Private ownership of land is a foreign ideology – Chief Mwamba
By Moses Kuwema and Henry Sinyangwe
Sat 31 July 2010, 03:50 CAT
SENIOR chief Mwamba of the Bemba speaking people in Kasama has said private ownership of land is a foreign ideology.
In his submissions to the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) yesterday, chief Mwamba said the current administration of land by traditional authorities was more transparent and democratic since the village heads and communities were the real custodians of land.
“Our system is that the land is yours for as long as you work on it, and the fruits of your labour belong to you. But you don’t own it. It is the people’s property,” he said.
“The current system of land allocations requires persons seeking land to go first to the community through village committees, headed by village heads, before the final approval by the concerned chief. Therefore, we are demanding the removal of Clause 4 as contained in the NCC draft constitution.”
Clause 4, subsection 3 in article 290 of the draft report reads as follows: “Customary land shall not be alienated or otherwise used until the approval of the chief and local authority in whose area the land is situated has first been obtained and as may be provided by or under an Act of Parliament.”
Subsection 4 reads: “An approval under the clause (3) shall not be unreasonably withheld.”
Chief Mwamba observed that in its proposed form, Clause 4 had a bearing on Clause 3, because the provisions in Clause 4 delude the powers of Clause 3.
“Furthermore, the wording ‘unreasonably’ is not only very ambiguous but also relative. There are no parameters attached in Clause 4 which may clearly define what may constitute ‘unreasonable’,” observed chief Mwamba.
He said Clause 4 did not specify the authority that shall declare the decisions of traditional authority under Clause 3 to be unreasonable.
“The contents in Clause 4 do not appear anywhere in the interim report of the Constitution Review Commission and therefore a group of very unreasonable persons have smuggled very unreasonable, unrealistic and unacceptable provisions which are totally against the interests of the peasants in the rural areas into the draft constitution of the republic of Zambia,” said chief Mwamba.
The Post
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
It Boils Down to Mental Fortitude?
Comment by Mwata Chisha
I need somebody to talk me down on this matter.
Bringing in a coach from Italy for the purpose of preparing the team to win a specific cup tournament is a short term fix to what seemingly is a long term problem. And the problem is, We do not have a Zambian coach to train our team to win that cup. Yes we may win that cup and perhaps even enter the world cup for the first time. But what messages are we constantly and consistently depositing in our collective subconscious mind? That we are incapable of doing it ourselves. As Bonetti states, we lack the mental fortitude.
Are we agreeing with Bonetti that our culture has, for almost half a century failed to produce a world class coach? I offer my suggestion at the bottom of this article
FAZ unveils Bonetti as executive members reject team manager
By Sydney Mungala and Augustine Mukoka
Tue 27 July 2010, 04:00 CAT
THE Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) has finally unveiled Italian national Dario Bonetti as Chipolopolo coach on a two-year contract.
And FAZ executive members have differed over the appointment of Division Two side (Copperbelt) Nkwiza official Lusekelo Kamwambi as Chipolopolo team manager.
During a press briefing at Football House yesterday, FAZ president Kalusha Bwalya said Bonetti’s immediate task was to qualify Chipolopolo to the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations to be co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
“I think coaches need a target. For the moment the target is the Africa Cup of Nations in 2012. You will agree with me that after 2012 there is not enough time going to the 2013 tournament. I am sure that the same teams that will qualify for 2012 will go for 2013,” Bwalya said.
“Eventually we are looking in phases of two years. I think that you have to prepare now so that you are in the World Cup but I think the immediate target the coaches have is the Africa Cup in 2012.”
Bwalya called the arrival of the Italian and his three assistants the dawn of a new era.
Speaking through an interpreter, Bonetti described the Chipolopolo job as a fantastic opportunity.
He said coaching Zambia was a fantastic opportunity especially that the future of World football lay in Africa.
“This is a fantastic experience but not only on the sports side but also in terms of relations with people. It can give us a possibility to get in contact with another culture. We are very happy to start a relationship with a great national team,” he said.
“The future for world football is in Africa. We see every day there are new players young, strong and very physical and also technically coming out of Africa.”
He added: “Between mixing two different schools like the African school and the European side you can grow on the tactical side and technical side with the quality of the players Zambia has the future looks well.”
Bonetti said Zambian players were very skillful and only needed to grow.
