WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE 2021 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE HIGHVIE HUMBULO HAMUDUDU?
In view of the Hamududu frenzy that has gripped the nation, because of the way some ECZ commissioners were pronouncing his name when announcing the presidential results and the fact that some names are generally comical, I thought I should provide a little bit of information about the man who is trending—especially to those who are only getting to know him now.
Highvie Hambulo Hamududu or triple H, was born on March 23 in 1970. He is married and is an economist by profession—a graduate of the University of Zambia. He served as UPND Member of Parliament for Bweengwa constituency, where the newly elected president Hichilema hails from, between 2006 to 2016.
During his time in Parliament, Mr Hamududu served as a member of the Public Accounts Committee and also the Budget Estimates Committee which he chaired for seven years. For those that used to follow parliamentary proceedings, will agree with me that Mr Hamududu was one of the members of parliament on the left that could articulate issues with ease.
He was a good debater. In the 2016 adoption process of the UPND, Mr Hamududu was left out. In 2017, he resigned from the UPND to form Party of National Unity, which later rebranded to the current Party of National Unity and Progress (PNUP).
On August 12, 2021 Mr Hamududu’s party contested the general elections for the first time, with him as the presidential candidate. He came out sixth with 10,480 votes. Despite the not so impressive performance in the presidential run, PNUP managed to get a Member of Parliament in Western Province’s Nalolo constituency, Wamunyima Imanga.
Some people believe PNUP only won the seat because the UPND which scoped the majority of seats in Western Province, didn’t field a candidate for that constituency and the battle was left to a very unpopular party in PF and a popular PNUP candidate.
With that single representation in Parliament, PNUP is now the third largest opposition political party in Zambia, with the PF occupying the second spot. In addition to this achievement, the Hamududu name has also become a household name for fun of course—not because people are in love with his manifesto.
I think someone even came up with a Hamududu song. With the 2026 general elections in sight, it remains to be seen how the PNUP president will capitalize on this newly found fame of his by turning the jokes side of it into serious business of attracting votes.
AUTHOR: MOSES KUWEMA