#banabaabo- The People Are Silent, But Not Asleep: A Warning to Those Who Govern
By Linda Banks
The man is gone, death has done what politics could not. It has silenced him but legacy is not so easily buried. Legacy lingers, It seeps into the soil, into memory, into the collective bloodstream of a people still coming to terms with loss. And when that legacy belongs to a former Head of State, Dr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu, Zambia’s sixth Republican President, it demands pause. It demands respect.
Instead, we are seeing something sinister.
At a time when grief ought to unify us, even if briefly, those in power have chosen propaganda over propriety. Bitter commentary, unrestrained insinuations, and veiled attacks have been thrown into the public square while citizens still lay wreaths and sing solemn songs. Is this the Zambia we fought for?
The UPND government, once seen as a breath of fresh air, must now confront the hard truth. Power has changed them. Or perhaps it has simply revealed them. They are forgetting the very people who carried them into office with ballots of hope. And if they are not careful, they will awaken something they cannot contain.
Let this be clear, this is not about Dr. Lungu’s political record. The man is no longer here to defend or explain himself. This is about what his death revealed. A country quietly seething. A people holding their tongues, but not their judgment. A ground that is restless.
The orchestrated narratives being pushed now, allegations recycled and spoken louder simply because the man cannot speak back, reveal desperation, not dominance. If the ruling party believes that their hold on power can be secured by tarnishing the legacy of the deceased, then they understand neither power nor the Zambian psyche.
Even if you disagreed with him, Dr. Lungu was a father, a statesman, and a leader to many. For thousands, his leadership, flawed or not, symbolised stability. To speak ill of him now, to inject venom into a moment of national mourning, is not strategy. It is self-sabotage.
And here is the irony. Had the UPND not feared his influence in death, they would not be trying so hard to erase his memory even before his body is buried. But legacy does not obey propaganda. It lives in people’s lived experiences. It lives in markets, in churches, in compounds where citizens weigh who remembered them when it counted and who merely posted tweets.
The Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act may silence some. But it cannot jail resentment. It cannot jail the grief-tinged anger of a mother who remembers being able to afford mealie meal under another regime. It cannot mute the disillusionment of youth who were promised jobs but are now hustling airtime and maize in the scorching sun.
This is the problem with deceptive governance. It assumes that silence equals satisfaction. But Zambians have always been a quiet storm. They do not riot. They vote. They do not scream. They remember. And when that time comes, no law, no lie, and no cyber brigade will be enough.
If the UPND still values its credibility, let them recalibrate. Let them show leadership, not through eulogies but through restraint. Not through narratives but through nation building. At the very least, let them pretend to walk in the spirit of UBuntu. For the sake of peace. For the sake of their own survival.
Because when politics loses its humanity, history takes over. We are inking history, and posterity will judge you harshly if you don’t change trajectory.
Dear readers, epo mpelele.
Where has government-sponsored commentary appeared to deride Edgar Lungu?
Woman were did you get all this nonsense?Guess you live in another country cause what you are talking about is not happening here.The government of the day is there to help the family.Don`t create tension where there is none.If you were one of those prost!tutes who you used to eat free money,its finished not anymore.We are united mourning ba Lungu,you cant divide us on that one..
You people are born liars. You want to mislead the masses by using fake names from other parts of Zambia, but your tone betrays you. Allow us to mourn one of our own without giving constant mocking commentary. When your own dies, we will allow you to mourn him in your own way. So just give us space please. Have some respect. If you want to celebrate, do it privately at your farms as you enjoy t-bone.
VOTE FOR CHANGE IN 2026.
You are not Zambian,possibly Congo/Tanzania.Your behavior is questionable
You are not Zambian,possibly Congo/Tanzania.Your behavior is questionable
You’re so disconnected such that you are writing stuff from your own imagination. You are pointing fingers at innocent people, but you, PF opposition leaders and Nakachinda are busy throwing mad, propaganda and fake stories using Lungu’s name even in his death. Truth be told Lungu had an underlying health issue which confessed live on TV that he wouldn’t like to a president for the same reason. Lungu shouldn’t have been anywhere near the presidency. Fast forward things changed they forced him and marchelled into the presidency. Some even went to wake up High Court Judges at 02:00hrs. Since then they have never stopped. They manipulated and coerced him out of retirement and pushed him into his death. Even when he was on his death bed, they continued using him by high jacking his Facebook page pushing propaganda and fake stories attributing the to Lungu. Even in his death they continue to do what they do best to push propaganda and total make stories to the world. The only mistake Lungu made was he couldn’t distinguish wolves from real people as long as they sang him praises. That’s where we are today. We all know these people are! As Zambians we should reject these type of so called politicians by making sure we don’t elect them into any leadership position. There did it to Sata and now they have done it to Lungu. Let’s put a stop to this madness. Don’t vote for PF/ Tonse and it’s associated alliance members.