Mon, 14 Aug 2017 10:54:47 +0000
Politicians must respect traditional ceremonies.
By Bennie Mundando, Sandra Machima & Mukosela Kasalwe
BEMBA Royalists and opposition leaders have commended the Bemba Royal Establishment (BRE) for blocking Chishimba Kambwili from gate-crashing at the ‘Ukusefya Pa Ng’wena ceremony’.
They have been warned that this should be a big lesson to politicians that traditional ceremonies are sacred events which should not be used as platforms to propagate their hidden agenda, Chief Chikwanda has said.
Commenting on the decision to bar Mr Kambwili from attending, Chief Chikwanda said he hoped political leaders had learnt a lesson that traditional ceremonies were not an avenue they could toy around with by causing political hegemony.
The Bemba Royal Establishment family representative from late Mutale Chitapankwa, Kombe Mulenga has charged that Mr Kambwili had obviously wanted to compete with and disrespect President Lungu, which is the worst indiscipline a former minister could do in the eyes of the Bembas.
Mr Mulenga said the Bemba Royal Establishment (BRE) had every right to chase former government spokesman Chishimba Kambwili and his counterpart during the Kusefya pa Ng’wena because the traditional ceremony was not a playground for politicians to settle their scores.
“The Bembas will never tolerate anyone disrespecting leadership and there I am impressed by the stance taken by the traditional authority to block Mr Kambwili from the ceremony because he only went there for his political expediency.
Mr Mulenga said President Lungu is the leader for all Zambians, he could go anywhere, but that those who only want to embarrass him would have themselves to blame.
“No one who can tolerate people like Mr Kambwili because his behaviour left much to be desired, his being chasing from the ceremony was done in the best interest of the Zambian people,” he said.
Mr Mulenga said that politicians should not declare war against the chiefdoms by showing arrogance on how they wanted to handle issues by just wanting to embarrass President Lungu.
He said some disgruntled individuals were inviting problems deliberately to test the leadership of President Lungu to satisfy their own personal interests.
Meanwhile National Congress Party leader Peter Chanda has charged that Mr Kambwili had no leadership ethics and Zambians must not take him seriously.
He said leadership required humility, adding that was one thing Mr Kambwili was lacking, looking at the manner he was coming out in public.
“It is important when he (Mr Kambwili) is corrected to sit down and do the reflection of the leadership, because when someone reaches the extent of being expelled from the party, it means their conduct is indiscipline and they need to correct that.
And 3rd Liberation Movement president Enock Tonga says Mr Kambwili is a disgrace who is the greatest tribalism architect and that the Bembas did well to chase him in order to maintain and ensure a decent and peaceful ceremony took place.
Mr Tonga said the opposition 3rd LM was there to guide the nation and offer constructive checks and balances and open people’s eyes and ears so that people like Mr Kambwili did not take advantage of Zambians.
And Chief Chikwanda said there was nothing political about the decision by the BRE in barring Mr. Kambwili but that he was the one trying to turn the event into a political arena
He said having read his political intentions, the BRE moved in to block him because what he was agitating for was not in the best interest of the Bemba culture.
Chief Chikwanda said the BRE and the Mwine Lubemba reserved the right to choose who to admit and who not to after reading “the wind” and that there was nothing special about Mr. Kambwili being turned back because he was not the first one to be asked not to attend.
“Ukusefya Pang’wena is a peaceful traditional ceremony and if we see that some of the things are not ok or if the atmosphere could be volatile, the BRE sits together with the Mwine Lubemba and agree on who should be banned. We have the right to ban anyone from attending if it becomes apparent that they are coming here to cause problems or campaign.
“What they (Kambwili and group) wanted to do was to make it as a campaign platform which is totally wrong and we do not want to create a situation of political rivalry.
This was a pure case of political rivalry in the sense that they wanted to start competing amongst themselves as politicians and that is wrong and as an establishment, we would not want to create that kind of a situation,” Chief Chikwanda said.
And in an interview yesterday, Mr Tonga said Mr Kambwili was on record when he disparaged people of Southern Province and later apologised to them that he was being under the influence of evil spirits.
Mr Tonga said from his own words and actions Mr Kambwili confessed that he was a possessed man and called on the clergymen and women to help him with deliverance before he could disparage the traditional leadership or other leaders.
