PRESIDENT Hakainde Hichilema has prolonged the burial of former president Edgar Chagwa Lungu so that the opposition could remain disoriented, former cabinet minister in the Movement for Multi Party Democracy Dr Katele Kalumba has said.
Dr Kalumba said Hichilema had prolonged the burial process so that the opposition could remain disorganised.
“President Hichilema is a very clever man. He made sure he deliberately delayed the burial of former president Edgar Lungu so that the opposition could not have chance to reorganise,” he said.
Dr Kalumba said Hichilema had managed to achieve what he wanted because opposition political parties were in disarray.
He said the opposition had not handled the issue of Lungu properly and had not advised the family properly.
He said as a result the people’s perception had started changing and people had now started seeing the family as the ones with the problem when in fact they were not.
Dr Kalumba said time was running out for the opposition. They needed to act before it was too late.
He said he could not see the opposition coming up with a formidable challenger to beat President Hichilema and called on them to ensure that they secured many seats in Parliament.
“My appeal is that the opposition should start mobilising resources to help them mount a serious campaign against the incumbent,” he said.
Dr Kalumba said the problem, however, was that the opposition were playing to the presidents whims without even realising it.
He said the only people who could mount a spirited fight were PF’s Brian Mundubile and Socialist Party President Dr Fred M’membe to compete with the Head of State.
GOD WILL MAKE ME REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT THROUGH THE PEOPLE OF ZAMBIA, DECLARES MAKEBI ZULU
Patriotic Front (PF) Presidential Candidate Makebi Zulu has declared that God would place him on the throne as President of the Republic of Zambia in August this year.
This came to light when he addressed the Pentecostal Assembly of God presided over by Bishop Raphael Silwamba in Mongu District, Western Province.
Mr. Zulu proclaimed that the God who raises kings would also elevate him to leadership.
He said his faith was the foundation of his political journey and that divine authority was greater than human plans.
Mr. Zulu affirmed that the people of Zambia should trust in God’s timing and guidance for the nation’s future.
He stressed that his vision for the country was rooted in spiritual conviction and a belief in God’s promise.
Mr. Zulu quoted from the book of Daniel 2:21, he declared: “He changes times and seasons; He deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.”
The Tonse Alliance has noted the statement by ECZ Chief Electoral Officer Mr. Brown Kasaro that removing the date stamp/official mark on ballot papers will reduce spoiled ballots and will not affect security features.
We respectfully disagree.
The date stamp is a critical ballot authentication safeguard. It provides simple, visible, and verifiable proof that a ballot paper was officially issued by the Commission. Its importance cannot be measured against the relatively small percentage of spoiled ballots recorded in previous elections.
Spoiled ballots are addressed through voter education, improved training of poll staff, and clearer instructions—not by weakening security layers. Electoral integrity must always outweigh administrative convenience.
Even a minor reduction in ballot security can create major doubts in tightly contested elections. Public confidence depends not only on results, but on visible safeguards.
Therefore, Tonse Alliance would like to condemn ECZ for attempting to compromise our election integrity and credibility by proposing to remove the ECZ date stamp and official mark on ballot papers. With the Presidential and General Elections coming up this August, this move is both suspicious, controversial and provocative to all stakeholders and must be opposed and stopped.
Hence, we strongly appeal to ECZ to retain the standard date stamp and official marks on the ballot as it has been all along. As we are all aware, the electoral process is what will protect the electoral results.
EDITORIAL EMV:OPPOSITION UNITY, A FAR FETCHED UNDERTAKING
Former President Edgar Lungu tried hard to bring the Opposition together.
He encouraged the Opposition to hold press conferences and raise common issues affecting the country.
This resulted in the formation of United Kwacha Alliance (UKA).
UKA Unity was immediately threatened by “founder’s syndrome”, the behavioral pattern where an organization’s founders maintain disproportionate power and influence as the entity grows, leading to bottlenecks, resistance to change, and stifled innovation.
UKA couldn’t grow rapidly and quickly because of this and attempts to make it a closed shop made the Alliance growth stall.
It was further plagued by state infiltration.
Other initiatives such as the “Zambia We Want fell” lost momentum when the organisation transformed into a political party.
Former President Lungu encouraged the formation of Tonse Alliance as a break-away from UKA.
Other than the Patriotic Front, the Alliance attracted smaller parties.
But this didn’t matter as they were relying on the back and countrywide presence of the Patriotic Front.
This succeeded when Tonse Alliance won its first seat, in the Petauke Central by-election.
But the prolonged absence of President Lungu in 2025 set stage for the confusion and hijack that gripped the Alliance.
Other initiatives such as the Opposition United Front and now People’s Pact Alliance have not attracted all Opposition leaders.
Recently, former founder of the MMD, Akashambatwa Mbikusita-Lewanika is pioneering and convening a semblance of Opposition Coalition.
Aka is convening a platform under Dr. Neo Simutanyi and his Centre for Policy Dialogue.
This process has received mixed feelings especially that it started as a Council of Elders, an advisory of the Patriotic Front, but morphed into a wider group of Elders to advise the Opposition and help them come up with a single candidate.
Many leaders of the Opposition have stayed away from the process and it is yet to be seen what will be achieved.
CWhat is becoming clear is that major candidates such as Fred Mmembe, Harry Kalaba,Brian Mundubile, Kelvin Fube Bwalya and others will be on the ballot despite the cry of Zambians for a united Opposition and such previous initiatives.
🇿🇲 BRIEFING | Kabwe Defections Signal Early Movement in The “No By-Election Window”
Five Patriotic Front (PF) councillors in Kabwe have resigned from the former ruling party and declared allegiance to the governing United Party for National Development (UPND), in one of the first notable political switches since Zambia entered the 180-day period in which by-elections are no longer triggered.
The councillors, drawn from multiple wards in Kabwe Central and Bwacha constituencies, cited internal hostility and disagreements within PF structures, including disputes over the treatment of their area Member of Parliament, Sydney Mushanga.
Those named include Sam Mhone (Ngungu), Watson Mwale (Chamanimani), Kayombo Mihova (Muwowo West), Moses Mumba (Muwowo), and Austine Kunda (Luansanse).
At a media briefing, representatives of the group said their decision was influenced by what they described as visible development under the UPND, and they have endorsed President Hakainde Hichilema as their sole presidential candidate ahead of the August general election.
PF’s acting Bwacha constituency leadership further claimed that dozens of ward and constituency officials were also disengaging from the party.
🇿🇲 VIEWPOINT | Who is Buying Zambia’s Bonds and Why It Matters
When headlines say over K21 billion chased Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) bonds at the latest Bank of Zambia auction, many citizens understandably ask a simple question: who is buying all this debt?
The bond market can sound like an elite conversation, distant from ordinary life. Yet in reality, these auctions are not just about finance. They are about trust, stability, and the kind of economic system Zambia is slowly rebuilding after years of fiscal strain.
To understand why this matters, one must first understand the people shaping Zambia’s recovery.
The biggest buyers of GRZ bonds are not individuals walking into a bank with cash. They are large, regulated institutions that manage long-term pools of money. Commercial banks invest in government securities as part of their balance sheet management. Pension funds invest contributions from workers across Zambia to generate stable returns over time. Insurance companies also participate because they must place premiums in assets that are predictable and safe. Increasingly, foreign institutional investors join in when they sense macroeconomic stabilisation and improving policy credibility.
In short, when demand surges, it is often a signal that professional capital is becoming more comfortable with Zambia’s direction.
Government bonds are essentially a structured loan to the State. Investors buy them because they offer a defined return, backed by the government’s obligation to repay. For pension funds, this matters deeply. A pension fund is not looking for quick profits. It is looking for long-term certainty, because it must pay retirees years into the future. Banks use bonds as a relatively low-risk way to earn interest while balancing liquidity. Insurance firms rely on bonds to provide stable income streams that match long-term liabilities.
So when the bond auction attracts record demand, it reflects something larger than money chasing yield. It reflects confidence in the State’s ability to honour its commitments.
Zambia’s bond market is responding to a shifting macroeconomic narrative. Inflation has eased into single digits. The Bank of Zambia has begun cutting the policy rate. Reserves have improved. Copper prices remain supportive. Investor confidence has been strengthened by the IMF programme and restructuring progress. These factors create the foundation investors require: predictability. Markets do not reward perfection. They reward clarity, and the bond auction is one of the clearest places where that confidence shows up in real numbers.
The bond market is not an abstract scoreboard. It affects the real economy in several ways. When government can borrow at more sustainable rates, it reduces pressure on the national budget. When interest costs stabilise, fiscal space slowly opens for infrastructure, health, and education. A functioning bond market also reduces dependence on external borrowing, because domestic financing is more controlled and less exposed to foreign currency shocks.
Strong demand for long-term bonds suggests investors are not only betting on the next month. They are betting on Zambia’s trajectory over years. That is not a small signal.
This confidence, however, remains fragile. Bond demand can reverse quickly if inflation returns, if fiscal discipline weakens, or if political uncertainty disrupts the reform path. Oversubscription is not a trophy. It is a responsibility. Borrowing must remain disciplined, and spending must remain transparent.
The real headline is not simply that Zambia attracted K21 billion in bids. The headline is that Zambia is slowly rebuilding an institutional investor ecosystem, where pensions, banks, insurers, and global capital begin to treat the country as investable again. This is how economies normalise, not through slogans, but through markets quietly voting with money.
The bond market is not for elites alone. It is one of the clearest mirrors of national credibility.
‘I LIFTED HIM LIKE A PAPER,’ KAFUE ASPIRING MP RECOUNTS HOW HE RESTRAINED HIMSELF FROM BEATING HIS AGGRESSOR
15th February, 2026
An aspiring Member of Parliament from Kafue, Maxwell Chongu has narrated a bar-side confrontation that nearly transformed from petty insults into a full-blown spectacle, but ultimately ended as a masterclass in restraint.
Chongu explained that after taking his daughters out, he parked by the roadside to wait for them when an unidentified man allegedly bashed his vehicle and began throwing insults with surprising confidence.
“I stayed in my car and even apologized, not because I was wrong, but because peace is always cheaper than chaos,” Chongu recounted.
Mistaking silence for weakness, the man reportedly doubled down, parking his car, walking over, and continuing the verbal assault as though auditioning for a one-man shouting competition.
“I pretended to be a coward,” Chongu said. “Meanwhile, I was simply choosing maturity over madness.”
The tension peaked when the man allegedly tapped Chongu on the shoulder, a move that quietly cancelled the patience subscription.
“That was when calm almost took a day off,” he admitted.
Stepping out of the vehicle, Chongu said the aggressor quickly realized he might have misread the situation.
“My instincts told me not to harm him, just to prove he was no match,” Chongu explained. “So I lifted him like paper and escorted him straight back to his car.”
Witnesses were left with a scene that delivered more shock than damage, as the confrontation ended without a single punch thrown.
