By Dr Nevers Mumba
STATEMENT OF CONCERN REGARDING FORMER PRESIDENT EDGAR CHAGWA LUNGU’S PUBLIC ENGAGEMENTS
As a concerned citizen, I am deeply troubled by the management of Former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu’s public appearances and statements. Certain individuals continue to exploit and expose him, inciting careless and damaging remarks that undermine his office’s dignity and stature.
President Lungu has recently been quoted in public suggesting a showdown of sorts with the incumbent that has nothing to do with any legal means and methods. I also understand that President Lungu and his team have set in motion a plan to remove three ConCourt Judges, a clear act of defiance and counterfeit to the Suspension of three judges by President Hichilema, which they repeatedly refer to as illegal. If this is not arrogance, then I don’t know what is. Name-calling has now become a standard feature of the former President’s speeches as he continues to shower nicknames on his successor.
Not only have recent media reports continued to highlight this disturbing trend, but a closer look at the characters who shamelessly continue to urge the former President on, clapping hands and waving fists in the air, shows, interestingly, that this is not the ECL we know. This is a new ECL who is being pushed and controlled by a group of handlers who know exactly what they want to get out of him and very quickly.
This sad scenario, although very different in circumstances, bears unsettling parallels to the final days of President Michael Sata when we saw a similar cartel of opportunists and similar characters take control of our former President. We vividly recall how our esteemed leader was unnecessarily paraded before the public, taken to parliament and other public appearances, despite knowing fully well that all the President required was love, care, and privacy.
Today, President Lungu just needs good advisors and people that love him genuinely to sit down with him and ask him to reconsider his ways. Regrettably, history seems to be repeating itself. The same characters, notorious for their self-serving agendas, are shamelessly taking advantage of Former President Lungu. They will stop at nothing to leverage his perceived political influence for their own gain, regardless of the consequences.
I urge President Lungu’s team to reassess their approach, prioritizing his dignity and our nation’s interest. If this trajectory remains unchecked, the window for correction will soon close.
President Lungu’s anger over certain things must not be taken advantage of by those surrounding him. Anger does to bring forth anything positives. We believe that some people are taking advantage of President Lungu’s anger over certain things and these people seem to embody a spirit of destruction and they are almost succeeding in pushing him over the edge into a pool that his dignity would otherwise not allow him to go into.
Let us draw lessons from the past and safeguard our former President’s dignity.
If not corrected soon,
IT WILL END IN TEARS