“We watched all the games Zambia played at the last Africa Cup and they are very skillful players but they only need to work on the mental side which is made easier by their skill,” he said.
Bonetti comes to the fold with compatriots Brindelli Alessandro who will be the first assistant, Bozzini Claudio as goalkeeper coach and Ruggierro Umberto as physical trainer.
He takes over from Frenchman Herve Renard who opted out before his contract ran out to take over as Angola coach.
Meanwhile, Bwalya also announced that Under-23 coach Lucky Msiska will be the local assistant, but did not announce the position of team manager which has been given to Kamwambi.
FAZ sources revealed that the majority of the executive committee members are not in agreement with Kamwambi’s appointment.
“It is surprising that Kalusha has gone ahead to appoint Kamwambi as team manager. This is not what the executive committee has decided on,” he said.
Kamwambi is FAZ executive committee member Lenny Nkhuwa’s brother.
“In one of the meetings, the madam Lenny was asked to excuse herself from the deliberations as a way of declaring interest but she refused and Kalusha supported her.
“Meantime, most of the executive committee members have debated on more than two occasion against the appointment of Kamwambi. It’s better to even bring back Solly Pandor,” the source said. “There are competent people who can take over as team managers.”
The source accused Bwalya of appointing national team managers in a bid to win favours ahead of the 2012 FAZ elections.
“If you look at the team managers at all the nationals team, they are executive committee members at football clubs. Jeff Chipilingo (Under-23) is the chairman at Lusaka Tigers, Daniel Jere (Under-17) is a club secretary at Zacks United and Lusekelo (senior national team) is club secretary at Nkwiza,” the source explained.
“We are surprised that these appointment which are supposed to be done through the technical committee are made by one person, which is Kalusha.
“Emmanuel Munaile is the chairman of the technical committee but cannot say anything because he is a puppet.”
Zambia begins her 2012 Africa Cup of Nations campaign with a fixture against Comoros Islands at Konkola Stadium in Chililabombwe on September 4.
The Post
The mental fortitude the new coach is referring to has very little to do with knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to play the game right. The problem lies in the way we see ourselves. That changes now. Because if you accept my suggestion, forget the next world cup, prepare to win the one that follows.
In the meantime, put aside $10.0M every year to prepare a group of 5 Zambians to be world class coaches, within the next 3 years. The modalities of that project is a topic for another discussion. Right now, we need to be concerned with growing our own coaches. We cannot continue spending billions of dollars on borrowed talent. We must get serious and grow our own. That is what serious people do. Grow your own. The benefits of doing this successfully are enormous. They extend to other areas beyond the football field.
Picture this for a second, we might very well be the first African country to have its own dark skinned coach take the national team to the world cup. In this lifetime!
I need somebody to talk me down on this matter.
Bringing in a coach from Italy for the purpose of preparing the team to win a specific cup tournament is a short term fix to what seemingly is a long term problem. And the problem is, We do not have a Zambian coach to train our team to win that cup. Yes we may win that cup and perhaps even enter the world cup for the first time. But what messages are we constantly and consistently depositing in our collective subconscious mind? That we are incapable of doing it ourselves. As Bonetti states, we lack the mental fortitude.
Are we agreeing with Bonetti that our culture has, for almost half a century failed to produce a world class coach? I offer my suggestion at the bottom of this article
FAZ unveils Bonetti as executive members reject team manager
By Sydney Mungala and Augustine Mukoka
Tue 27 July 2010, 04:00 CAT
THE Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) has finally unveiled Italian national Dario Bonetti as Chipolopolo coach on a two-year contract.
And FAZ executive members have differed over the appointment of Division Two side (Copperbelt) Nkwiza official Lusekelo Kamwambi as Chipolopolo team manager.
During a press briefing at Football House yesterday, FAZ president Kalusha Bwalya said Bonetti’s immediate task was to qualify Chipolopolo to the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations to be co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
“I think coaches need a target. For the moment the target is the Africa Cup of Nations in 2012. You will agree with me that after 2012 there is not enough time going to the 2013 tournament. I am sure that the same teams that will qualify for 2012 will go for 2013,” Bwalya said.
“Eventually we are looking in phases of two years. I think that you have to prepare now so that you are in the World Cup but I think the immediate target the coaches have is the Africa Cup in 2012.”
Bwalya called the arrival of the Italian and his three assistants the dawn of a new era.
Speaking through an interpreter, Bonetti described the Chipolopolo job as a fantastic opportunity.