If anything, Chongu’s account serves as a reminder that still waters often run deep, and that composure should never be mistaken for incapacity.
This afternoon, I was astonished to come across a post on one of our Zambian pages stating:
“Anyone who is supporting and defending ECL’s family is a criminal – Wynter Kabimba.”
For a moment, I honestly thought it was a belated Valentine’s joke. Unfortunately, after making a few inquiries, I was informed that the statement is indeed real.
Allow me, therefore, to respond in my own youthful voice.
Sir, a senior statesman like you Ba Wynter Kabimba declares that anyone supporting the family of Edgar Lungu is a criminal, it is not just a statement it is a weighty pronouncement that carries moral, social, and political consequences.
Sir, as an elder, lawyer, and lawmaker, your voice has shaped national conversations for decades. You understand better than many that words from leaders are never casual they frame narratives, influence emotions, and can either heal or inflame a nation. That is precisely why such sweeping language is troubling.
Supporting a family any family is not a crime. It is a human instinct. It is loyalty. It is empathy. It is the natural response of people who believe in standing with those they feel connected to, whether by history, conviction, or shared experience. One may disagree politically. One may oppose policies. One may even challenge legacies. But to criminalize sympathy or solidarity is to blur the line between law and opinion.
And let us also speak plainly President Edgar Lungu is dead. He is no longer in office. He is no longer a political contender. He is no longer a threat to anyone’s power or position. What remains now is a family a widow, children, relatives navigating grief under the harsh lights of public scrutiny.
Allow those who loved him to support his family. Allow those who believed in him to stand by his household. Mourning is not rebellion. Loyalty after death is not subversion. It is humanity.
Leadership, especially from senior citizens of this country, must rise above the heat of political contest. You must calm waters, not stir them. You must distinguish between legal accountability and emotional allegiance.
If you choose not to support the ECL family, that is your democratic right. But others equally possess the right to express their support without being branded criminals. Democracy breathes through diversity of opinion. It survives through tolerance. It matures through dialogue not intimidation.
True leadership and leaders does not divide citizens into camps of criminals and patriots based on their sympathies. It invites engagement. It encourages respectful disagreement. It recognizes that even in times of national tension, we remain one people, bound by shared history and common destiny.
Sir, wisdom is not merely in knowing the law it is in knowing when to temper justice with grace, speech with restraint, and power with humility. Loyalty and support are not offenses they are threads that hold communities together, even when those communities disagree deeply.
Let us not allow political seasons to erode our humanity. Let us not weaponize language in ways that deepen wounds. Zambia has always found strength in its ability to disagree without destroying each other.
And as for us we thank God that we are free to choose what we believe in, free to stand where our conscience leads us, and free to offer support without fear. That freedom is not criminal. It is constitutional. It is human. It is Zambian.
The Bond Market Debate and Possible Domestic Financing of Mining Investment
…They turned down my Wife’s Participation in the GRZ Bond Market…
By Soyapi Mulenga
You keep asking the question why cant we fund our own mines development in Zambia.
Having worked in a senior capacity on three world-class greenfiled mining developments once ranked among the top 20 globally in copper production, I see the local ownership debate primarily as a financial-infrastructure problem, not only as a policy or capability problem . Never in history of the country have we had such an opportunity to put our money where our mouth is as Zambians . Or an opportunity to own the means of production and get good returns . We need to move away from trying to benefit through aggressive taxation of the few projects we have in operation, look to expand number of players and use the resource for the benefit of the country.
My wife Brenda as she often does asks questions which dont have an easy answer . As one for a challenge I dont mind this one bit actually love this . Our lastest sunday deep dive was around interest rates and the bond auction in Zambia
After Mrs M recieved her notification of unsucessful subscription and refund she had all these questions .Why did a Bank of Zambia bond subscription fail when there is such a strong public call for local investment? On one hand we saying we need a stronger pull for these resources. We read in the news so many poorly run local operations that could achieve comoliance and return with the right funding . This lastest auction shows that Zambians can fund responsible mining under the right conditions . Mrs M question deserves reflection, if local demand is available why dont we have the instruments to attract them and bring them together like the GRZ Bonds . Having had a chance to look at this deeply I believe the answer sits in market structure.
We take the lastest resuts of the auctions in Zambia, those unfamiliar with the process , bond auctions clear through formal allocation mechanisms governed by yield limits, and mandate compliance. Ofcourse risk assesment plays a role.
Mrs M, like numerous investors this weekend were alerted to the fact that bids were unsuccesful. When bids exceed supply by five times like they did , many participants get scaled back or excluded, regardless of willingness or patriotism. Access depends on structure, not sentiment alone . This is what happened .
The same structural gap explains why local ownership in mining remains limited.When local demand for investment in Zambia is very high. With all this apetitte from local investors none of this is being channelled towards mining for structural reasons.
Zambia already has the core ingredients of a domestic ownership base: liquidity, long-term capital, and institutional investors comfortable with duration. The bond market proves this. What is missing is the financial infrastructure that allows mining assets to be packaged in a way domestic capital can actually own. Till now no local mining project has been listed on the stock exchange or alternative market seeking financing . Mines and explorationprojects in Zambia continue to be ignored by Zambian banks and local finacial institutions .
This a problem , local investors cannot own mines through ad-hoc equity stakes, policy-exposed shareholding, or opaque holding-company structures. Pension funds and insurers require ring-fenced assets, senior cash-flow rights, predictable fiscal terms, and clear exit mechanisms. Without these, capital cannot be allocated, regardless of appetite.
Government bonds succeed because the infrastructure exists. There is a defined issuer, transparent pricing, enforceable seniority, secondary-market liquidity, and a regulator-approved framework.
Mining does not yet offer an equivalent asset-level investment framework for local Zambian investors. There is a historical reason for this: the scale and complexity of mining projects, combined with past sovereign risk concerns, made offshore financing the only viable path. The domestic market simply wasn’t deep enough to absorb the risk. The post-reset environment, with restored confidence and liquidity, now makes it possible to change that.
As a result, mining ownership remains offshore. Sponsors raise capital through structured vehicles that reduce risk and cost of capital. Local capital stays out not by choice, but because there is no domestic platform that converts mine cash flows into investable securities.
If Zambia wants meaningful local ownership, it must build ownership infrastructure, not apply fiscal pressure. We need instruments that offer the same clarity as a government bond: royalty-backed instruments where repayments are secured against mine revenues, production-linked bonds, asset-level special purpose vehicles, and infrastructure financing tied to mine output. These would allow domestic investors to own defined, senior claims on cash-flow streams rather than absorbing full equity risk.
Building this platform requires deliberate partnership. Government must provide the predictable fiscal and regulatory framework for these new instruments. Mining companies must engineer their projects to create them. The macro reset has restored confidence and liquidity.
The bond market shows that clearly. The next step is the micro-level financial engineering that turns our world-class mineral endowment into a truly national asset. Until that infrastructure exists, local ownership will remain an aspiration, not an outcome.#zambia#mining
PF PRESIDENTIAL ASPIRING CANDIDATE MAKEBI ZULU SAYS HE WILL BE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA
IN a short video posted on his Facebook page, where Zulu is seen addressing church congregants, Sunday, Zulu said he will not remain where he is because the God who raises Kings will raise him.
“I don’t know about you, if you get offended, it’s your fault, this is for me. Declaration number five: I declare divine elevation, as God raises kings, he is also raising me into my appointment. I will not remain where I am if it is below my calling and where I am is below my calling, church. Where I am is below my calling. He who raises kings is raising me to be king and as such, I declare that I will be president of the Republic of Zambia. Please don’t get offended, it’s my declaration,” said Zulu.
And commenting on Information and Media Minister Cornelius Mweetwa, who directed public broadcasters like ZNBC to give coverage to all political parties, Zulu, in an interview described Mweetwa’s remarks as “window dressing”.
“Firstly, that is an admission that the public media has not been doing the right thing, that is an admission that there has been an abuse of the citizens by denying them access to information that ordinarily, they should have access to. It is also an admission that the playing field has not been level because the public media has towed the line of government.
The same way they have destroyed public media, they have destroyed the Judiciary, they have destroyed the Legislature. As to whether that is genuine or not, you can tell that all the moves in the judiciary, the legislature, and the public media have been so deliberate such that the persons that are in there are not doing it because they want to, they are doing it for fear of being reprimanded, losing their jobs, and all those things.
So, that is just window dressing, we know Cornelius Mweetwa, and that statement alone, whether he means it, is something else. We shall see as things unfold whether, the public broadcasters or indeed the public media are going to adhere to the purported advice. When, underneath the breath, we know they mean ‘don’t cover them’,” he said.
Meanwhile, Zulu said the police were working under instructions from a “timid government”.
“See, the police are working under instructions of a timid government, a government that does not want competition, when I am going to meet structures, I do not need to notify the police. That is an inside the club issue, we are not open to the public for the public to come and, it is ourselves as members of the party that are meeting together.
So, to suggest that no, it is not campaign time, to say it is not campaign time, who says, party structures only meet during campaign time? Why should it be an illegal assembly only when a particular individual is visiting them when others are visiting, it’s okay? So, you cannot really give such an excuse, we know that the police are working under very difficult circumstances. If they were given the liberty to make their own judgment, they would not do what they are doing,” said Zulu.
“But because there is someone who is timid somewhere, someone who is scared somewhere. Because they, they know they have not delivered on the promises that they made, they do not want anyone to remind the people, they do not want anyone to offer alternatives. We will continue pushing, it does not matter whether they bring a 100 or a 1,000 police officers, we shall continue pushing the agenda for Zambia.
The agenda to tell the people what they, what they want to hear, to tell the people what we want to do for them, and to tell the people the failures of government and the alternatives that we are offering”.
In whose interest does the speaker and her second deputy preside over the affairs of parliament? By Chitende Chipumbu Since the first woman speaker was elected into office, there have been several voices, especially in the opposition, that expressed disatisfaction at the way she and one of her deputies conducts business in the house.
A lot of people were hesitant to criticize the speaker because most of them felt that she was still adapting to her role of not only being the first female speaker in Zambia, but being one of the the three points of authority in our country’s constitutional democracy. With less than three months away from parliament being dissolved, no one can claim that Madam speaker is still learning or adapting to her role.
Being a seasoned lawyer, madam speaker should by now understand what her role in the administering of the affairs of parliament and its impact on the general governance and politics of our country is. If we are to be honest, Madam Mutti’s performance as speaker has left much to be desired; she has disappointed a lot of people who thought that with a female leader in that position, the at times partial and clear partisan positions that some of her predecessors came to be identified with would be a thing of the past.
If Madam Mutti’s conduct and performance as speaker is anything to go by, the conclusion would be that she has refused to take a different path from the one which some of her predecessors took. It looks like Madam Mutti would rather follow suit than chatting a way forward that would be for the good of the coubtry. Time and again,Madam Mutti and and one of her deputies have conducted themselves in a manner that leaves them looking more like party cadres than presiding officers of the legislature.
