Whenever our politicians commit crimes, grave ones for that matter such as ransacking our national resources; storming police stations and leaving policemen for dead; engage in dastardly acts such as strangling their girl friends and setting their bodies ablaze or indeed producing their “katushas” and offload their entire toxic materials from their bowels into the mouth of helpless journalists and the noose gets tighter around their necks; they want to seek protection by hiding their enormous transgressions under the guise of their tribes!
Help us understand, please. Which tribe would be proud to be associated with one of their sons or daughters engaging in such Satanic practices? Which Chief in their right frame of mind would approve of such?
Moreover, whenever these individuals we call presidents, ministers or members of parliament defraud our people of their meager resources by whatever means, they don’t take the loot back to their villages to be shared with their tribesmates; they enjoy it alone with their wives, families and girl friends! But even if they may decide to share some of their ill-gotten wealth with tribesmates, is this the way a civilised society must conduct itself……devoid of any morals or values at all?
While the masses remain wallowing in abject poverty, meanwhile these characters we want to blindly support have suddenly become overnight millionaires driving expensive SUVs, living in breathtaking mansions and putting on designer outfits straight from Harrolds and other fashion houses! Why do you insist on rallying behind them even when you know they’ve committed serious iniquities?
This grand scheme of certain people hiding in the name of tribe started with Micheal Sata in opposition. When President Levy Mwanawasa went after former MMD leaders who had plundered our national resources, full throttle; Sata saw it as an opportunity to gain political mileage by recklessly claiming Mwanawasa disliked people from a certain ethnic grouping, hence ‘persecuting’ them on flimsy grounds!
It’s simple logic, if you’ve been a minister and funds went missing during your tenure, who do you expect to be held accountable? As we speak, some MMD leaders are serving prison sentences while others have since done their time.
If there’s any reasonable belief that former president Edgar Lungu or indeed any of his government officials engaged in corrupt practices, they must be held accountable like others before them! There’s nothing special about them. We take strong exception to Mfuwe member of parliament Mabonga insinuating there’s some sort of ethnic cleansing going on. What nonsense! How do you expect those serving in government today to refrain from corrupt activities knowing that their entire tribe will be there to defend them once they’ve vacated office? Hold your horses madam, no matter what you may be drinking!
Prince Bill M. Kaping’a
Polical/Social Analyst