Nevers Mumba Says Fred M’membe was Arrested for Insulting, Provoking and Embarrasing President Hakainde Hichilema

Nevers Mumba Says Fred M’membe was Arrested for Insulting, Provoking and Embarrasing President Hakainde Hichilema

ARRESTED FOR SIMPLY CALLING FOR THE BURIAL OF LATE PRESIDENT ECL?

I have watched several times the video below of Socialist Party President, Dr. Fred M’membe, who made a statement about the burial of President Edgar Lungu. I have also watched the statement he made a few minutes ago, upon his release where he echoed the same concerns in exactly the same frame and language. I have studied the various narratives being peddled in the media space regarding this statement and the arrest that was subsequently made of Dr. M’membe, and here is my two cents.

Allow me to speak, not merely as a politician, but as a pastor of 45 years, one who has prayed with grieving families in the quiet of their homes, and who understands how fragile this moment can be, not just for the Lungu family, but for the entire nation.

In times like these, emotions are raw. The words that we speak in such moments, therefore, carry even more weight.

In the past days, my brother Fred M’membe has given us a narrative that he has been arrested simply for demanding the burial of our late former President, Edgar Lungu. I would like us to ask ourselves, honestly and calmly, is this truly the real story?

Since the turn of the year, many of us have appealed for an end to the impasse surrounding President Lungu’s burial. Church leaders have spoken. Elders have spoken. Leaders from both the ruling party and the opposition, including the Patriotic Front itself, have made similar appeals. Ordinary citizens, too, have spoken. We have all called for dialogue between the government and the family. We have called for the restoration of dignity. We have called for national unity. We have done so without raising temperatures or assigning dark motives on either side.

We were not arrested.

Why? Because our appeals were made from a place of reflection and not deliberate political provocation.

I think that in his statement, my brother Fred did more than just call for the burial of late President Edgar Lungu. He went on to publicly question what President Hakainde Hichilema “wanted with the body” and went as far as asking whether he wanted to “eat it.”

I want to ask, in all sincerity, what does that mean in our African or Zambian cultural context? Was that statement an English figure of speech, or was it a direct translation from our own local context, where those who practice witchcraft are said to “eat the flesh” of those whom they have bewitched? What picture do the words that Fred decided to use paint? What conclusion does this invite grieving citizens and others to reach?

In our African setting, such language does not carry a light meaning, and neither is it ever taken lightly. It suggests ritualistic undertones. It borders on accusations of witchcraft, which, by the way, is not allowed by law in our country. It personalizes a very complex national matter and places it at the feet of one individual, as though he alone created the impasse in order to facilitate a ritualistic and dark spiritual objective.

As a pastor, I am guided by Scripture. Proverbs 18:21 reminds us, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” That verse is not poetry, but truth. Words can either breathe life into the nation or bring about suspicions that spread like wildfire.

We all witnessed the pain expressed by one senior member of President Lungu’s family in court, speaking of fears that her brother’s body might be used for rituals. We must not, as leaders, prey on that grief by creating narratives that spark more suspicion without proof, and innuendos that seem to suggest that President Lungu’s burial is being delayed for ritualistic purposes, when the real truth lies elsewhere.

When political leaders echo and amplify such thinking, we must ask ourselves, are we working towards healing as a nation, or are we working to further deepen the wounds that the past has dealt us?

We all know that the burial of President Lungu cannot be unlocked without the cooperation and involvement of his family. No government can achieve closure alone. To resolve this issue requires trust. It requires humility. It requires dialogue behind closed doors, not accusations on public platforms.

I must also ask my brother Fred a difficult but necessary question. What was your true intention when you chose those words? Was it to reconcile the government and the family? Or to provoke anger among many who may be grieving? Was it to help Zambia find closure? Or was it to further inflame the public and then later frame yourself as a victim of injustice when asked to account for your words?

Lastly, at a time when political alliances are constantly shifting and forging new paths and configurations, the grounding of many is being shifted and, in some cases, lost. This period of rapid change will likely expose the true intentions of many. Some will quickly abandon the cause, while others might start to look for or create fake political relevance using the most desperate of means. I do hope that nobody, not even the most depraved among us, will seek to abuse this very unfortunate situation to chart a path towards political relevance by using this moment of prolonged sorrow as a ladder back into political prominence. Edgar Lungu deserves better, and Zambia deserves better.

Like myself, my brother Fred is a master of the pen and of speech. He is quite deliberate in his choice of words, he understands tone, and he understands the role of body language and facial expression in speech. He therefore understands the impact of each and every one of these different elements of speech on their intended target. That is precisely why I am making a passionate appeal to him that he must reflect deeply on how he is using that gift. Is it to build a stronger nation? Or to seize a painful moment for political mileage? This is a question only he can answer.

Let us not create a false narrative that anyone is being persecuted simply for calling for a burial. Many of us have made that call. We continue to make it. We have done so from a place of genuine reflection and national concern, and we have not faced arrest because our words did not carry insinuations that wound and divide.

Let us choose words that heal. Let us resist language that divides. Let us remember that true leadership is not about how sharply we accuse each other, but how faithfully we can unite.

May wisdom guide us, and may Zambia rise above this moment with our dignity intact.