Take, for instance, Madam Mutti’s conduct during parliament’s last sitting in 2025, where she curtailed the contribution of an independent MP’s contribution towards the Bill 7 debate by telling him that since he wasn’t a lawyer, he couldn’t educate the house on what path the bill under contention could have taken.When did an MP’s qualification become the basis of their contribution to what’s being discussed on the floor of the house? But Madam Mutti was very happy to go that way, simply because she knew that with her statement, she would rally up the political base of the ruling party.
In effect, the speaker was saying that only MPs who were lawyers were qualified to contribute to the debate. According to the speaker, only lawyers understood both the process that the bill took and its substance. What an insult to the people of Zambia. Interestingly, and as expected, members on the right had a smooth ride taking turns to not only praise the content of the bill, but pay glowing tribute on how the bill’s process had not only met the constitutional threshold for constitutional alteration, but how the contributions of the citizenry to its entire process was a historical success.
During the entire praise session by the members from the right hand side, at no time did the speaker curtail debate on the basis of a member not being a lawyer. Even members who are not lawyers, on the right handside, were prasing the bill, albeit in a manner not anchored in constitutional facts, were let to speak as they wished.
Where was the speaker’s impartiallity? It appears Madam Mutti can only see and hear the transgressions of the members on the left hand-side of the house. She’s blind and deaf to the shortcomings of the members on the other side of the house. Is this how a speaker of the house should be? In her desperation to stifle opposition voices, Madam Mutti has said very strange and laughable things. For example, when she says one can’t debate about a constitutional amendment’s facilitating process without being a qualified lawyer because they will end up misleading the house, what does she really mean?
If someone will mislead the house, isn’t that the reason why other members are allowed to provide a counter through points of order and general debate? Was madam Mutti also, by implication, telling us that only economists can debate economic matters, only doctors and health practitioners can debate issues pertaining to the health industry, agriculturalists on agriculture and its sector and so forth? If this is her logic, then where does it leave her as the presiding officer because she is only a qualified lawyer? Does it mean that because she doesn’t have degrees in other fields that the house usually engages itself in, she’s, therefore, not qualified to be the speaker? If we go further and extend the basis of her rulings to the qualifications of being a member of parliament, how many members of parliament in that house will be able to debate and contribute to the different topics that the house attends to?
Even when one looks at the qualifications of MPs, is it a requirement that MPs must have professional qualifications in a specific field? The truth of the matter is that madam Mutti has been more interested in pulling the party line than doing her job in an impartial manner. Still on the occassion of last year’s last parliamentary sitting, at an extremely tense and polarized time that left the country divided and politically charged, Madam Mutti decided that the best way to celebrate the ruling party’s victory in passing bill 7 was to embark on a guard of honor of the esteemed august house while showing the entire world her dazzling skills at chikokoshi. What type of impartial speaker behaves in such a partial manner, celebrating the victory of one side, while the entire world watches, while she dances and laughs her way out of the house? Is that what impartiallity means to madam Mutti?
Imagine the chief justice dancing out of a court room to celebrate a government winning a case against the opposition. What would one make out of it? But it appears Madam Mutti is her own world governed by her own rules. Even at a time when the constitutional court had ruled that her cause of dancing chikokoshi was unconstitutional, Madam Mutti saw it fit to appoint herself as government and concourt spokesperson such that she had personally come to the conclusion that parliament was ready to re-introduce bill 7. How, when, and where parliament reached that conclusion, only Madam Mutti knows. Is this how speakers in other democracies behave?
The administering of parliament business by Madam Mutti isn’t very different from how one of her deputies carries out his parliamentary duties. We can look no futher than his latest clash with the Nkana lawmaker-Binwell Mpundu. Does the second deputy speaker knows the essence of debate, especially in a place like parliament or, to him, it’s just a matter of singing praises to the government and anything that doesn’t fall within his expectation becomes unparliamentary and calls for a suspension? What type of speaker refers to an elected member of the house as ‘what type of person are you?’
Unlike presiding officers, elected members of the house are directly elected by the people. Why would a speaker, a second deputy for that matter, choose to address an elected member in such a personal manner? Is this the best that he can offer, being personal and demeaning in language?
Perhaps we should also take this opportunity to ask the second deputy speaker, Mr. Moses Moyo, sir, what type of presiding officer are you? Are you the type that is partial or impartial? Are you the type that thinks a debate can only be one if every member attaches or seconds him or herself to the praise team? We ask these questions because your conduct and manner of presiding over the affairs of the house is very strange, very strange indeed.
Why does the second speaker doesn’t want members of the house to compare, differentiate, infer and even draw lessons from the speech of a foreign head of state? If, according to him, Ghana is Ghana and Zambia is Zambia, therefore, Zambia will do things that it feels fit to do, then why waste time by allowing parliament to engage in debate?
Why not leave everything to his strange, narrow and extremely retrogressive way of thinking: Ghana is Ghana and Zambia is Zambia? With parliament reduced to these levels of administration, is there any wonder why politicians are now able to use imingalato to pass laws that suits them?
CHIEF CHIKWANDA URGES HISTORY AND CULTURE TO GUIDE CONSTITUENCY NAMING IN DELIMITATION EXERCISE
By Justina Matandiko
Chief Chikwanda of the Bemba speaking people in Muchinga Province is calling for history and heritage to guide the naming of new constituencies in the ongoing delimitation exercise.
In an interview with Phoenix News, Chief Chikwanda said constituency creation and naming must reflect cultural identity, historical landmarks, and traditional structures of the people.
The Traditional Leader notes that names carry meaning and identity, adding that disregarding historical context could weaken community attachment and cultural pride.
He is appealing to relevant authorities to engage traditional leadership and local communities before finalizing names under the delimitation process.
Chief Chikwanda emphasized that respecting heritage in national processes like delimitation will promote unity and preserve Zambia’s rich cultural legacy.
UPDATE ON THE MEDICAL STATUS AND EVACUATION OF GENERAL OZZY
LUSAKA – February 15, 2026 – The Zambia Association of Musicians -ZAM wishes to provide an official update to the general public regarding the health and status of legendary artist, General Ozzy, and his colleague following their recent involvement in a road traffic accident.
Following a high-level consultative meeting held this morning, we are pleased to announce that significant headways have been made to ensure the duo receives the best possible medical attention.
The Government of the Republic of Zambia, through the Zambia Flying Doctor Service (ZFDS), will today evacuate General Ozzy and his colleague from Monze to Lusaka. They are scheduled to be admitted to Maina Soko Military Hospital for specialized medical care and further observation.
This development was officially disclosed during a press briefing held earlier today, attended by:
Mr. Thabo Kawana – Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Media.
Mr. Kangwa Chileshe – Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Youth, Sport, and Arts.
Mr. Yahya Kaba (KB) – Vice President, Zambia Association of Musicians.
We would like to reassure the fans, the artistic community, and the nation at large that General Ozzy is currently stable and in high spirits. The Association remains in constant communication with the artist as well as his brother, Roberto, who rushed to Monze last evening to provide family support.
We are grateful for the swift intervention of the medical team in Monze and the government’s prompt response in facilitating this evacuation.
ZAM will continue to monitor the situation closely and will provide further updates as more information becomes available.
We ask the public to keep General Ozzy and his colleague in their thoughts and prayers, and to respect the privacy of the families during this recovery period.
Turkey warns of potential nuclear response if Iran goes nuclear
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has warned that if Iran successfully develops nuclear weapons, Turkey may feel compelled to pursue its own nuclear programme…a move that could spark a regional nuclear arms race in West Asia.
Key facts:
– Turkey’s military strength: Ranked among the top 8–10 armed forces in the world and typically the strongest in the Middle East in conventional terms, according to Global Firepower indices.
– Iran’s military strength: Often placed around 14th–16th globally, reflecting significant manpower and missile capabilities.
– Neither Turkey nor Iran currently possesses nuclear weapons, though Turkey is under NATO’s nuclear umbrella and Iran’s nuclear programme remains a major point of international tension.
The warning underscores growing anxiety about nuclear proliferation in a region already strained by conflicts, rivalries, and strategic competition.
Namibia and Botswana Explore N$97.5 Billion Joint Oil Refinery
Namibia and Botswana are exploring a massive joint oil refinery project, estimated to cost N$97.5 billion (US$5 billion), with Walvis Bay in Namibia the likely site due to its deep-water port and logistics infrastructure. Botswana’s Ghanzi could serve as a storage and distribution hub, linking inland transport to the coast.
The project comes amid major oil discoveries in Namibia’s Orange Basin by TotalEnergies and Shell. Local refining could bring energy price stability, reduced supply chain risks, and regional economic growth, including jobs and value addition.
Experts say the refinery must reach a minimum capacity of 100,000 barrels per day to be viable…far above Namibia’s current 25,000 bpd…making regional or export markets essential.
The feasibility study will examine technical, financial, environmental, and logistical factors, as well as policy alignment between the two countries. If realised, it would be the first cross-border refinery in Southern Africa, signalling a bold step toward regional energy independence and industrialisation.
RUSSIAN ‘PICK-UP ARTIST’ ACCUSED OF SECRETLY FILMING WOMEN IN GHANA
GHANA intends to request the extradition of a Russian man accused of illegally recording his sexual encounters with several women and sharing footage online without their consent.
African and Russian media identified him as a self-styled “pick-up artist” and online blogger in his 30s who had travelled to Ghana to secretly film his interactions with women.
Outlets in both countries claimed the man used a pair of sunglasses fitted with a camera to film some encounters and circulated them on social media, though officials did not confirm this.
Speaking to journalists on Saturday, Sam George, Ghana’s technology minister, said he had invited the Russian ambassador to discuss the alleged incident.
Earlier, Ghana’s Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection said an initial investigation had established the suspect had likely left the country.
It added that did “not reduce the seriousness of the alleged conduct or the state’s responsibility to pursue accountability”.
George said he had asked the Russian ambassador in the capital city Accra for Moscow’s cooperation in getting justice for the victims.
However, Russia does not extradite its citizens, except in extreme circumstances.
The minister told BBC News: “I have invited the Russian ambassador in Ghana for a meeting.
“The actions of the Russian citizen flout our cyber-security laws. I will officially indicate to the ambassador our official position.”
Earlier, he told reporters: “That gentleman will be looked for, we will activate every resource in our disposal working with Interpol.
“We will request the Russian authorities and that is why I have invited the Russian ambassador to work with our law enforcement.
“We want the gentleman to be brought back to Ghana, extradited to Ghana for him to face the rigours of our law.”
George said they would try the suspect in absentia if he failed to return to Ghana.
Local media report the same man had been involved in similar illegal acts in Kenya.
Under Ghana’s Cybersecurity Act 2020, anyone who publishes explicit images of children or adults without full consent can face up to 25 years in prison.
