Republican President, Michael Sata, today led scores of people who turned up to celebrate the life of Zambia’s First republican President Kenneth Kaunda’s wife, Mama Betty Kaunda, at her first memorial service held at the Anglican Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Lusaka.
Hundreds of people, who include senior government officials, opposition political party leaders, family members and friends turned up at the Cathedral to join the First Republican President, Kaunda and his family for the memorial service of Mama Betty Kaunda, who died in Zimbabwe last year on September 19, at the aged 83.
President Sata arrived at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross slightly before 10:00 hours to join the rest of the people who turned up for the service which was officiated by the United Church of Zambia (UCZ).
The service was characterised by singing of hymns and tribute songs to Mama Betty for her exemplary and inspiring life on earth and recitation of messages of tribute to her by family members who include her husband, Dr Kaunda, her son Dr Waza Kaunda, her sister Viria
Kalulu and her granddaughter, Mundaula Kaunda.
In his tribute message to his late wife, Betty, First Republican Dr Kaunda challenged young couples in Zambia to aim at beating his record of 66 years in marriage with Betty in good and bad times.
Dr Kaunda said spouses should learn to look after their families like his wife, Betty, did when he was in prison and when he was away to mobilise the party in the northern region of Zambia for a long time before independence.
Dr Kaunda, who spoke passionately about how he married Mama Betty with the help of President Sata’s father as a mediator, described his late wife as a hardworking woman who, apart from providing for the family during hard times, also protected the family.
He explained that Mama Betty was a peace-loving woman who loved everyone and urged all Zambians to embrace love, peace and unit.
He quoted his famous ‘Love your neighbour as you love yourself’ Bible scripture and sung his usual ‘Tiyende Pamodzi’ song which he, himself composed and regularly sings to unite the country.
Others who delivered messages of tribute were his son Waza, his granddaughter, Mundaula and his sister in law, Viria Kalulu, who all described Mama Betty as a pillar of the family and a source of inspiration for the whole family.
And in his sermon to the congregants, United Church of Zambia Lusaka Presbytery Bishop, Rodwell Chomba, called on the Church to emulate Mama Betty’s desire to serve the Lord despite having acquired all the earthly wealth and powers.
Bishop Chomba noted that most people easily forget the Lord once they assume an important role such as that of a First Lady in the country which he said the late Mama Betty resisted.
He also called on Zambians to love one another and embrace peace and unit which the country is enjoying.
She was so beautiful, MHSRIP…..
@cindy
thats true, original vintage beauty!! not this artificial beauty of skin bleaching, powdering and plastic hair of today ladies..fake!! i usually laugh at some congose girls who live not far from me… men, they try sooo hard to look ubukalandi, hahahahah
@ Ndobo,
Hihihihihi, women from congo can be very beautiful, ask Vernon Manga…. hihihihihhi.
@ Ndobo,
I remember when Barbie was the only girl made of plastic.
@Ndobo, I start to wonder if Cindy ni gelo, how can she see beauty in a fellow woman. Anyway, how old was Betty in that picture? She really looked marriageable!! Na leka, kuti bakuma bamudala Ba Panji..
@ Nostradamus,
Beautiful things recognise each other, just as evil does, otherwise, am all woman in everyway, anyway you have made me laugh.
@Cindy, We am apologizing again to all all women.
Apology accepted Nostradamus.
ATLEAST RESTING THAN WATCHING YOUR OWN 90 YRS HUSBAND TURNING A PF CADRE
U can’t jst remember Betty Kaunda not untill u bring ur rubbishi politiics of hate! Shame on u!
You were brought up badly.Iwe you think konse kwakunyela amasushi.Learn to respect Abakalamba.
Wechinaangwa we ,demon!
Mama Betty was the pillar of strength of His Excellency Dr. David Kenneth Kaunda. She contributed tremendously to the efforts of our forefathers, not only KK but also other freedom fighters by being there for them, feeding them, giving them sanctuary, looking after children when they were all away from home and so on. She was and will remain a role model for all our Mothers.
We remember you with all your virtues and sacrifice.
May her Soul rest in peace.
ubupuba ba Lovemore
I did not know President Sata’s father was the mediator in the marriage of KK and Mama Betty.
Anyone who worked at state house during her time will tell you how evil hearted this woman was. I hope she has repented though. The worst 1st lady in history of zambia.
Wat did u went to do @ Plot 1? You went to ask forr salt?
SataN is worse ask anyone working at plot 1 today.
No1 First Lady, & Mother of the Nation. M.H.S.R.I.P.
I remember meeting her for the first and last time at State House in 1988/89; very cheerful and polite lady (my opinion)! Rest in eternal peace mama!!
