Zambia Media Critique

Zambia’s economy was ranked among the ten fastest growing economies in the world and among the first four in Sub Saharan Africa in very recent times. Zambia’s economic growth has now plunged to its lowest point in over a decade now staggering around 3% from a previous average growth rate of 6.9%. Zambia’s international reserves, have substantially declined from US$3.9 billion in July 2015 to US$2.3 billion at present. The much-needed foreign exchange is flowing out of the country. Zambia is importing far more than it is exporting. Government blames the loss of foreign exchange on existing commitments, particularly those relating to subsidies on fuel that have an external component. The government has since moved swiftly to increase the fuel pump price by a staggering 38% leaving market players in shock and civil society warming that the move will adversely hurt the poor. Zambia’s new Minister of Finance Felix Mutati recently attempted to outline an economic recovery plan, which

  ZAMBIANS are amazing people. They can take anything from anyone. We are lost sheep. We have lost the love for one another. We are jealous of each other, we fight one another. Even in families today we no longer celebrate each other’s successes with sincere hearts, we have broken Christian families.   We do not treat our women and girls with the respect and love they deserve. Zambians literally worship foreigners and any white person. Zambia is giving away huge tracks of land to foreigners, they have taken over our cities, now they are taking over our villages all in the name of foreign investment and the promise of a better life through job creation. We have been on this path for over two decades and we seem not to pick any lessons. Our people are been displaced and losing their livelihoods and we don’t care. We do not have a land policy; our land laws favour private capital and the narrow interest of the rich and powerful. We have built a corrupt culture and even our tradi

By Bruce Chooma ZAMBIA’s press freedom record continues on a downward spiral with a government decision to shut down some independent broadcasting houses on Monday 22 nd August, 2016 on allegations of unprofessional conduct in the pre-election and post-election period. This comes a few months after the biggest independent newspaper The Post which was very critical of the ruling party and government was ground to a halt for alleged tax violations. The Independent Broadcasting Authority IBA suspended broadcasting licences for Muvi TV, Komboni Radio and Itezhi Tezhi Radio. The suspension took immediate effect on Monday and state law enforcement agencies swung into action to enforce the suspension. According to a statement from IBA Chairman Brigadier Justin Mutale, the IBA board met on Monday morning and resolved to withdraw licences for the three independent media houses. Brigadier General Justin Mutale said the decision followed what he described as the unprofessional conduct in whi

Zambians beat their own record on Thursday 11 th August, 2016 when they turned up in large numbers and braved the scorching sun in long and winding queues as they waited for hours to cast their vote. The 2016 general elections came with a lot of enthusiasm and excitement given that the country was voting under new electoral regulations after amending the constitution earlier in the year. The polls also had the biggest number of voters in the country’s history with over 1.6 million new voters added mainly young people born in the 1990s. After many hours of waiting beyond the expected 48 hours, Edgar Lungu was declared as President-elect with Inonge Wina as Vice President with 50.4% of valid votes cast. The Patriotic Front also clearly six out of ten provinces, demonstrating what analysts have described as a very wide rural and urban reach.  Mrs Wina has become the first directly elected Vice President of Zambia. Mr Lungu has become the first candidate to secure above 50% of val

Mongu-Kalabo Road: Photo: Zambian Eye By Bruce Chooma Should the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) succeed to lose tomorrow’s election, what memories will Zambians hold of a party many loved for its pro-poor ideologies and populist political strategy? In 2011   under the leadership of Michael Sata, in polls widely lauded as free and fair, the PF made history on the African continent by unseating a ruling party. This is a feat that is so rare on the African continent and PF maybe the only party to hold that record in the past two decades in sub-Saharan Africa. Should the PF lose this election, they will be the shortest serving political party in Zambia’s history after doing only one five year term though with two different Presidents. Despite the significant mutation in the complexion of PF from the PF under Michael Sata to the PF under Edgar Lungu, it cannot be denied that the PF has had an impact on Zambia’s political and infrastructure landscape. Ardent supporters of the

