Wherever fourth Republican president Rupiah Banda is today, he looks back
and obviously prides in the respect with which he held the Office of President
of Zambia.
There is no doubt that what happened in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where
President Michael Sata was booed, and several other international instances,
are not only leaving a bitter pill in the mouth of any objective and genuine
Zambian but tearing our glorious image apart.
That image of a fledging democracy, a beacon of peace, a key liberator whose
young democracy of less than three decades has given birth to four different
presidents is slowly melting away.
After first Republican president Kenneth Kaunda came that flamboyant and
eloquent ex-trade unionist Frederick J.T Chiluba then that astute and respected
lawyer Levy Patrick Mwanawasa and on to the diplomat and think-tank Rupiah
Banda.
In the three years Rupiah served Zambia, no single Zambian, international journalists,
not even those that have raped the journalism profession at The Post, can point
to a single incident of immeasurable disgrace and shame of his making.
Rupiah attended several international conferences, interacted with Zambians
in the diaspora and met several Heads of State. There are those Heads of State
he agreed with, and there are those he never agreed with.
Yet in all his interactions at home and abroad, Rupiah never reduced
Zambia's prestigious Number One office to the ridicule Sata has successfully
managed to do just under two years in office. What will the Office of President
become of by 2016? The answer can be traced in what is happening at the moment.
A journalist on the sidelines of the African Union, Idriss Ali Nassah, did
not hide his shock. He came across a President who was behaving like a boy
heading cattle. At that point you can be ashamed to identify yourself as
Zambian but the reality at home is very much reflecting on the international
stage. Zambia has a President who's got no regard for the Office of the
President or the people that gave him the mandate.If it only happened in
Ethiopia, one would forgive President Sata as first offender.
This has happened in Botswana, London, Zimbabwe, Angola and the United
States. On the local front, the list of these embarrassing incidents is
endless. Even in church like the case was recently at the Cathedral, Sata is a
shambolic figure . This explains why the man who once befriended every radio
talk-show can nolonger face the same people he courageously addressed as
opposition leader through a formal press conference now that he is Head of
State nearly two years in office.
There is certainly an extent to
which anyone can joke, better still, a Head of State because some jokes are
expired. And some jokes can take away the seriousness contained in a good
message. But this is what is happening with our dear Sata. He is either
clueless or overwhelmed. His handlers know that bringing Sata before the press
to answer questions will be a total disaster. He can't explain a thing, he is
blank, his only strength are insults.
But as much as Zambians are
tolerating this nonsensical behaviour, the international stage has no time for
a clown posturing as Head of State.
That young journalist was short of
insulting our intellect. How did 'smart' Zambians end up with a thug for
President, he should have been wondering when he tweeted; "Zambians are
some of the smartest people I know. How they came to be led by such truly
baffles the mind. My God, Michael Sata is an embarrassment each time he is
opening his mouth!!"
This is a journalist with only a
minimum of 24 hours interaction with Sata but can purely tell that his mouth is
worse than that of crocodile such that when its open, only flies will think it
is a safe haven when only rot comes out of it.
The engagement in a hostile exchange
with the audience, behaving erratically with jokes and mocking other
'bald-headed' heads of state, and mistaking the African Union with Organisation
for African Unity (OAU), the precursor institution which is now extinct, is not
a minor incident that the country should gloss over.
The Patriotic Front (PF) government
of Zambia has had a number of conflicts with other nations, including a gaffe
by Vice President Guy Scott against the people of South Africa. President Sata
has drawn boos from crowds during his public appearances in the past as well,
including at the Lusaka fairgrounds. And this should raise enough alarms. We
have a duty to protect this country from damage because Sata will not be
Pesident forever in case he mistakenly think so.
Like Dr Canisus Banda has noted,
"It was NOT Michael Sata that was booed. It was Zambia, us as a people! He
is our mirror, a reminder of our need to urgently change, to seriously improve
our image. The booing of our head of state by non-Zambians is vital feedback
for which we ought to be grateful! The message is that Zambia in its current
state is offensive to the rest of Africa!"
This is true and the situation is
getting worse by the day. Not a single Head of State outside the rank and file
of Robert Mugabe has made an attempt to visit Zambia. It is that bad.
It is illogical to think Zambia does
not need its neigbhours. We are a landlocked country and this makes us heavily
reliant on the goodwill of good neigbourliness. This is why Rupiah made it a
point Zambia's neigbhours were comfortable with him and the country.
Ever wondered why the Zambian
economy was booming under Rupiah? His ability to foster unity and treat those
around him as human as possible made him a beacon of investment. He created a
fertile environment for bilateral relationships and his fellow Heads of State
trickled in with ease. No single President will have the pleasure to accept an
invitation to Zambia if on foreign soil, its President behaves like a Nyau
dancer.
If etiquette can be observed in a
pit latrine what more in the Office of President where diplomacy and respect
for oneself and its people is of utmost importance? Now, instead of being known
for the good that we offer, our image as a country is that of thugs, thanks to
a carefree Sata. How we miss that diplomacy endowed Rupiah, ever respectful of
this country, its people and others.
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