Authorities in Ghana have been paying increasing attention to online abuse, including sexual extortion and romance scams.
There has been an increase in arrests in recent years for these offences.
In 2022, a court sentenced a 22-year-old phone repairer, Solomon Doga, to 14 years in prison for sharing nude images of a Lebanese woman.
He pleaded guilty to sexual extortion and non-consensual sharing of intimate images.
Ghana also introduced new laws under the Cybersecurity Act 2020 to punish those who share nude photos or videos online, especially of women and children, often for revenge or blackmail.
Based on updated U.S. intelligence and independent open-source analysis, China is undergoing one of the fastest nuclear build-ups ever recorded. Analysts estimate the country now holds roughly 600 nuclear warheads and is adding about 100 more each year.
Pentagon projections indicate the People’s Republic of China could possess more than 1,000 operational nuclear warheads by 2030, supported by new missile silos, submarine-launched weapons, and long-range bombers.
For comparison, Russia has about 5,500 nuclear warheads and the United States roughly 5,200, meaning the two countries still hold around 90% of the world’s nuclear weapons.
China’s military, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), is ranked the world’s third most powerful military force by several global defence indexes, behind the United States and Russia.
Russia Deploys Oreshnik Hypersonic Missiles to Belarus
Russia has escalated tensions in Eastern Europe with the deployment of advanced Oreshnik hypersonic missiles to Belarus. First images show mobile launchers camouflaged near the Russian border, now on combat alert.
Capable of speeds reportedly up to Mach 10 and ranges estimated at around 5,500 km, the system could significantly reduce NATO warning and response times, raising concern across Europe.
The missiles are believed to be capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads, further heightening strategic concerns.
The deployment also strengthens Belarus’ deterrence posture under the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) security pact led by Moscow.
Analysts say the move may serve as a strategic signal toward Kyiv’s Western allies amid the ongoing Ukraine war, prompting NATO members to review defence postures as regional security tensions increase.
🎙️🗣️🇬🇭 Kobbie Mainoo: Why are you not representing Ghana but England?
“My father told me how his best friend got injured while playing football for Ghana national team and he was abandoned to treat himself, he couldn’t afford the medication, he suffered as a result of the injury and later passed away.
Since then my mindset about Ghana and Africa changed. I’m British and will always remain British”
We are our own pröblem seriously in Africa! We always blame these guys when they represent other countries instead of their homeland but the truth is, we don’t deserve them. We can’t even take good care of the players we have because of côrruption.
Emmanuel Macron hours ago argues that Russia has been strategically diminished by its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, portraying the country as increasingly isolated and overextended.
According to Emmanuel Macron, the war has locked Moscow into a grinding conflict that continues to absorb vast financial resources, military equipment, and manpower without delivering a decisive victory.
This prolonged commitment has strained Russia’s economy, which has faced recessionary pressure, heavy state spending on defense, and the cumulative impact of sanctions and reduced access to Western markets and technology.
Macron also contends that Russia’s international standing has sharply declined. Once able to balance relations between major global powers, Moscow now finds itself dependent on a narrow circle of partners, most notably China, for trade, diplomatic cover, and economic cooperation—an imbalance he characterizes as a loss of strategic autonomy.
At the same time, Russia’s political and economic disengagement from Europe has deepened, reinforcing its reputation among many nations as a pariah state operating outside widely accepted international norms.
Finally, Macron underscores the severe human toll of the conflict, pointing to what he describes as the loss of “hundreds of thousands of young lives.”
These casualties, alongside repeated mobilizations, have imposed lasting demographic and social costs while further illustrating how the war has trapped Russia in a cycle of attrition that weakens its long-term national power even as the fighting continues.
If this president left office, today, I won’t miss him
I know that the title of this article alone may easily trigger some people, who, without reading further or beyond it, may either jump to premature conclusions which they will deploy in the service of the expression of uninformed opinions or rush to accusing me of harboring hatred.
Such is the age in which we live that many people find no shame in confidently commenting on what they have neither read nor understood and in proudly showcasing their inability to read long posts by demanding that the writer must learn to summarise their output, as if the article comes with the legal requirement that everyone who comes across it must read it.
People who are busy, surface readers, or those with limited attention span are free and most welcome to scroll past my writings in search of shorter posts. There is a reason why I am not on TikTok. I write. I write for those who read. I write long reads and that is part of my identity. I write to express myself on matters of public interest.
I know that I do sometimes express opinions that make some people feel uncomfortable. In my view, what the uncomfortables should deal with is the source of their discomfort, not my drawing attention to the need to discuss even uncomfortable truths or subjects. I speak to express my opinions, not to nurse anyone’s emotions, to make them comfortable, or to secure anyone’s validation, respect, support, or favour. I insist that I have the right to think and express my opinions.
My pen, as does my voice, runs on with my truth. I must either say what is in me or remain silent. In the service of impartial but certainly not neutral political commentary, I test the limits of freedom of expression and have a particularly proven knack of irritating supporters of successive ruling parties, especially those whose support for presidents has anointed itself with the sanctity of a religious faith.
I do not simply express myself. I also let others express themselves freely including on my only social media account. I actively listen to what other people say and pay greater attention to content-based criticism.
All this is to say that I believe in freedom of expression. I live or practice this belief. I believe that free speech is not just for the people or thoughts we like or agree with; it is also for people we despise and opinions that we do not support. This explains why I do not easily take offence when those who comment on what I have shared, even when they have evidently not read the content of the post to which they are responding, resort to abuse, insults, and whatever else in response to what I have put out. I consider even insults a form of democratic expression.
I believe that free speech is intended to protect the expression of ideas in public, to enable us to communicate with each other about what we understand to be true, and to share opinions, debate differing viewpoints, and challenge the status quo. I believe that every person has the right to express themselves in any way, to share opinions that diverge from my own or the prevailing narrative, and to say whatever they want or think including when responding to what I share. In turn, I can choose to respond or ignore, although I welcome and make every effort to read and understand the reactions, rebuttals, or concerns that other people express in response to what I have said.
Having claimed and exercised my freedom of expression, I am only all too aware of the right of others to exercise the same right on any matter, including when commenting on my public commentaries. Being human, it is natural that we will have varying lines of thought on any given topic. Flexibility in slant of views is in keeping up with our humanness. I believe that it is only through many conversations that we can reconsider our positions, challenge our assumptions, question our convictions, and come to appreciate our own ignorance.
One thing I will never do in response to any criticism of my opinions or of me as a person is to block any person, to mute them on social media and consequently shut myself from the knowledge of their views, however warped those views might be, or to interfere in any way with their right to express themselves fully, even in instances where the person is saying nothing substantive or rational. The right to free speech would be meaningless if it was accompanied by a requirement to only give expression to reasonable or sensible thoughts.
To illustrate my commitment to free speech: I receive a lot of flak, nasty responses, insults or ad hominem attacks over the opinions or ideas I express. As is true of my rather indifferent attitude towards praise, these things do not get to me. They do not bother me at all. If they did, I would have long ago stopped expressing myself on public issues. What easily gets to me is reason, logic, or a good argument, displayed by an ability to show weakness in my stated point of view, not to tell me that there exists a particular view on it that is supported by the majority, against which dissent is prohibited.
I believe that we must never knowingly make anyone feel less for not having attained our level – be it of awareness, understanding, education, status, or any other arbitrary considerations. I am an advocate for the free sharing of views and ideas, without any inhibitions or hierarchies. If the only thing that the other person can say in response to what we have said is to call us names, we should understand that outcome as a true reflection of their state and quality of mind. We should not get easily offended. I personally bear sympathies and special understanding for those among us whose only capacity to reason is never beyond an ad hominem attack. I suppose they cannot help it, even if they tried. Let us be charitable. The world can do with a little bit of more tolerance, more understanding.
Now to the content or substance of the title. I do not hate the President. I hate his bad leadership. I will explain what bad leadership in this context means to me.
Bad leadership means representing nearly everything he spent 15 years in opposition fighting against. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his tribalism, regionalism, and sectarian tendencies that have found expression through skewed distribution of appointments to public office and the regular issuance of divisive speech by him. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his tolerance for corruption including the kind that has facilitated the ongoing plunder in the mining, health, agricultural, and energy sectors, and one that explains why he has to date refused to publish his asset declarations. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his compulsive lying that erodes public trust in elected public officials and gives politics a bad name. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his vindictiveness and restraint-lacking character that has found expression in ways that I do not need to explain to any sane Zambian with an open mind. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his unbridled faith in the IMF and outsiders as the panacea to our foremost economic challenges. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his anti-democratic behavior, his failure to enact constitutional and legal reforms that would have prevented his incremental destruction of the guardrails and norms that have long kept executive power in check or within its constitutional constraints. I hate this.
Bad leadership means wasting money on useless ventures while failing to adequately fund higher education so that the University of Zambia and other public universities can manage to pay gratuities and pensions owed to long-suffering workers dating to as far back as 2011. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his decision to pack institutions that are vital to democratic consolidation – such as the judiciary, the electoral commission, the police, and security services – with loyalists who primarily see themselves as existing to serve his partisan agenda, not the interests of the Republic. I hate this.
Bad leadership means the consequences of his Uncle Tom syndrome on public policy, his clear contempt for black ordinary Zambians whom he regularly presents as poor because they are lazy and not smart (with himself as the model for hard work and ingenuity, my foot!), and his apparent lack of consequential exposure, which might help explain his limited worldview and why he gets excited whenever he meets people of a different colour. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his poor record on governance including the continued violations of human rights and the systematic destruction of institutions that are essential to the promotion of vertical, horizontal, and social accountability. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his loyalty to self-gain and private business interests, his deliberate failure to put together a team of independent minded and competent men and women who are patriots, can help him generate a feasible national plan, and are committed to restoring the nation’s dignity, where they come from notwithstanding. I hate this.
Bad leadership means his deeply embarrassing, misguided, anti-human rights, anti-peace, pro-colonialism, and pro-war foreign policy that represents a clear departure from Zambia’s traditional and forward-looking foreign policy whose foundations were laid by Kenneth Kaunda and whose consistent implementation by successive presidents before this one earned the country the respect of much of southern Africa, the continent, and the Global South. I hate this.
Bad leadership means the constant reference to the PF as the standard against which he measures his leadership ignoring the fact that we voted them out because they were bad leaders. I hate this.
Bad leadership means constantly congratulating oneself for the isolated, few, perfectly normal government deeds that should never be a source of pride for a more sane president. I hate this.
Bad leadership means… I hate that too.
Argh, I weep for Zambia. The light is dimming. Darkness is slowly engulfing the flicker of light that has remained. The weather and the speed of the wind is almost extinguishing this light that explains why we have avoided an epic calamity.
