformed our economic landscape by moving Zambia away from a command economy toward a vibrant, liberalized free market that empowered private enterprise. Beyond our borders, President Chiluba was a distinguished statesman who tirelessly facilitated regional and internal peace, most notably brokering the historic Lusaka Peace Accord to bring stability to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
We have however been reliably informed that former MMD leader, Dr. Nevers Mumba, has been slotted to give the vote of thanks on behalf of the family at this State-supported event, despite not being a family member.
As the MMD, we know that the Chiluba family has a number of capable members who are fully qualified to give a vote of thanks. We find it highly questionable that Dr. Mumba has been imposed to speak on behalf of a family he never stood up for during the ill-treatment President Chiluba faced while alive, nor during the plight of his children over the past 15 years since the former President’s passing. What has suddenly changed now?
Furthermore, Dr. Mumba has actively attempted to dismantle President Chiluba’s beloved party, the MMD. He illegally attempted to alter the name of the party at the Registrar of Societies in 2024 and subsequently misled the nation that this change was ratified at an illegal convention he held in 2025. As a party, we remain locked in a court battle over this very matter.
Allowing Dr. Mumba to speak worse still, to give a vote of thanks at the Chiluba Memorial is not only a betrayal but a profound insult to the legacy of President Chiluba.
There are numerous individuals who faithfully worked alongside President Chiluba, walking with him through his highest and lowest moments and who continue to support his family today such as former Republican Vice President Enock Kavindele, who served as his Vice President.
Out of absolute respect for the true legacy of President Chiluba, we will not attend tomorrow’s State memorial. To attend would be to legitimize the actions of Dr. Mumba, which stand in direct contradiction to everything President Chiluba built and stood for.
Issued by:
Hon. Gaston Sichilima
Interim President
MMD