He said coaching Zambia was a fantastic opportunity especially that the future of World football lay in Africa.
“This is a fantastic experience but not only on the sports side but also in terms of relations with people. It can give us a possibility to get in contact with another culture. We are very happy to start a relationship with a great national team,” he said.
“The future for world football is in Africa. We see every day there are new players young, strong and very physical and also technically coming out of Africa.”
He added: “Between mixing two different schools like the African school and the European side you can grow on the tactical side and technical side with the quality of the players Zambia has the future looks well.”
Bonetti said Zambian players were very skillful and only needed to grow.
“We watched all the games Zambia played at the last Africa Cup and they are very skillful players but they only need to work on the mental side which is made easier by their skill,” he said.
Bonetti comes to the fold with compatriots Brindelli Alessandro who will be the first assistant, Bozzini Claudio as goalkeeper coach and Ruggierro Umberto as physical trainer.
He takes over from Frenchman Herve Renard who opted out before his contract ran out to take over as Angola coach.
Meanwhile, Bwalya also announced that Under-23 coach Lucky Msiska will be the local assistant, but did not announce the position of team manager which has been given to Kamwambi.
FAZ sources revealed that the majority of the executive committee members are not in agreement with Kamwambi’s appointment.
“It is surprising that Kalusha has gone ahead to appoint Kamwambi as team manager. This is not what the executive committee has decided on,” he said.
Kamwambi is FAZ executive committee member Lenny Nkhuwa’s brother.
“In one of the meetings, the madam Lenny was asked to excuse herself from the deliberations as a way of declaring interest but she refused and Kalusha supported her.
“Meantime, most of the executive committee members have debated on more than two occasion against the appointment of Kamwambi. It’s better to even bring back Solly Pandor,” the source said. “There are competent people who can take over as team managers.”
The source accused Bwalya of appointing national team managers in a bid to win favours ahead of the 2012 FAZ elections.
“If you look at the team managers at all the nationals team, they are executive committee members at football clubs. Jeff Chipilingo (Under-23) is the chairman at Lusaka Tigers, Daniel Jere (Under-17) is a club secretary at Zacks United and Lusekelo (senior national team) is club secretary at Nkwiza,” the source explained.
“We are surprised that these appointment which are supposed to be done through the technical committee are made by one person, which is Kalusha.
“Emmanuel Munaile is the chairman of the technical committee but cannot say anything because he is a puppet.”
Zambia begins her 2012 Africa Cup of Nations campaign with a fixture against Comoros Islands at Konkola Stadium in Chililabombwe on September 4.
The Post
The mental fortitude the new coach is referring to has very little to do with knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to play the game right. The problem lies in the way we see ourselves. That changes now. Because if you accept my suggestion, forget the next world cup, prepare to win the one that follows.
In the meantime, put aside $10.0M every year to prepare a group of 5 Zambians to be world class coaches, within the next 3 years. The modalities of that project is a topic for another discussion. Right now, we need to be concerned with growing our own coaches. We cannot continue spending billions of dollars on borrowed talent. We must get serious and grow our own. That is what serious people do. Grow your own. The benefits of doing this successfully are enormous. They extend to other areas beyond the football field.
Picture this for a second, we might very well be the first African country to have its own dark skinned coach take the national team to the world cup. In this lifetime!
Monday, July 26, 2010
A Good Example of Irrational Thinking
Comment:
It is very human to be protective of people one loves. It is also human to express one's feelings after the people one loves get attacked unjustifiably. But expressing one's feeling requires that one think through their feelings, think rationally under controlled emotions. That way, one would not make utterances that would make them seem as irrational as the acts they are speaking against.
Masheke has no moral ground to challenge KK, says Muyuni
By Mutale Kapekele
Tue 05 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT
A group of UNIP youths and the party’s women’s league yesterday stormed The Post in protest over a story published on Sunday where UNIP Revival Forum chairperson General Malimba Masheke called Dr Kenneth Kaunda an MMD cadre.
Leading the delegation, national women's secretary Beatrice Muyuni charged that Gen Masheke was a political impostor who had no moral ground to challenge Dr Kaunda.
Is it the reporter or Muyuni who begins by slapping a label on Masheke. Rational thinking would have advised Muyuni to begin by outlining the mistake(s) made by Masheke then how she felt about those mistakes. By calling Masheke a political imposter, a misuse of the term imposter, begins to put doubts in the mind of a reader as to whether there was something to look for in the rest of the article.