I miss the opposition leader I voted for on 12 August 2021: the one who could actively listen and learn, who identified with the people and their needs, who appeared as a decent political leader outraged by anti-democratic or repressive legislation, abuse, injustice, lies, corruption, and ethnic-regional divisions, and presented himself as a steady pair of hands who could help restore Zambia’s democratic tradition and resuscitate the faltering economy – not through graphs or meaningless macro indicators that have no meaning to the lives of ordinary people.
The person ruling today is completely different and one I no longer recognise. This is because this president has gone against his word on the many promises he made and so easily found comfort in the company of nearly all the vices he denounced in opposition that one may think his conscience has been stolen. I sometimes ask myself: What would his former self think of him now? Whatever happened to the one we had in opposition, may we never again be subjected to a similar scam.
In a sense, the blame is on me. Whatever has come out is on me, not him. I did not fully interrogate his character, so I take responsibility for helping to put him in power in the last election. I should have listened to President Levy Mwanawasa who once said this about this same person: “His understanding of politics is that it doesn’t matter; you can cheat, provided you get your goals. The problem [with] Mr Hichilema is…that he wants to cheat, to mislead, to show that he is what he is not”.
I owe Levy an apology. I did not conduct due diligence on this man. He has not changed at all. In 2021, he remained what he had been all along, since 2006 when Levy made that prescient observation: a fraud who fooled many into believing that he was a bankable candidate only to show his true colours after assuming State power; an ethnic-regional, inept political leader with limited depth whose many weaknesses we overlooked in our quest to get rid of his predecessor, and a compulsive liar who made various promises which he had no intention of implementing and, in many cases, had the definite intention of doing exactly the opposite. His strategy was simple: to propose popular policies in order to get elected, and then to drop them after his election.
If this president left office or died today, I will not miss him. I won’t miss him because of all the illustrated bad leadership traits he is displaying. If he left office today, I would rejoice with relief, for Zambia. If he died today, I will be sad, at a personal level, that a fellow human being has died and even extend my condolences to his grieving family, relatives, and friends – including the many currently in government. However, unless he abandons his bad leadership and changes for the better, I will not miss him as president. And I do not think I am the only one who feels that way.
I am convinced that there are many who are quietly appalled by his divisive and dreadful leadership to the point of silently wishing this president dead, not because they hate him as a person but because they, as I do, love Zambia more; people who will be happy to see this president live up to 110 years old if they were not subjected to a subhuman existence emanating from his unpatriotic policies in the mining industry, the institutionalisation of his mediocre leadership, and the strain that can result from the frightening possibility that his poor presidency may continue beyond 13 August, if he is not stopped from stealing the election.
I have tried – really tried – to give this president the benefit of the doubt. I have hoped, like many Zambians, that somewhere in there was a shred of concern for the country. But he keeps stifling my optimism. Time and again, his leadership actions make it clear there is never any real concern for the country – only ego, recklessness, self-interest, and partisan, ethnic, regional, and business, mainly foreign, considerations. The repercussions are stacking up and their combined weight, I fear, may pull down the Republic.
If I was ignorant and of limited world view like many of his supporters, I would shut up and understand. If I was a tribalist, who sees this president as one who comes from our region and therefore choose to shut my eyes to all his pitfalls or transgressions out of herd mentality and the fear that the Bembas and Easterners might come back to power, I would shut up and understand.
If I did not vote for this president and could therefore comfort myself with the consideration that I am not among those who helped put him in power, I would shut up and understand. If I did not come from the country of James Skinner, Akashambatwa Lewanika, Edith Nawakwi and Mbita Chitala (all preceding three as MMD founders), Fred M’membe (the journalist), Alfred Chanda, Justice Clever Musumali, Lucy Sichone, Senior Chief Bright Nalubamba, Brebner Changala, Telesphore Mpundu, Godfrey Miyanda (the opposition leader), Muna Ndulo, Laura Miti (the pre-2021 version), Linda Kasonde, Musa Mwenye, John Sangwa, Chama Fumba (the artist), Sitali Alibuzwi, Cephas Lumina, Beauty Katebe, and many other outstanding patriots of our country who have, at one time or another, illuminated light, spoken truth to power, or demonstrated an inspiring commitment to principle that serves as the heritage for present and later generations, I would shut up and understand.
I can’t wait for the day when Zambians would learn to support their elected public leaders by holding them to account with the same zeal that supporters of successive presidents, including this president’s, show when holding me to account for daring to criticise the leaders they support. Although they probably deserve empathy and understanding, it saddens me greatly that many of those who support this president to a point of fanatism are the very people whose subhuman existence stand to benefit greatly from increased public accountability.
We must attack the chronic syndrome of low expectations, which has become our lot. Our crises are a testimony to how little we Zambians expect and demand from our public leaders, from life, for ourselves. I know from personal experience the cost of speaking out can be high, but we will not see a better Zambia in our lifetime if we let our elected public leaders get away with it or if we leave the task of holding our leaders to account to only a few people.
In addition to conquering fear, all that any citizen with an active conscience needs to speak out is a voice, a pen, a mind, and a platform. For instance, while I have the academic tools, I do not speak out because I am an academic. I speak out because it is my responsibility as a citizen – my primary identity – to hold the government to account, to promote the ideals and objectives of Zambia’s constitution. I insist that every citizen needs to take these duties, imposed on all citizens regardless of their location, seriously. To be silent in the face of democracy erosion, human rights violations, the expression of sectarian tendencies, abuse, injustice, inequality, and corruption is to actively participate in sustaining the status quo.
We all do not have to be in government to participate in the affairs of, or to make a meaningful contribution to, our country. In fact, I sometimes sit quietly, alone, and wonder what would have become of me had I ended up in government under the current or any of the past two administrations. Yes, President Michael Sata, as did President Edgar Lungu, once offered me a government job and there are several people who are still alive today who can testify to this truth. Even under the current government, I have twice been offered but respectfully declined presidential appointments, with the last offer coming on 4 April 2022. I mention this record not to betray confidentiality – I have minimum values and will not say more on this subject unless this president, who personally knows the truth, were to publicly repeat the nonsense that third parties spew out.
I mention the innocuous record to illustrate a wider point: when I criticise a president’s actions, I do so in the interest of the public good, the belief that a better Zambia is possible, and the pursuit of the ideal effective leadership, one that is highly competent, sufficiently educated and is in possession of ethical values – courage, compassion and love for fellow human beings, moral force of character, integrity, genuine humility, honesty, a predilection for consultation, consensus-building, communication, co-operation, active listening, and the selfless pursuit of the public good, and not the selfish striving for personal gain. It is hardly possible to look at, say, the current president’s leadership today without being struck by the calamity of the absence of these qualities.
We Zambians deserve and must demand better. We have a long way to go to get to a better future, but we must go there! In my view, the first step towards that desired future is to demand better from our elected public leaders. Unfortunately, many of us mistake criticism of the actions or policies of our elected public leaders for dislike, hate, support for the opposition, or some other adhominem attack. There must be many and complex and interrelated social, economic, political, cultural, religious, and spiritual forces combining with our entire history as a people that have moulded and continue to shape the current psychology and character structure of the ‘typical Zambian’, one who generally reveres authority, is unquestioning in attitude, and mistakes presidents in a democracy for traditional rulers who must be shown respect even when their conduct demands alternative treatment! Our challenge is to unravel these forces, understand them, and reshape them to build a different and genuinely alive Zambian. We must understand all this as they relate to our place in the whole world.
It is not, in a sense, a Hichilema, Lungu, Sata, Banda, Mwanawasa, Chiluba or Kaunda problem: these leaders have definitely played a part in generating the psychological and material conditions which have created us as a cowardly, zombie-like, easy to manipulate, naive, and quite superstitious people. None of these and more negative qualities are biological, however. They have their roots in our complex history with all the social forces that have shaped this history, including a dominant fawning, ingratiating, degraded Christian theology and practice (largely pacifist) to which we so often appeal to resolve our perfectly manmade problems. Our political and religious leaders simply feast on this historical banquet!
This social milieu or context explains why I often insist on structural change as the route to a truly radical transformation of Zambia, not merely replacing one set of individuals with another. We must desist from thinking that merely changing “presidents” and “parties” will lead to any meaningful changes in our cultures, lives, and country.
I am extremely optimistic, however, that there is potential for a new national consciousness to emerge in Zambia. In fact, our current deep seated systemic and structural social, economic, and cultural crises are a perfect foundation to begin to build a new consciousness, to begin to resurrect the human being in the Zambian. The first port of call is us, first as individual Zambians, I must maintain. As an individual, one must refuse to be reduced to the subhuman status our current situation confines all of us to. We must peacefully rebel against this status. Then, in our many millions of personal life activities, we must transmit this rebellion to others.
So far, the main platform for criticism of our lives is in the media, and largely confined to the deplorable social and economic conditions we now suffer. It need not be confined to this terrain. Ethically, morally, spiritually, intellectually, culturally, and yes, ultimately, philosophically, we must also wage a war against influences in these spheres which define and confine us to subhuman existence. To be who we are is a reflection of inferior qualities in us of all the human essences I have listed. We must question everything and everyone, fearlessly, especially if they are leading us or making claims to want to lead us.
We must stand up for other people who are facing injustice from the government and demand positive change, even if that positive change does not bring us direct personal benefits. Some among us, perhaps because they cannot imagine being motivated to do anything except for material gain, will always think that those who hold the government to account do so in anticipation of material gain, political or personal favours, now or when governments change. This is regrettable. It is my belief that we all must act out of conviction, based on understandable reasons and the intrinsic value of our actions.
Of course, many won’t understand this devotion to principle when we do so and will seek to judge us using their rotten standards. It is the only thing they know. We must retain comfort in the conviction that what is said about us is not as important as what we know about ourselves, how we respond to what has been said, and the weight that we attach to that sentiment.
This is the attitude that has helped me to survive or overcome torrential abuse from supporters of successive ruling parties. Under the MMD and the two PF administrations, supporters of the incumbent presidents called me bitter, tribalist, a hater of the leaders they supported, a job seeker, or someone sponsored by or supporting the opposition whenever I criticised the leadership. I see and hear praise singers repeating the same drivel today.
As I did previously, I simply ignore them because I know that I do not speak out because I seek a job from the government. With a University of Zambia degree, two Oxford postgraduate qualifications to my name and the honour of being a Rhodes Scholar, I consider myself sufficiently educated and marketable enough to easily secure a professional job in any part of the world. Even after Oxford and spurred by the belief that the acquisition of specialist knowledge should result in its application to causes and communities that need it most, I deliberately returned home to impart that which I had learnt. It was only after the situation or conditions made it difficult for me to continue that I left Zambia, which explains why I am where I am now. As I write this article, I am in my office at Harvard University not because of any government power but because of my formal education.
