THE MEMORIES OF 2017 HIT DIFFERENTLY NOW
By Bill Hamapumbu Jr.
The BM and MZ situation is hitting me differently, especially knowing that they are facing treason charges.
It takes me straight back to 2017.
I still remember vividly how difficult it was to live and sleep knowing that our leader was in jail, facing a treason charge, an offence that carries extremely serious consequences. At the time, many of us feared that this could be the end of HH’s political career.
I remember the conversations I used to have with my father. The fear was real. Our hope was slowly diminishing. There were moments when it felt like we were watching the political future we believed in disappear before our eyes.
But we still had voices that gave us hope, His Royal Highness Chief Mukuni and a few politicians who kept updating and encouraging us. We held on.
And I remember how some PF supporters celebrated the situation. That part also stayed with me.
Today, when I see BM and MZ incarcerated, I understand why some UPND supporters may feel a sense of satisfaction. They remember what they went through. Politics can make people become accustomed to seeing their opponents suffer.
But I also remember what 2017 taught me.
When HH was eventually released, the feeling across the country was extraordinary. It almost felt like he had won an election. For many of us, the light came back. The hope returned.
That experience left a permanent memory in me.
So when I see BM and MZ in this situation, I cannot simply look at it as politics. I remember the anxiety, the uncertainty and the fear that comes with seeing a political leader facing a case with consequences this serious.
I am not saying the charges should be dropped or that anyone should be above the law. If there is a case to answer, let the law take its course. The process must apply.
But we should also be honest about the bigger picture.
When cases involving major political figures dominate national attention for months, the country also loses something. The government spends time responding to political controversies. Ministers who should be selling Zambia’s policies internationally find themselves explaining domestic political disputes. Institutions get pulled into political battles. And citizens spend their energy debating cases instead of debating jobs, investment, development and the future.
I recently watched a video; Hon. Mulambo Haimbe, S.C, M.P, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation dispels rumors of a protest at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Instead of simply focusing on presenting the country’s policies and interests, he had to spend time addressing another political controversy.
We may not immediately see the cost of this.
But time lost in politics is also time lost in governance.
Whether BM and MZ are eventually found guilty or acquitted, the country will have spent enormous political energy on this matter.
That is why 2017 still stays with me.
Politics is politics. Accountability matters. The law must work.
But so does the country.
And sometimes, when you have personally lived through the anxiety of seeing your political leader facing a serious charge, watching another political camp go through something similar hits much deeper than people who were not there may understand.
I hope this treason case can be done so quickly, so that country can reset to normal mode.