“General Malimba Masheke is a political fraud and an impostor. He has no moral ground to challenge Dr Kaunda because he is a stooge of Michael Sata and the PF,” Muyuni said. “He is easily bribed and known for contributing nothing to the party and the nation both in opposition and in the government.
All these descriptors are being piled on Masheke without Muyuni first telling the reader what Masheke had done wrong. At this time we cannot rule out the help of the hand of the reporter. However, it does not stop us to use what we have read so far to begin to think Muyuni has let reflexes get the better part of her.
When he was prime minister of Zambia, he even failed to secure the title deeds for the party assets like Mulungushi Rock of Authority in Kabwe, UNIP complex along Independence Avenue and other party properties.”
By definition, an imposter is somebody who pretends to be somebody else. False pretense is the undercurrent. If we all agree that this is on average a fair definition of the word imposter, then Masheke who was once Prime Minister does not fit the profile of an imposter. He was a real politician and has remained in active politics since then.
Could Muyuni be speaking and acting from another center? It is becoming evident that she may very well be. For how can she not know that the job of prime minister does not include securing property on behalf of the party? We will forgive Muyuni for now because, as matter of fact, Muyuni is not alone in that space of confusion. Whether by design or otherwise, our government offices, except perhaps the Judiciary, are as hollow as empty shells. They have no known job descriptions. That is why Muyuni would not be totally wrong in assuming the duties of the Prime minister entailed buy real estate for the party to which he belonged. When will we get this fixed?
She charged that Gen Masheke was also known to destabilize UNIP by creating factions within the party.
“He Masheke is infamously known for creating factions to destabilize the party from 1992 to 1995 when he created a faction against Kebby Musokotwane, and in 1997 to 2002 when he created another faction against Dr Kaunda,” she said. “In 2000, he was rejected at the party congress as president and after that he joined the FFD where he is still a member. He stood for party president there also but failed lamentably.“
We would like to inform Muyuni that the political landscape is strewn withe such events, success and failures, just like in any field of human endeavor. Rational thinking should have guided Muyuni not to talk about the obvious and try to cast them in negative light. In essence, Muyuni is grabbing straws, looking for some dirt to slap on Masheke for being the kind of politician she earlier claimed Masheke was not.
Muyuni charged that Gen Masheke was a liability to UNIP as he had created a huge debt for the party.
“He has always been a liability to UNIP. He created a debt and ran away so he has no moral right to condemn the current leadership which has liquidated the debt that he left and has created new wealth for the party,” she said. “General Masheke must be grateful to the Kaunda family because without it he could have been a nobody in this nation.”
Again, here, Muyuni charges that Masheke created a debt. But she neglects to state the nature of the debt. And rational thinking would have it that, if Masheke was an imposter, somebody who pretends to be who is not, Masheke would not have been allowed to incur a debt of any magnitude on behalf of the party.
Rational thinking would also have guided Muyuni to know that Masheke was assigned to certain position by Kaunda because Kaunda saw something in Masheke. What he is doing now has nothing to do with what he was before. If we asked Masheke, he probably would say he does not owe Kaunda eternal gratitude or he might have other reasons for doing what he has done which Muyuni has not stated up to this point.
She said Dr Kaunda's contribution to the country and southern Africa was immeasurable and could not be dented or distorted by “ranting of failed politicians like Gen Masheke.”
Muyuni urged Gen Masheke to desist from “insulting” Dr Kaunda who had quit active politics.
Okay, it seems we are getting closer to the revelation. Muyuni charges that Masheke was insulting Kaunda. Why would Masheke insult Kaunda. Did Kaunda do something to him? Rational thinking would, again, require that Muyuni be in possession of those facts and use them to strengthen her case.
She also described as “lousy” comments by PF general secretary Wynter Kabimba who described Dr Kaunda as a hypocrite and divisive failure acting for self preservation.
“What has Kabimba done for this country?” she asked. “KK deserves respect. KK built this country and now people have come out of their senses and they want to disrespect him. Even the little knowledge they have was because KK sent them to school for free."