I am genuinely anguished as much by the deplorable state of our country and the conditions of life for most ordinary citizens as I am by the extent to which many have resigned and seemingly accepted the status quo as a given. Minor steps towards progress are cheered as if they are major. This poverty of ambition frightens me. I speak out on matters of governance out of love for Zambia, out of principle, out of the belief that we must dare to dream, to aspire for more than the little we celebrate as triumphs. I do not have to. I can stop writing public political commentaries today and will not lose a penny because there are no benefits attached to what I do.
Although I do not live in affluence and it will never be my aspiration to, I also do not feel poor. As the former president of Uruguay Jose Mujica once said, “poor people are those who only work to try to keep an expensive lifestyle and always want more and more.” I lead a simple life and my basic salary alone – which is higher than the gazetted salary of the president of Zambia – is enough to meet my basic needs. I do not need a government job from this president or the one who will come after him, just like I did not need one from those who came before.
The only thing I need is a functioning government that works for the many, not the few. I want to live and thrive in a Zambia with a president who CARES, one who will restore our cherished democracy, get the best out of Zambia’s mineral wealth (not merely celebrating increased mineral output when public revenue from the industry is insignificant), respect the constitution and the rule of law, fight corruption in real time beyond rhetoric, promote genuine national unity and equitable distribution of publics service positions, build a professional civil service including a diplomatic cadre of staff that will outlive changes in government, and address the cost of living crisis and the deplorable conditions of life for most ordinary Zambians. None of these needs has ME in it and if this president achieves these things, I will join the praise team.
One day, hopefully soon, and like those who came before him, this president will be gone. His party will be gone too. Even the praise singers who carry his banner will be gone and pretend they did not mean it, that they opposed his bad leadership. Sooner than later, they will all be gone. But the damage they are doing to this country will take decades to repair. I do not know if this president realises the danger he is creating. When people are unfairly targeted and pushed to the margins, it breeds anger and hardened positions. Power used vindictively today can create something far worse tomorrow. And if the cycle continues, those who eventually take over may govern with even less restraint than the current rulers. That is why leadership must be fair, consistent, and blind to partisanship or political convenience. Otherwise, we are simply laying the groundwork for a more toxic future. Unfortunately, like dominant cultures, those who benefit from it often fail to see the status quo as one that is open to challenge, analysis, or change
I Did What I Did Instead of Sle€ping With Men For Money- Zimbabwe Woman Reveals
During An Interview with a Zimbabwe Content Creator, Queen Nadia Said She became a millionaire within a few months by showing her nvds on view once. “I took a step which many ladies can’t take today, it paid off and I don’t regret it at all”.
” Instead of slee!ping with men for Money and at the end of the day being in situations where I can’t come out from, I prefer doing what I did and it made me make my own money”.
” Unfortunately Facebook has taken down my page but I promise you all that I will be back with Even more energy. You will see more than just view” once videos from me this time around She Said S
THE PLANNED COUNCIL OF ELDERS CONFERENCE: POLITICAL SOLUTION OR FANNING UNCERTAINTY? A KBN TV EDITORIAL
As the nation inches closer to the decisive August 13 general elections, the political landscape is fast changing with efforts from those seeking office becoming more aggressive to garner visibility, endorsements, alliances and funding.
Equally, the political backstage is replete with several players positioning themselves as organisers, strategists, supporters and kingmakers. And of course, the scene is not short of chancers watching the wind before deciding which candidate to back.
At the centre of all the maneuvers, one thing has become increasingly clear: everyone is in agreement that the opposition must unite behind a single presidential candidate.
However, the opposition don’t seem to agree on which candidate to support. Even candidates themselves seem to be upbeat about their individual chances but in reality, this is only proving to be a popular ambition than it is an achievable goal. Clearly, there are too many moving pieces before one could conclude with certainty the feasibility of a single opposition presidential candidate. Furthermore, a potential political landscape altering PF court ruling is on the horizon, and it could bring a new dimension to the prospects of uniting the opposition.
In a speculative turn of events that the court decides to honour contents of the consent judgment entered into between Miles Sampa and the Patriotic Front, would the outcome be a blessing to opposition unity or it will plunge the party further into succession disputes three months to presidential and parliamentary nominations?
Meanwhile, setting aside that speculative court outcome, we must also take keen interest and interrogate the anticipated conference being organised by the Council of Elders.
There are many questions that beg for answers. Who is in the Council of Elders, who is organising and funding the conference, why are they organising it, for whom are they organising and on which ticket are they organising? Until these questions are adequately addressed without any ambiguity, the conference might as well be perceived as forum shopping.
Premised on what we understand, there is now an expanded Council of Elders. This group must be clear whether they are truly representing the wishes of the ordinary voters, or they have engineered a process to project their elitist views on who they think should be the people’s preferred candidate.
While the intention to arrive at a single candidate may be noble, questions are being raised about the electoral college’s integrity. Who selected those to participate as delegates at the conference, what’s the criteria, who tested and approved the criteria, where are they drawing the mandate to convene?
Could there be a predetermined outcome of who the expanded Council of Elders want to install as their own preferred candidate through a sanitised process? To shield themselves from allegations of biases, the expanded Council of Elders must strive to ensure the process is more transparent than one shrouded in speculative narratives.
Given the list of presidential candidates they have shortlisted for the planned conference, we understand they have Mr. Given Lubinda, Dr. Fred M’membe, Mr. Makebi Zulu and Mr. John Sangwa. Others like Dr. Bwalya Ng’andu whom they have been courting, may not be available for the assignment.
Hypothetically speaking, one might wish to put this process to a simple test and ask a question. If for example Makebi Zulu or John Sangwa wins, would Dr. Fred M’membe accept to rally behind either of them given his years of preparedness and investment into building the Socialist party brand over the years? The answer could be, he is most unlikely to backdown.
Potentially, that’s the challenging reality the expanded Council of Elders organised conference faces regardless of who is involved. It’s a dilemma they have to confront. In fact, the outcome may breed more confusion than the answers they are trying to engineer. The other consideration is the fact that the original Council of Elders which included Justice Lombe Chibesakunda, Reverend Edith Mutale, Prince Akashambatwa Mbikusita Lewanika, Bishop Lordwell Siame and others, made an effort to meet nearly every known opposition political leader to try and bring them to a round table of common understanding.
Save for Prince Akashambatwa Mbikusita Lewanika, it’s not very clear if the rest of the original Council of Elders are still part of the process and current effort to host an elective conference. Again, speculation is rife that factors may have arisen for the original Council of Elders to distance themselves from the upcoming elective conference.
The expanded Council of Elders thererefore, which includes Dr. Neo Simutanyi, Mr. Brebner Changala, Mr. Gilbert Temba, from OCIDA, Dr. Emily Sikazwe, Mr. Fackson Shamenda and Dr. Brian Mushimba, among others, seem to have initially tried the conclave idea which collapsed, and are now actively seeking funding to host this conference which many hope will include every known political party leader including Brian Mundubile, Harry Kalaba, Sakwiba Sikota, Chishala Kateka, Kasonde Mwenda, Andyford Banda and others. If any opposition party leader is sidelined or are not part of the process, then the primary objective of the conference to unite the opposition remains elusive.
At this stage, we are even hesitant to comment on reports that some individuals prominently known as political players, could have suddenly found themselves in the expanded Council of Elders. If true, the development fuels speculation of biases and eats at the very expected credibility of the expanded Council of Elders and its conference. One can’t be both a player and referee at the same time! Of course we also understand that there are those who might be skeptical about the process and have intentionally opted not to be part of the conference of elders for fear of rubber-stamping an elitist preferred candidate of the expanded Council of Elders who might not necessarily represent the wishes and choice of the citizens.
In the meantime, one should not look at the planned conference in isolation. You need to take a very holistic picture and ask, what do you do with candidates such as Brian Mundubile, who are not participating in the Council of Elders conference, yet are receiving daily endorsements across the country after holding an elective general congress with participation from 10 registered political parties and 8 civil society organisations?
Does the Council of Elders carry a more befitting mandate than what a total of 18 organisations represented at the Tonse Alliance Congress? What do you do with Dr. Fred M’membe, who, though being one of the shortlisted candidates, was already chosen as a presidential candidate for the People’s Pact Alliance. What do you do in an event that the outcome of the expanded Council of Elders elective conference does not favour him? How will the People’s Pact feel about the confidence they expressed in Dr. M’membe if he chooses to rally behind someone else?
What do you do with President Harry Kalaba whose party fulfilled the Constitutional requirement to hold a general party conference and endorsed him as the Citizens First flag bearer and yet he is not participating in the Council of Elders elective conference? Shouldn’t the primary consideration of all these factors be a starting point? Does the Council of Elders have preference for a political party or a particular candidate? Unless there is a special reason, why would you ignore the widespread and countrywide endorsements of Brian Mundubile and the sentiments by former Minister Yamfwa Mukanga?
Why would you ignore the Citizens First structures and visibility to start a process of choosing a candidate to marshal nationwide resonance two months before nominations?
These questions require answers and can not be wished away. While we wish the expanded Council of Elders all the best in their efforts, they must keep this at the back of their minds: are they finding a workable political solution or fanning political confusion and uncertainty? Only time will tell.
PF LOSES FIVE COUNCILLORS, SCORES OF OFFICIALS IN KABWE AMID INFIGHTING.
By Joseph Siambihi
Five councilors, 11 constituency officials, and 45 ward officials have resigned from the opposition Patriotic Front (PF) in Kabwe.
Of the five councilors who have resigned, four are from Bwacha Constituency, while one is from Kabwe Central Constituency.
Announcing the resignations, former PF Bwacha Constituency Chairperson Levy Chikungu cited persistent infighting within the party as the main reason behind the mass exit.
Mr. Chikungu has further pointed to what he described as growing hostility towards Sydney Mushanga, the Bwacha Member of Parliament, following his support for Bill 7, which has since been enacted into law as Act 13.
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) acting National Chairperson Jean Kapata has warned aspiring presidential aspirants that the Tonse Alliance will be doomed if they do not put their egos aside.
In an interview with The Mast Kapata said time was running out for the opposition to unite as soon as possible before it was too late.
“There can only be one president. So we need to be honest with ourselves and choose a person that could lead the Tonse Alliance and even win the August 13 elections,” she said.
Kapata said the problem was that most of the aspirants were too ambitious and could not see the bigger picture of working as a collective unit.
She said the alliance was working tirelessly to have a convention as soon as possible.
“What I can tell you is that we are going to have our general conference before the end of the month so that we can hit the ground running,” Kapata said.
Kapata urged the aspirants not to sow a seed of division but work as a collective unit in order to galvanise voters.
She said the sooner the aspirants worked together the higher the chances of them beating the incumbent, President Hakainde Hichilema.
Kapata said the Tonse leadership under president Given Lubinda had made up its mind that come rain come sunshine the convention would be held before the end of February.
The PF has disintegrated into a number of factions amid fierce infighting.
The Tonse Alliance Copperbelt Province leadership regrets to inform members and the public that Provincial Chairperson Counsel Amon Chisanga and Provincial Information and Publicity Secretary Mr. Zulu have been arrested in Ndola.