By Bruce Chooma A heated debate on the feasibility of free education has ensued on the Zambian political arena ahead of the 11 th August general elections. Education is one of the key campaign issues given the high illiteracy levels in Zambia. According to UNICEF, though Zambia made commendable progress in increasing access to education and gender parity, more than a quarter million children are out of school and 47% of those enrolled in school do not complete the primary cycle.  Zambia’s leading opposition political party, the United Party for National Development UPND, has promised to deliver universal free education from primary to university level by 2018 if voted into office this August. They have set the year 2018 as the target for the realization of this aspiration. But other contenders in the race including the ruling Patriotic Front have argued that provision of free education to all Zambians was an unrealistic promise given the state of the country’s economy and the

Dishonesty, corruption and greed have characterized the adoption process of parliamentary and local government candidates ahead of this year’s general elections by leading political parties. Up to now both the Patriotic Front (PF) and United Party for National Development (UPND) who are the clear front runners in this year’s election have not published their full list of adopted candidates. Some adopted candidates who have received their sponsorship/adoption certificates have been posting snapshots of their certificates on social media much to the annoyance of their opponents most of whom performed better in primary elections but were left out by their parties. Sporadic intra –party protests and demonstrations have broken out in various parts of the country spearheaded by supporters of candidates who have been left out despite having proved their popularity at grassroot level and mobilizing party members to campaign for their respective parties. It is now abundantly clear to a

Having spent nearly a fortnight in Berlin Germany at the invitation of the Konrad Adenear Stiftung (KAS) Media Foundation on a political bloggers study and dialogue tour, I wish to share some lessons on political communication. Zambia goes to the polls on August 11, 2016 in an election never before experienced in the country’s history. This is because for the first time Zambians will have to elect a President with a threshold of 50 + 1 percent votes the first of its kind since the country returned to multi-party politics. In addition to this the position of mayor is now electable and Zambia will also host a referendum on the bill of rights alongside the general elections. The political parties in Zambia require excellent mass communication skills and tools to enable them to effectively reach out to all Zambians. Our interaction with communication staff from the Christian Democratic Union CDU in Berlin was insightful. Mobile first The penetration of mobile telecommunication t

Zambia’s human rights record and standing continues to come under scrutiny on the backdrop of reports of escalating violations of some fundamental freedoms by the state.   Last week the US Department of State released the 2015 U.S Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Zambia. U.S Secretary of State John Kerry said the U.S government noted several instances in which Zambian government officials threatened to close, censor, or initiate legal action against radio, print, and internet media outlets over pieces considered to be critical of the president, government, or ruling party. Before the dust raised by this report could settle, Zambia received information that the United Nations Special Rapporteur   on the rights of persons with disabilities Catalina Devandas-Aguilar will carry out her first visit to Zambia from 18 to 28 April 2016. She will be examining the situation of persons with disabilities – including older persons, women and children with disabilities – as well as legi

Miles hands over keys to a cab to a youth One of Zambia's most celebrated young politicians Miles Sampa may finally find a resting place politically after struggling to find his feet in politics after he lost the battle for the ruling Patriotic Front PF Presidency to Edgar Lungu. President Edgar Lungu appointed him deputy minister but he later resigned after he felt sidelined in the Patriotic Front, a party he helped to grow from the scratch with his uncle, late president Michael Sata. After his resignation from government he embarked on party mobilisation work which was not well r eceived in the rank and file of the PF. He was left with no choice but to resign from PF and resign as MP for Matero and form his own political party the Democratic Front. Whilst serving as Matero lawmaker Miles endeared himself to the people by investing his parliamentary gratuity in youth empowerment programmes in his constituency. He even bought motor vehicles and gave them away as taxis to young

Persons with Disabilities after a meeting on the 2016 elections Zambia continues to be a beacon of light in the growth of democracy on the African continent. The country goes to the general elections in August this year under a new constitution that has significantly altered the electoral environment. The amended constitution now demands that for one to ascend to the office of president they must poll at least 50+1 percent of total votes cast and makes the position of city mayor and council chairperson electable for a period of five years. The right to participation of all citizens in the country's politics is guaranteed by the constitution. Persons with Disabilities have being fighting for recognition and protection of their rights to political and public participation through an inclusive and accessible electoral process. Zambia's 2016 elections will not only be historical on account of the constitutional changes but also because it is the first time that the count