This is yet another point that people make out of irrational thinking. Yes, Kaunda did a lot of this country. He was one of the founding fathers, a point that is not made clearly most of the times; one of the founding fathers. But then he became president after wards. What did they expect the president to do, sit on a stove all day and eat pies? No, the president is supposed to send children of the nation to school for free if the finances of the nation would permit it and at the time Zambia became independent, she had more than enough to do that. Muyuni. like many other people missed the point that Kaunda did not send Zambians to school using money from his pocket. It was the duty of whoever would have been in that position, Kapwepwe, Nkumbula, or Sikota, etc., to send the children of Zambia to school for free. It was not out of the kindness of his heart either, but an expectation that came with the position he fought hard to get. It was a job for Kaunda and we paid him well for it.
We are very disappointed with Kabimba and PF president Michael Sata. We expect them to honour KK. Sata was actually groomed by KK and now he is just the same as the MMD who have failed this country. All he knows are insults after he failed in the MMD and he is just like President Rupiah Banda who has moved from being a socialist to liberal.”
Rational thinking seems to have escaped Muyuni who does not state the nature of insults that people were pouring on Kaunda. Instead she hastens to slap a label on both Sata and Banda. This time it is "liberal." Does she understand the difference between Socialism and Liberalism?
She said Sata and President Banda were the same politically as they both entertained former president Frederick Chiluba.
Muyuni said UNIP would not tolerate insults especially if it involved Dr Kaunda.
Were Muyuni's sentiments over edited by the reporter to make them come out the way they did? Rational thinking would have assisted Muyuni up to the understanding that you don't assume everyone who hears words like liberalism and socialism would understand you. Muyuni needed to give situations where those two word would be understood to mean the good and the bad. In place of doing that, she jumps the fence to another area, which at this point we think she might not be able to explain anyway.
“We are not going to tolerate insulting behavior from anybody. They like insulting each other in the press and when we don't talk about it doesn't mean we respect them,” she said. “KK has a right to give advice to any Zambian as a father of the nation because no one can compare to him in terms of developing this country. Even the MMD cannot show any thing for their 20 years in office.”
These sentiments are consistent with the utterances of a person who loves and respects somebody and are prepared to defend them at all costs. But there is a danger in defending somebody who is not yourself. You may love some and respect them, it is your prerogative. But you surely don't know them well enough to defend their actions. A rational thinking person would only defend themselves to this extent. Because there is a chance that Kaunda contributed to the kind of treatment he is receiving. And that can only be defended by Kaunda and no one else.
She said Dr Kaunda could never be MMD because he believed in humanism whilst the ruling party was liberal.
Is Muyuni equating humanism to socialism? How does Muyuni know whether Kaunda may be a humanist and also a MMD sympathizer? Rational thinking would have made muyuni realize that MMD is not an ideology.
Muyuni said politics should be based on issues that were affecting the country as insults could not develop the country.
“There are a lot of development issues that politicians can talk about, that is why KK sent them to school so that today they can be political leaders,” Muyuni said.
She also announced that some members of the UNIP Revival Forum like Gen Masheke would not be allowed to attend the forthcoming party congress.
Muyuni is attempting to discourage politics of insults from one corner of the mouth and promoting disunity from the other. It is irrational to do so.
On Saturday, Gen Masheke said he could not be surprised if Dr Kaunda had become an MMD cadre following the latter's attack on former defence minister George Mpombo.
Rational thinkers, think through ideas before they comment or express their outrage. Love Kaunda and respect him, but do not revere him. As much as Kaunda would like to play the role of the 'father' and give advice to individual and groups as he sees fit, those who love and respect him must be prepared to hear people who also have a right not to love and respect him to say what they feel.
©1991 - 2010 Post Newspapers Ltd.
Comments by Mwata Chisha
It is very human to be protective of people one loves. It is also human to express one's feelings after the people one loves get attacked unjustifiably. But expressing one's feeling requires that one think through their feelings, think rationally under controlled emotions. That way, one would not make utterances that would make them seem as irrational as the acts they are speaking against.
Masheke has no moral ground to challenge KK, says Muyuni
By Mutale Kapekele
Tue 05 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT
A group of UNIP youths and the party’s women’s league yesterday stormed The Post in protest over a story published on Sunday where UNIP Revival Forum chairperson General Malimba Masheke called Dr Kenneth Kaunda an MMD cadre.
Leading the delegation, national women's secretary Beatrice Muyuni charged that Gen Masheke was a political impostor who had no moral ground to challenge Dr Kaunda.
