Some degree holders are absolute idiots – chief Nyampande
By Christopher Miti in Petauke
Thu 22 July 2010, 15:20 CAT [277 Reads, 0 Comment(s)]
PETAUKE residents on Wednesday outrightly rejected the clause in the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) draft constitution that requires people running for the Republican presidency to be degree holders.
And the residents were divided on whether or not the country should adopt the 50 per cent plus one winning threshold for one to be declared president.
During a forum organized by Caritas dubbed ‘key governance issue at hand’ at Petauke’s Rift Valley Lodge, the residents said the clause was segregative.
Chief Nyamphande said Zambians should not be carried away by a person’s academic qualifications because even people with minimum qualifications could make good leaders.
“You know some people have been to universities but they are absolute idiots. So don’t be carried away by academic qualifications,” chief Nyampande noted.
“If we were rational all of us this should not even be an issue because the electorate would be able to judge and choose those who are capable.”
He said Zambians should vote for people who were capable of providing leadership.
Chief Mumbi said the issue of having degree holders as presidential candidates could only work out if the country had a well developed education system.
“If you say this should be adopted in the constitution then you the rural folk and your children will not be presidents. How many of you here have even the money to send your children to the university? Our children should not be denied chance to be presidents because they don’t have degrees. You know when you take some people to the university then they turn into bigger idiots,” chief Mumbi said.
Petauke’s St Oscars Catholic assistant parish priest Fr Bonaventure Kamlewe said the degree clause should not be enshrined in the constitution because it was highly discriminatory.
Fr Kamlewe said leadership mostly depends on upbringing.
Nyika MMD ward councilor Osman Ahmed Moosa said the issue of a degree as a requirement for presidential candidates could not work because very few people had access to university education.
Moosa said education does not change a person.
And Manyane ward councilor Winford Tembo who represented the council chairman said the 50 per cent plus one winning threshold was good and should be adopted.
Chief Mumbi said the 50 per cent plus one clause was good because it would ensure quality leadership and reduce election petitions.
But Moosa said the 50 per cent plus one threshold could not work well in Zambia because of the squabbles that characterize elections even at a lower level.
After further debate, the issue was subjected to a vote but there was a tie as people could not agree on one particular position.
The residents also recommended that abortion and death sentence should be abolished.
The residents recommended that a sitting president should vacate State House within 24 hours after losing elections.
They also said the minimum qualification for a parliamentarian should be a grade twelve certificate.
Later, chief Sandwe commended Caritas for organizing educative fora.
Chief Sandwe said such fora should take some days and not just one day.
Caritas Chipata director Fr Richard Chiyanjano Phiri said Caritas would continue organizing such fora in the province.
Caritas held a similar meeting in Nyimba yesterday.
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1 comment:
Education should be perceived only as a tool. In the hands of a well person, education can be used to generate great ideas. But in the hands of a fool, education can be an impediment to human development and tool for destruction.
It should be clear to see, then, that one needs something else to use education in a responsible and productive manner. One needs cultural intelligence; the collection of values that give definition to the context within which education must be acquired and its usefulness.
We have to understand that when we lack cultural intelligence, we lack identity and at that point we lose the control of our destiny to the world. Anyone can come in and define us and chances are that we would acquiesce.
We have already been defined by others in some aspects of our lives, tarting with education itself. The system that we follow provides very little assistance to the understanding and appreciation of who we are. It does not enlighten us about ourselves, but them. Our learning environment is not maintained and sustained by our cultural values. That is to say our education is not conducted in our cultural context.
And so are other practices. Take religion for instance. All important rituals are done in a manner consistent with the dictates of the culture of those who introduced it to us. Woe to he who tries to customize it to our culture! Sacrilege, they call it.
The Chief is right on the money!
I look forward to a day when Zambia will begin to conduct parliamentatry debates in local languages.
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