The arrests follow a successful provincial meeting where members unanimously endorsed Brian Mundubile as the preferred presidential candidate, reflecting strong unity and growing support across the province.
The Alliance is concerned by this development but remains committed to peaceful and lawful political engagement. Members are urged to remain calm and resolute as the party continues advancing its democratic mission.
THE PRICE OF VICTORY: PROFESSIONALISM IN POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS ISN’T EXPENSIVE—IT’S ESSENTIAL
David T. Zyambo | 15 February, 2026
LUSAKA — Since August 2025, after transitioning from two decades of corporate strategy to the engine room of political strategy for a Zambian presidential candidate, I have collided daily with a persistent, expensive myth: the belief that elections are won solely by the loudest voices in the streets. For years, the “cadre” has remained the undisputed central figure of our campaigns—a grassroots engine whose value is measured in lung capacity and physical presence.
However, the boardroom taught me that volume is not the same as value. As the August 13th election approaches, we must face an uncomfortable truth: the world has moved on, and Zambian politics must move with it. We are living in a new Information Age, where the “political amateur” is being sidelined by a specialised architecture of data, psychological branding, and narrative control. These are not merely individual consultants; they are “Control Towers”—sophisticated operations that run like high-tech war rooms.
For those accustomed to traditional campaign spending—where money goes toward fuel, t-shirts, and chitenges—the cost of these professional operations can look like financial recklessness. To the uninitiated, paying millions for a “Control Tower” feels like buying air, but these operations transform political guesswork into a high-precision engine of victory by replacing “gut feelings” with deep-dive voter mapping, subconscious branding, and and 24-hour narrative dominance.
People are not used to paying for “thinking”; they are used to paying for “things.” When they see a multi-million Kwacha fee for a “campaign strategy,” they don’t realise they aren’t paying for a document—they are paying for the intelligence that ensures their other millions spent on chitenges, t-shirts, and fuel actually result in votes.
In reality, it is simply the price of modern competition.
To understand why this level of professional investment is a necessity, we must look at the 2012 re-election of Barack Obama. It remains the gold standard for transforming a political movement into a precision machine. That year, the Obama campaign raised $1.1 billion.
The strategy was surgical. More than half of that total—over $600 million—was funnelled directly into media and advertising. This was not a blind spending spree; it was an investment in an “information advantage.” In this new era, information is the most valuable currency on the ballot. By utilising heavy data analytics, the campaign “optimised” its reach, identifying precisely which demographic needed to see which specific message.
The comparison to the US is not about direct equivalence. The Zambian electorate is not the US electorate; we operate in a transitional democracy with distinct cultural nuances, infrastructure gaps, and voter behaviour. The lesson here isn’t to copy US tech—it’s to adopt their rigour.
Rigour means moving away from guesswork and acknowledging that the Information Age has changed how voters think. Even where regionalism and tradition hold weight, professional strategy provides the tools to navigate these complexities scientifically. Whether the voter is in Washington DC or a small-scale farmer in Namwala, they both respond to a message that feels tailored to their specific reality.
While the streets of Zambia still pulse with the traditional energy of rallies and regalia, the true battle for August 13th is being fought in the ‘Control Towers.’ The win will not go to the loudest party, but to the one that uses the most precise data to master the science of voter persuasion.
Our country reached its own turning point in 2021. The UPND’s victory, secured by a margin of nearly one million votes, was not merely a result of public sentiment. It was the product of a “Control Tower” philosophy.
A common misconception in Zambia is that “media” is just social media, and that social media is irrelevant because “the village doesn’t have the internet.” This is a dangerous misunderstanding of how modern voter outreach works.
In 2021, the UPND did not just post on Facebook; they used analytics to drive a sophisticated hybrid machine. While the youth in Lusaka and the Copperbelt were mobilized via targeted digital content, that same data informed the “offline” campaign. Data told the campaign which specific villages were undecided, what their local concerns were, and which radio stations they listened to at 06:00.
By winning the “digital airwaves” through the youth, the campaign created an echo effect. Young people in the cities became the most trusted information source for their families in the villages. A WhatsApp message in Lusaka became a conversation over a meal in a remote district. This “pavement media” bypassed state-controlled TV, turning personal connections into the primary source of truth. The professional strategy didn’t just “support” the win; it manufactured the network that permeated every corner of the country.
The most successful campaigns in 2026 won’t dismiss the cadre; they will professionalise them. By transitioning from the ‘loudest voices’ to a strategic presence, the Hybrid Architecture ensures the passion of the streets is guided by the intelligence of a Control Tower—surgically deploying energy to key swing blocks and ensuring that every Ngwee spent on the ground results in a vote.
Scepticism toward high-level consultancy fees usually stems from a misunderstanding of the product. You aren’t paying for “posters”; you are paying for the strategic resilience required to survive the onslaught of state machinery. Effective professionals build movements like “Bally Will Fix It”—initiatives that penetrate partisan noise to reach the subconscious of the swing voter. By managing Hakainde Hichilema’s image with the same rigour a global corporation manages its flagship brand, they turned the candidate into a symbol of economic restoration that resonated everywhere—from a smartphone in Rhodespark to a transistor radio in the remote valleys of Mafinga.
Many believe the “Bally Will Fix It” brand was an organic creation of the streets—coined by cadres on the ground. In truth, it was the result of a data-driven strategy. Internal analytics revealed a critical reality: over 70% of Zambia’s population is under the age of 30, and in 2021, over 55% of the eligible electorate was under the age of 35. To reach this majority, the campaign needed more than a slogan; they needed a brand that humanised the candidate and signalled a “New Dawn” for a generation facing record unemployment. By adopting “Bally”—a slang term for “father” used by urban youth—the strategists resonated strongly with the country’s most significant voting bloc.
As August 13th approaches, political parties face a definitive choice. They can rely on the chaotic, unquantifiable energy of the streets, or they can use the science of persuasion to turn that energy into a precision instrument of victory.
Professionalism is not a replacement for the people; it is the intelligence that ensures their passion results in a win. Political history is a graveyard of “cheap” campaigns that ended in expensive defeats. The most expensive campaign isn’t the one that hires the experts; it’s the one that fails because it thought it could afford to be amateur.
🇿🇲 EDITORIAL | When Politics Becomes a Bail Application
“It is only in Africa where thieves will be regrouping to loot again and the youths whose future is being stolen will be celebrating it.”
Wole Soyinka’s words sting because they describe a familiar cycle, and Zambia is not immune. We are watching, in real time, an opposition conversation that increasingly sounds less like a national alternative and more like a rescue mission for a political class under legal siege.
Over the last few months, senior voices around the Patriotic Front factions have been unusually blunt about their central priority. The message is not jobs, not inflation, not energy, not education. The message is release. Release of colleagues in custody. Protection of those facing investigations. The framing is consistent: “political prisoners,” “persecution,” “targeting.” It is a narrative designed to turn accountability into victimhood and criminal procedure into campaign material.
This is where the country must pause. Zambia cannot be run like a private club where power changes hands simply to unlock prison doors. A democracy is not a revolving amnesty machine. Elections are not court appeals. When political leaders begin to speak as though state authority exists mainly to shield friends, relatives, and party networks from scrutiny, the republic itself becomes collateral.
The timing is not accidental. Just last week, the Economic and Financial Crimes Court ordered the forfeiture of assets belonging to Dalitso Lungu, including 79 vehicles and 23 properties, under non-conviction based forfeiture provisions. The public reaction has been loud, emotional, and deliberately funerary. Some have argued that this is happening because the former president is not yet buried. Others have wrapped legal questions in grief rhetoric, as though mourning should suspend the rule of law.
Grief deserves respect. Justice requires consistency. The courts do not stop functioning because politics is uncomfortable.
The deeper issue is what many Zambians already know but rarely say plainly. For some in the PF ecosystem, politics was never only about ideology. It was also about access. Access to bus stations. Access to markets. Access to rent-seeking points where cadres collected “taxes” outside the formal state. Access to cash-driven campaigns where handouts substituted for policy. When that system is interrupted, the anger is not philosophical. It is financial.
So the bitterness we see is partly the bitterness of a machine that can no longer feed itself.
Zambia has spent the last four years crawling out of a fiscal crater. Debt restructuring, IMF discipline, easing inflation, a firmer currency, rising investor appetite for government securities, these are not slogans. They are macroeconomic signals that credibility is returning. The bond market does not oversubscribe because of sympathy. Capital responds to stability, predictability, and institutions that hold.
This is why the stakes of August are larger than party colours. The question is whether Zambia continues building a state where public money is audited, where wealth must be explained, where institutions can function beyond personalities, or whether we return to a political culture where power is treated as a kingdom and accountability as revenge.
A serious opposition is fundamental in a democracy. But an opposition whose loudest promise is to “free our people” before it speaks of freeing the economy is not offering renewal. It is offering restoration of impunity.
Zambians must be careful what they clap for. When thieves regroup, the applause does not make them innocent. It only makes the public complicit.
This election will not only choose leaders. It will choose whether the republic belongs to citizens or to networks.
FORMER SP KASAMA MAYORAL ASPIRANT JOSEPH MUBANGA DEFECTS TO UPND
February 15, 2026
Former Kasama mayoral aspiring candidate Joseph Mubanga has officially defected from the Socialist Party to the United Party for National Development, declaring his support for President Hakainde Hichilema and the ruling party’s national agenda.
Mr Mubanga said his move to the UPND is driven by a firm belief in the party’s progressive policies and its commitment to inclusive development anchored on economic stability and good governance.
He stated that joining the UPND presents an opportunity for him to actively participate in advancing democratic politics and strengthening the party’s grassroots structures in Kasama and beyond.
Mr Mubanga announced his defection during a press briefing held in Kasama, where he was officially received by Special Assistant to the President for Politics Levy Ngoma, UPND Deputy Elections Vice Chairperson Likando Mufalali, and UPND Northern Province Chairperson Nathan Ilunga.
He further congratulated Kasama Mayor Bywell Simposya on his leadership and pledged to work closely with the council in support of the UPND-led development agenda.
Welcoming Mr Mubanga, Mr Mufalali said the defection underscores the UPND’s growing political dominance and increasing attractiveness to opposition figures ahead of the 2026 general elections.
Meanwhile, Mr Ngoma said the steady flow of opposition leaders into the UPND reflects rising national confidence in the party and President Hichilema’s vision, while Mr Ilunga expressed happiness at the development and called on party members to warmly receive Mr Mulenga, noting that such defections will further weaken the opposition and consolidate UPND support in the region.
Zambia’s Bond Market, Mistaking Foreign Participation for Investor Confidence
Zambia is losing $3.5billion in illicit financial flows every year.
Its copper earnings report to offshore accounts and tax havens in British Virgin Islanda and Cayman Islands.
Recwntly Government allowed foreign participation in the GRZ Bond Market.