@lUCAS.U are very right some workers were burnt using hot iro.even so called his exallency k.k ask him where is SIMON KAPWEPWE,
I lived all my life in Zambia and I never heard her speak.No clue how her voice sounded like. Did anyone hear her speak in an interview or campaign speech or give her thoughts about any issue such as the status of women in our society? And yet she is still called ‘Mama’ denoting a lot of respect. Contrast with today’s first ladies. They are very active but they don’t garner that kind of respect. Instead they are ridiculed and insulted. Go figure.
@ Zambian Namayo,
Reading your post has taken me back into history as to how a women werejust supposed to help their men in a matrimonial surrounding.I was very young so i dont remember anything about her, i saw KK when he was already old and retired so i have no clue what role she actively took as a first lady. Iam sure she wouldnt have spoken or ran around like our vigilante first lady mama Kaseba. So sad how a woman was seen and treated in the past am glad some of us were not yet woman in that error, they could have take us to the gallows!
@Zambian Namayo
Another possible reason she kept so silent could be due to KK’s dictatorship. The man’s dictatorial tendencies didn’t allow any other person, including his children and wife to take center stage. He was the centre of Zambia’s gravity. He made daily headlines on radio, tv and newspapers even when he had gone on a three weeks tour of the world with a large entourage. When he took to the airwaves all programs on all radio stations were cancelled and then people were subjected to long hours listening to boring speeches about man west and north and propounding Kim il Sung’s ‘Juche’ ideas. Given this scenario she probably was bullied into silence.
Wantanshi I totally agree.That “center of Zambia’s gravity” makes sense. All I remember is having lessons interrupted because you have to go line up on the roadside because KK will be passing along Kuomboka road. Where he is coming from or going to, they didn’t even care to say. You just had to be there smiling and waving. I don’t remember his speeches but from the way you’ve described it, it sounds like what’s still happening in North Korea with Kim Jong somehting.
Perhaps it’s the fact that she never spoke publicly that makes her even more outstanding. Silence is a source of strength. You can actually listen to silence and learn from it. It has a quality and a dimension of its own.
@ 9 Chale,
In her position she was in, that wasnt supposed to be the case, i like her even though i never knew her, but imagine how many women she could have helped if she spoke, how many girls could have been inspired just by saying one or two words? Please lets evolve and move on with the world, encient times had it’s ways of silencing development. Men can be very selfish and easily threatened by women which is not suposed to be the case, emancipation of women has contributed in developing the nations massively, so dont talk about “silence being golden” when one has influence, you never know whose future you might serve.
@ Nine Chale Cindy is very right. She could have done a lot. I don’t know how many people can say they benefited from her silence. She was the wife of a Freedom fighter and she took care of the family, but she after 1964 she has lots of help with family duties and the children grew up too.What did she do for Zambia?
@ Cindy. You have just contradicted yourself. You had a go at Kaseba for being bubbly outspoken and out there for very good causes ,including something that touches all women. Breast cancer. Then you had a go at a very humble woman (Betty). What is it you want? A ‘ghost teacher’, an illiterate, God know what Maureen is, or someone who genuinely has passion for her job and is using her position to help others? I remember a time when Chiluba tormented the Kaunda’s by keeping them indoors in their house in Kalundu the furthest the late Betty was allowed was a stroll in her wheelchair to the end of the road and back. Lets respect those that played a big part in our liberation.
@ Zon van der Bull,
Either you dont understand english or my english is very bad, i didnt contradict myself, Am actually backing my Doc, read through again.
Sorry love. One letter changed everything and my jetlag is not helping. you should have dropped the ‘e’ at the end of one word. Ps. Zed is nice
Great lady mama Betty Kaunda.
Did KK jog down the stairs of the cathedral?
Iwe ka Lovemore!!! Uli kasushi sana batini?? Koswe
What about that lozi man who composed your national anthem, why is he not remembered?
@Morsi Mohamad
The national anthem is a variant of ‘nkosi sikelel iAfrica’, South Africa’s national anthem. As such you can’t take pride in something that’s not originally yours. If the man is remembered it’s with a feeling of revulsion for bringing the whole country into disrepute. Why should we sing another country’s anthem. Now South Africans plainly tells us we stole their song! Is this something to be proud of?
@ Wantashi,
i dont agree with you on the part of stealing SAs Anthem, i wasnt there when it was written or authorised for Zambia to use the same tune, but am consciously positive that there must have been some understanding of some kind, most Anthems are actually similar, take for instance the European ones, sometimes i get confused as to which Anthem is playing for a particular nation when there are more than two countries attending a gathering, later in the middle of the tune do i get to tell which is which, this tells you something about where all nations come from (HISTORY) those talking about stealing dont know a thing about Southern Africas History, it’s about time people learnt to study there history, it’s important, visit museums, Libraries, ask the elderly, (KK, Sata,).
who was this lady..?did she help any vulnerable people in society of what..?
“Lucas” I agree with you, I have heard of her mistreating workers at state house. There is a story of her having burnt a worker with whatever, salad or porridge. Besides that, i have also heard that Tilyenji is the biological son of Kapwepwe. So what is it that we are herorising her for?