Is it the reporter or Muyuni who begins by slapping a label on Masheke. Rational thinking would have advised Muyuni to begin by outlining the mistake(s) made by Masheke then how she felt about those mistakes. By calling Masheke a political imposter, a misuse of the term imposter, begins to put doubts in the mind of a reader as to whether there was something to look for in the rest of the article.
“General Malimba Masheke is a political fraud and an impostor. He has no moral ground to challenge Dr Kaunda because he is a stooge of Michael Sata and the PF,” Muyuni said. “He is easily bribed and known for contributing nothing to the party and the nation both in opposition and in the government.
All these descriptors are being piled on Masheke without Muyuni first telling the reader what Masheke had done wrong. At this time we cannot rule out the help of the hand of the reporter. However, it does not stop us to use what we have read so far to begin to think Muyuni has let reflexes get the better part of her.
When he was prime minister of Zambia, he even failed to secure the title deeds for the party assets like Mulungushi Rock of Authority in Kabwe, UNIP complex along Independence Avenue and other party properties.”
By definition, an imposter is somebody who pretends to be somebody else. False pretense is the undercurrent. If we all agree that this is on average a fair definition of the word imposter, then Masheke who was once Prime Minister does not fit the profile of an imposter. He was a real politician and has remained in active politics since then.
Could Muyuni be speaking and acting from another center? It is becoming evident that she may very well be. For how can she not know that the job of prime minister does not include securing property on behalf of the party? We will forgive Muyuni for now because, as matter of fact, Muyuni is not alone in that space of confusion. Whether by design or otherwise, our government offices, except perhaps the Judiciary, are as hollow as empty shells. They have no known job descriptions. That is why Muyuni would not be totally wrong in assuming the duties of the Prime minister entailed buy real estate for the party to which he belonged. When will we get this fixed?
She charged that Gen Masheke was also known to destabilize UNIP by creating factions within the party.
“He Masheke is infamously known for creating factions to destabilize the party from 1992 to 1995 when he created a faction against Kebby Musokotwane, and in 1997 to 2002 when he created another faction against Dr Kaunda,” she said. “In 2000, he was rejected at the party congress as president and after that he joined the FFD where he is still a member. He stood for party president there also but failed lamentably.“
We would like to inform Muyuni that the political landscape is strewn withe such events, success and failures, just like in any field of human endeavor. Rational thinking should have guided Muyuni not to talk about the obvious and try to cast them in negative light. In essence, Muyuni is grabbing straws, looking for some dirt to slap on Masheke for being the kind of politician she earlier claimed Masheke was not.
Muyuni charged that Gen Masheke was a liability to UNIP as he had created a huge debt for the party.
“He has always been a liability to UNIP. He created a debt and ran away so he has no moral right to condemn the current leadership which has liquidated the debt that he left and has created new wealth for the party,” she said. “General Masheke must be grateful to the Kaunda family because without it he could have been a nobody in this nation.”
Again, here, Muyuni charges that Masheke created a debt. But she neglects to state the nature of the debt. And rational thinking would have it that, if Masheke was an imposter, somebody who pretends to be who is not, Masheke would not have been allowed to incur a debt of any magnitude on behalf of the party.
Rational thinking would also have guided Muyuni to know that Masheke was assigned to certain position by Kaunda because Kaunda saw something in Masheke. What he is doing now has nothing to do with what he was before. If we asked Masheke, he probably would say he does not owe Kaunda eternal gratitude or he might have other reasons for doing what he has done which Muyuni has not stated up to this point.
She said Dr Kaunda's contribution to the country and southern Africa was immeasurable and could not be dented or distorted by “ranting of failed politicians like Gen Masheke.”
Muyuni urged Gen Masheke to desist from “insulting” Dr Kaunda who had quit active politics.
Okay, it seems we are getting closer to the revelation. Muyuni charges that Masheke was insulting Kaunda. Why would Masheke insult Kaunda. Did Kaunda do something to him? Rational thinking would, again, require that Muyuni be in possession of those facts and use them to strengthen her case.
She also described as “lousy” comments by PF general secretary Wynter Kabimba who described Dr Kaunda as a hypocrite and divisive failure acting for self preservation.
“What has Kabimba done for this country?” she asked. “KK deserves respect. KK built this country and now people have come out of their senses and they want to disrespect him. Even the little knowledge they have was because KK sent them to school for free."