In January 2026, the Bank of Zambia significantly increased the cap on non-resident participation in local government bond auctions to 23%, up from 5%, to ease refinancing pressure from upcoming debt maturities and boost liquidity.
This, along with a January 2024 switch to par-value, market-driven coupon pricing, has led to increased foreign investment in Zambian securities.
Over K21.3 billion (more than US$1 billion equivalent) just flooded into GRZ bonds, smashing a K4.2 billion target and delivering the largest auction demand in Zambia’s history, according to results issued by Bank of Zambia for the Government of the Republic of Zambia.
February didn’t just beat January, it obliterated it. January attracted K10.1 billion in bids. February doubled that to K21.3 billion. While headline yields eased across major tenors (notably the 10-year from 17.19% to 16.60% and the 15-year from 18.79% to 17.59%), the weighted average yield actually moved from ~16.58% in January to ~16.83% in February, driven by massive allocations into longer-dated paper.
WHERE IS THIS FOREIGN PARTICIPATION
The Central Bank should profile who these foreign entity. For example the large economy is owned by foreign nationals(Canadians, Australians, Asians and USA) and the small economy(shops in township and wholesalers) is also owned by regional foreigners(Burundese, Rwandese and Somalians).
Following the introduction of foreign participation in the bond market, we see the surge in the bond market, which foreigners are participating?
President Hakainde Hichilema has donated 200,000 Kwacha towards the successful hosting of this year’s Ncwala ceremony.
The donation was presented by Local Government and Rural Development Minister Gift Sialubalo during the Ncwala fundraising dinner in Lusaka last night.
Mr. Sialubalo said traditional ceremonies play a vital role in promoting unity, national identity, and economic growth. He added that events such as Ncwala showcase Zambia’s rich heritage and provide a unique opportunity for visitors to engage with local communities and gain a deeper understanding of their culture.
He urged stakeholders, national institutions, government agencies, and the general public to support the ceremony.
Mr. Sialubalo also donated 50,000 Kwacha, while Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Chipoka Mulenga contributed 45,000 Kwacha. These donations add to contributions already made by the corporate sector.
Police in Manyinga District in North-Western province have arrested a 48-year-old man, for attempting to sell his niece.
North-Western Province Commissioner of Police Brighton Siwale said the suspect Abibson Chilomba of Manyinga district, was apprehended on Wednesday evening following a tip-off from a local businesswoman, Joyce Kayoya.
Mr. Siwale stated that the incident occurred around 19:00 hours on 12th February, after Ms. Kayoya reported that the suspect had approached her shop looking to sell his niece.
He says upon receiving the information, police officers rushed to the scene, where they located and identified the suspect, a resident of Muluwa area in Sikufule.
Mr. Siwale says the suspect is currently in police custody for the offence of human trafficking, and investigations into the matter are underway.
THE JUDICIARY OF ZAMBIA MOURNS THE LATE HON. LADY JUSTICE DR. WINNIE SITHOLE MWENDA
It is with a heavy heart and profound shock that I, on behalf of the Judiciary of Zambia, announce the sudden passing of the Hon. Lady Justice Dr. Winnie Sithole Mwenda. Justice Dr. Mwenda transitioned in the early hours of Saturday, 14th February 2026. At the time of her untimely departure, she served with distinction as the Hon. Judge in Charge of the General Division of the High Court at Ndola.
Justice Dr. Mwenda was a legal luminary and an extraordinary adjudicator whose career was defined by intellectual brilliance and an unwavering commitment to the rule of law. To all who encountered her, she embodied a quiet but powerful aura of judicial wisdom. She was the quintessence of an exemplary judge, seamlessly blending profound legal expertise with the highest ethical standards. Her temperate personality and balanced approach to the bench ensured the fair and impartial administration of justice for all.
The magnitude of this loss to the Zambian Judiciary and the legal fraternity at large cannot be overstated. We have lost not only a dedicated servant of justice but a beacon of integrity and a mentor to many.
On behalf of the entire Judiciary, I wish to extend my deepest and most heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and the people of Zambia. We stand with you in this moment of immense grief.
May the Almighty God grant us all comfort and strength during this extremely difficult time, and may her soul rest in eternal peace.
Hon. Justice Dr. Mumba Malila, SC CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA
BULL’S FAMILY LAUDS PRESIDENT HICHILEMA FOR OFFICIAL FUNERAL
THE family of the late Mutumba Mainga Bull who died yesterday Friday 13th February after an illness in Lusaka, has thanked President Hakainde Hichilema for according her an official funeral.
Family Spokesman, Neeta Kwalombota said the family is grateful to the government and President Hichilema for honouring Dr Bull with an official funeral.
Mr Kwalombota said the family received the news of according Dr Bull an official funeral by President Hichilema with happiness.
Dr Bull served as the First Female Cabinet Minister in the United National Independence Party (UNIP) government where she held different ministerial portfolios.
She was also the First Zambian female to obtain a Doctorate Degree and to lecture a t the University of Zambia.
In recognition of her numerous and selfless contributions to the Nation, President Hichilema has accorded the late Dr. Bull an official funeral.
Former US president Barack Obama has said he believes extraterrestrial life exists but rejected long-standing conspiracy theories about secret government programmes hiding alien beings.
Speaking in an interview with journalist Brian Tyler Cohen released Saturday, Obama was asked directly about UFOs and non-human intelligence. He responded, “They’re real,” before clarifying his position.
“But I haven’t seen them. They’re not being kept at Area 51. There’s no underground facility, unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the President of the United States.”
Barack Obama on aliens: “They’re real” “But I haven’t seen them. They’re not being kept at Area 51. There’s no underground facility — unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the President of the United States.” pic.twitter.com/c6t0DYxewU — UAP James (@UAPJames) February 14, 2026
The remarks marked one of his clearest public statements on extraterrestrial life since leaving office. However, Obama did not provide evidence and emphasised he had no knowledge of secret facilities or concealed alien technology during his presidency.
The speculation he referred to often centres on Area 51, a highly classified US Air Force site in Nevada that has for decades been linked to claims that authorities recovered alien spacecraft, including debris allegedly connected to the 1947 Roswell incident.
Interest in unidentified flying objects, now officially called unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), has intensified in recent years after US authorities released military footage showing unexplained aerial objects. In 2021, the Pentagon declassified Navy videos depicting fast-moving airborne objects whose origin could not be determined.
Obama had previously acknowledged those sightings, saying there was genuine footage and documentation of objects moving in ways the government could not explain. Still, he maintained there was no proof of a hidden alien programme.
The interview also briefly touched on current political discourse, though the former president focused primarily on dismissing conspiracy narratives surrounding extraterrestrials. His comments quickly gained attention online, particularly among communities tracking UAP disclosure debates.
Overall, Obama reiterated a cautious stance: accepting the possibility of life beyond Earth while rejecting claims that the US government is secretly storing alien craft or beings.
OBAMA ADDRESSED RACIST VIDEO SHARED BY TRUMP DEPICTING HIM AS AN APE
FORMER US President Barack Obama has indirectly addressed a racist video posted on President Donald Trump’s social media, telling a podcast host that the “shame” and “decorum” that once guided public officials is now lost.
The offensive video included a clip depicting Obama and his wife Michelle as apes, which drew widespread criticism from Democrats and Republicans.
The White House initially defended the video, calling backlash “fake outrage”. The post was later blamed on a staff member and deleted.
Obama spoke to liberal podcaster Brian Tyler Cohen, who asked the first black US president about the tone of political discourse. Cohen cited Trump’s post among several recent controversies.
The clip, set to the song The Lion Sleeps Tonight was included at the end of a video Trump’s Truth Social account shared containing unfounded claims about voter fraud in the 2020 election.
The post led to outrage from politicians, including from senior members of Trump’s Republican party.
Senator Tim Scott the only black Republican senator described it as “the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House”.
The clip recalls racist caricatures comparing black people to monkeys, and appears to have been taken from an X post shared by conservative meme creator Xerias in October.
Trump has told reporters that he “didn’t see” the part of the video that showed the Obamas.
“I didn’t make a mistake,” he told reporters when asked whether he planned to apologise.
The 47-minute podcast featuring Obama was released on Saturday. The episode begins with the host asking him to comment on US “discourse”, which he says “has devolved to a level of cruelty that we haven’t seen before”.
Cohen notes claims by the White House that the “victims” of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are “domestic terrorists”, and adds “just days ago, Donald Trump put a picture of you, your face, on an ape’s body”.
Obama responds by saying: “It’s important to recognise that the majority of the American people find this behaviour deeply troubling.
“It is true that it gets attention. It’s true that it’s a distraction.”
But Obama said that while travelling around the US, he found himself meeting people who “still believe in decency, courtesy, kindness”.
“There’s this sort of clown show that’s happening in social media and on television,” he continued.
“And what is true is that there doesn’t seem to be any shame about this among people who used to feel like you had to have some sort of decorum and a sense of propriety and respect for the office, right?
He did not mention Trump by name in his response.
During the interview, Obama spoke about a range of issues. He praised protesters who have peacefully organised against immigration operations, discussed electoral redistricting and talked about his presidential library, which is due to open in Chicago next year.
Black Coffee Seeks 60-Day Jail Term for Nota Baloyi in Defamation Dispute
Grammy-winning producer Black Coffee has filed a contempt of court application against music executive Nota Baloyi, seeking a 60-day prison sentence for allegedly violating a court order related to defamatory social media posts.
The legal battle stems from a December 2025 High Court ruling that ordered Baloyi to remove posts accusing Black Coffee of criminal conduct and association with criminals, and to issue a formal apology.
Nota has since filed an appeal, arguing the court misapplied defamation law and infringed on his freedom of expression rights.
“I’m appealing because I never said Black Coffee is guilty of criminal activity, and I can’t apologise for something I did not do,” Nota stated following the judgment.
The contempt application carries particular weight given Nota’s legal history. In November 2024, he was arrested at the Randburg Magistrate’s Court while appearing on a separate sexual assault case and subsequently served two weeks of a 60-day sentence for contempt of court in a similar matter involving rapper K.O .
In that case, Nota had ignored a court order to refrain from posting about K.O.
Nota known for his confrontational social media presence, has a growing list of legal conflicts with industry figures. In 2022, he was ordered to pay R200,000 in damages to DJ Shimza for defamation.
More recently, in April 2025, he issued an unconditional public apology to the South African Human Rights Commission for racially offensive remarks made during podcast appearances .
The current dispute began when Black Coffee filed an urgent application demanding the removal of what he termed “false and damaging statements,” including allegations of dubious financial practices.
Nota responded with a counterclaim, accusing the DJ of using his wealth and influence to intimidate critics and demanding R25,000 compensation for alleged distress caused to his mother.
“The case is not about defamation but an attempt to muzzle public discourse on issues that affect society,” Nota argued in his court papers .
The contempt application remains pending before the High Court, with both par