This is yet another point that people make out of irrational thinking. Yes, Kaunda did a lot of this country. He was one of the founding fathers, a point that is not made clearly most of the times; one of the founding fathers. But then he became president after wards. What did they expect the president to do, sit on a stove all day and eat pies? No, the president is supposed to send children of the nation to school for free if the finances of the nation would permit it and at the time Zambia became independent, she had more than enough to do that. Muyuni. like many other people missed the point that Kaunda did not send Zambians to school using money from his pocket. It was the duty of whoever would have been in that position, Kapwepwe, Nkumbula, or Sikota, etc., to send the children of Zambia to school for free. It was not out of the kindness of his heart either, but an expectation that came with the position he fought hard to get. It was a job for Kaunda and we paid him well for it.
We are very disappointed with Kabimba and PF president Michael Sata. We expect them to honour KK. Sata was actually groomed by KK and now he is just the same as the MMD who have failed this country. All he knows are insults after he failed in the MMD and he is just like President Rupiah Banda who has moved from being a socialist to liberal.”
Rational thinking seems to have escaped Muyuni who does not state the nature of insults that people were pouring on Kaunda. Instead she hastens to slap a label on both Sata and Banda. This time it is "liberal." Does she understand the difference between Socialism and Liberalism?
She said Sata and President Banda were the same politically as they both entertained former president Frederick Chiluba.
Muyuni said UNIP would not tolerate insults especially if it involved Dr Kaunda.
Were Muyuni's sentiments over edited by the reporter to make them come out the way they did? Rational thinking would have assisted Muyuni up to the understanding that you don't assume everyone who hears words like liberalism and socialism would understand you. Muyuni needed to give situations where those two word would be understood to mean the good and the bad. In place of doing that, she jumps the fence to another area, which at this point we think she might not be able to explain anyway.
“We are not going to tolerate insulting behavior from anybody. They like insulting each other in the press and when we don't talk about it doesn't mean we respect them,” she said. “KK has a right to give advice to any Zambian as a father of the nation because no one can compare to him in terms of developing this country. Even the MMD cannot show any thing for their 20 years in office.”
These sentiments are consistent with the utterances of a person who loves and respects somebody and are prepared to defend them at all costs. But there is a danger in defending somebody who is not yourself. You may love some and respect them, it is your prerogative. But you surely don't know them well enough to defend their actions. A rational thinking person would only defend themselves to this extent. Because there is a chance that Kaunda contributed to the kind of treatment he is receiving. And that can only be defended by Kaunda and no one else.
She said Dr Kaunda could never be MMD because he believed in humanism whilst the ruling party was liberal.
Is Muyuni equating humanism to socialism? How does Muyuni know whether Kaunda may be a humanist and also a MMD sympathizer? Rational thinking would have made muyuni realize that MMD is not an ideology.
Muyuni said politics should be based on issues that were affecting the country as insults could not develop the country.
“There are a lot of development issues that politicians can talk about, that is why KK sent them to school so that today they can be political leaders,” Muyuni said.
She also announced that some members of the UNIP Revival Forum like Gen Masheke would not be allowed to attend the forthcoming party congress.
Muyuni is attempting to discourage politics of insults from one corner of the mouth and promoting disunity from the other. It is irrational to do so.
On Saturday, Gen Masheke said he could not be surprised if Dr Kaunda had become an MMD cadre following the latter's attack on former defence minister George Mpombo.
Rational thinkers, think through ideas before they comment or express their outrage. Love Kaunda and respect him, but do not revere him. As much as Kaunda would like to play the role of the 'father' and give advice to individual and groups as he sees fit, those who love and respect him must be prepared to hear people who also have a right not to love and respect him to say what they feel.
©1991 - 2010 Post Newspapers Ltd.
Comments by Mwata Chisha
How to Communicate Effectively
1. Have a purpose for engaging in a conversation
2. Never waste a moment to learn
3. Listen without prejudice
4. Don't take anything personally
5. Demonstrate that you understand what the other person is saying to their satisfaction before you respond
6. Always seek to find an alternative superior to your own
7. Do not pretend to listen when you are not interested
8. Always remember, Ako usulile, ekopa noko.
Mwata Chisha ©2010
2. Never waste a moment to learn
3. Listen without prejudice
4. Don't take anything personally
5. Demonstrate that you understand what the other person is saying to their satisfaction before you respond
6. Always seek to find an alternative superior to your own
7. Do not pretend to listen when you are not interested
8. Always remember, Ako usulile, ekopa noko.
Mwata Chisha ©2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Education Is Not Civilization
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.
©1991 - 2010 Post Newspapers Ltd.
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.
©1991 - 2010 Post Newspapers Ltd.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Re-thinking Leadership
Leadership
The current thinking surrounding leadership focuses on the relationship of one with another or one with the group or organization and to a lesser extent on one with oneself. The corporate world has hijacked the notion of leadership confining it to organizational guidance which entails, in a simplified way, the art of compelling other people to want to perform certain duties which otherwise they would not. In today’s society, as was in ancient times, those who influence the largest number of people for the longest time are perceived to be good leaders. Some of these people master the philosophy and techniques of influence but do not personally espouse the very ideals underlying the duties they compel others to perform. Plainly, organizational leadership is about power and title.
True leadership emerges from one’s exemplary life. Leadership does not depend on one’s ability to compel people to act in a certain way. Rather, true leadership is one’s ability to produce timeless knowledge that people seek to sustain and improve their lives.
It should not be a surprise then that people with real power are those who have insights, thoughts, ideas and ultimately knowledge about things that bring about permanent change in human life.
Leadership in action
Thoughts are things. Every object possessed by humans began with an imagination, an insight then developed into a thought in somebody’s mind. A thought turned into an idea gets translated into a physical item, a thing, and ultimately a contribution to the body of knowledge. Just about everything we think we know emanated from the mind of somebody; from tiny objects to the biggest there is. Things we learn in school are products of somebody’s brain work.
True leaders are those who have contributed to irreversible development of human life; those who create that which is essential to sustenance and improvement of life. Consumers of such contributions, at any level, are not leaders but followers. Consumers seek the output - knowledge - of those who dedicate their lives to producing the essential knowledge. Therefore, spending vast amounts of time memorizing and parroting output of others does not constitute leadership. It only makes one a resourceful consumer. Consumers borrow, buy and sometimes forage freely other people’s output. Leaders on the other hand create new knowledge, complement or supplement the output of others for their own consumption and, unintentionally, that of others.
New Thinking
The world is controlled by people whose knowledge they themselves and other people need. Leaders represent their output and their output represents them. It takes the character of a person to produce a certain output. That particular output bears the mental DNA of its producer. So much so that when people effectively demand and consume the output, they are consuming a piece of the producer.
Therefore to have a positive transformational effect on others, one has to begin by transforming oneself. Such transformation, though, must not be with the intent to ultimately influence other people but to develop oneself into the best human one can be. To achieve that, one must independently determine the significance of improving oneself. Having a burning desire to be self sufficient in thoughts is the starting point. Love of self, respect and appreciation of oneself are the logical subsequent steps.
One must understand that he or she is unique and cannot be another person no matter how hard one tried. There is only one of us at any one point in space and time; existing to play a role in the cycle of life. Life is a forward process and each one has a right to decide one’s purpose. One person can neither live two lives at one time nor can they live that which they missed because they chose another, because there is no such thing as going back in time. Lest the control of one’s mind be construed to have been handed over to the control of others, one is encumbered to decide one’s own destiny.
It is important to understand that one would gain mileage toward becoming the best person one can be if one spent time improving oneself in place of living in the shadow of someone else. Consequently, by taking actions that are consistent with one’s desire to be the best one can be, one’s character becomes grounded in universal governing values.
Achieving this, calls for one to reach deep inside and intuitively explore their character, long moments of reflection and self analysis. One must determine for oneself how to make their life meaningful in the broader human context.
The institute will not attempt to train people to be leaders of others but themselves. One cannot be a leader of another unless one achieves high level of success at leading oneself. Self leadership, therefore, clearly stating one’s purpose in life, writing it down, drawing specific steps one has to take to live up to the requirements of that purpose, working on a daily basis to fulfill that purpose. Being true to oneself simply means that one is always conducting oneself in accordance with one’s self determined purpose. It is in the process of living up to one’s own expectations that freedom of thought is developed. A free mind is a fountain of insights which turn into thoughts and then into ideas and ultimately things.
Copyright 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
No one is bigger than the other
Thought:
There is very little that people care about that they don't know. If you sincerely think they don't know about something, be sure that they don't really care about it.
My philosophy:
People cry only when it hurts bad enough. And if you made them, they will let you know.
Opinion:
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