Zambia’s High Commissioner to South Africa Emmanuel Mwamba has called on Zambians living in the Diaspora to take interest in telling the story about Zambia wherever they are.
Mr. Mwamba says no one will tell the story about Zambia’s remarkable peace and the fact that it has never been at war with itself or with any other country.
He has wondered who will tell the story about how a friendly and jovial the people Zambians are if the Zambians themselves do not tell it.
Mr. Mwamba was speaking at a dinner dance hosted by the Zambia Association in South Africa (ZASA) to welcome him and his Deputy Philomena Kachesa.
Here is the full speech
LET US CHANGE THE NARRATIVE ON ZAMBIA
By Emmanuel Mwamba
My thoughts today concern our story on Zambia. We have not told our story. And we do not celebrate our achievements. And when Zambia’s story is told, it’s usually told by outsiders that have no interest in facts that favour us, or that celebrate us as a people.
Let us take the case of South Africa as an example. South Africa celebrates its achievements.
The people will tell you that:
It’s the largest economy in Africa (only comparable to Nigeria) with a GDP of over $500 billion.
That it’s the first African Country to host sports World Cups in Football, Cricket and Rugby.
That the country boasts of 10 Nobel Laureates; Albert Luthuli, Desmond Tutu, F.W. De klerk, Nelson Mandela (for Peace Prize) Nadine Godimer and J. M. Coetzee ( For Literature ) and Sydney Brenner, Aaron Klug, Allan Mcleod Comark and Max Theiler ( in sciences).That it has world and fashion global brands that can all be found in a square mile at Sandton, Johannesburg; that they have several billionaires and millionaires in United States dollar.
But South Africa will not tell you that they are struggling with many issues;
-that they are the highest most unequal nation in the world.
-that over 16 million live below poverty datum line,
-that their unemployment rate is at over 25.5%
-that they are still struggling to give the people adequate housing, or deliver a sustainable health care.
-that their young people have been burdened with unsustainable debts in an attempt to acquire tertiary education and if it were not for “
So fellow Zambians, who will tell our story?
Or should we believe the definition given to us that we are among the poorest nations in the world burdened with poverty, unemployment, underdevelopment?
Why do we celebrate this negative energy; negative issues about ourselves? Who will tell the story of Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula, Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe?
That although we are known for our copper, we are the largest producer of a rare precious stone- Emerald? After Columbia and Brazil. That our emerald is the most flawless and prized?
Buddhism celebrates their revered gods through Emerald. Did you know that the recent curving called the “Sacred Bhudha” in Thailand is curved out of a large piece of emerald from Zambia?
That in 2014, one of the largest and flawless piece titled ‘Nsofu’ of over 6220 carats was dug out of Kagem?
Who will tell the story of the heroic sports exploits of Kalusha Bwalya and Samuel Matete?
Who will celebrate and tell the story our living legend, Dr. Kenneth Kaunda?
Who will tell our story of remarkable peace, a country that has never been at war with itself or with any other?
Who will tell our story of a friendly and jovial people.
Who will testify that we are a prayerful, fasting and God-fearing nation?
Who will change the narrative of Zambia and on Zambia?
Ladies and Gentlemen I challenge you. No one will do it for us unless we do it for ourselves.
It’s not that our poverty and challenges will go away the moment we begin to tell our story but our mindset will become positive and then we shall overcome and achieve.
So speak well of Zambia.
Speak well of her people
Speak well about your fellow Zambians.
Thank you.
Emmanuel Mwamba
ZAMBIA’S HIGH COMMISSIONER TO SOUTH AFRICA
It is a complete disaster when you can have a diplomat be so simplistic? Things in Zambia are bad, there is no sugar coating. South Africa has a very robust social protection program. They also have a very functional state institutions which is not the case here in Zambia. Compare SABC to ZNBC. Compare Public Protector in SA and the ACC in Zambia. Mwamba’s shallow and hollow thinking a result of his deficient eduction…but we need savvy and schooled diplomats!
Even if Mwamba is still PF spokes person, I can’t say anything POSITIVE about that Emmanuel Mwamba, he is the worst example of being Zambia.
If the emeralds were solid and the Money was `drank and eaten`,,, and the same stone was curved into Bhudla,,, so what???,,,
and if our emeralds are highly priced, but the Money doesnt go down to the people on the ground,,, how can that be positive?????? damnit!!
Chikwanda need tell parliament where and who sold that Emerald of world record in 2014.
Why is economy so bad, if just last year Zambia sold the largest ever emerald 2014.
Mwamba has just put Edgar in another hot soup.
@Obatala Jemasoni Lungu Shedding – well said. I couldn’t have put it more succinctly myself!
I totally disagree with you ba Mwamba. The truth is that if an ordinary Zambian felt things were good for them, they would sing praises about this land of joy and unity. Serenje Kalindula band once said: “Abakali tabalanda landa, balanda nenchito”. Let deeds speak for themselves, the rest would fall in place. At the moment, deeds from your government in the last 5 years have left many of us supporters of the MCS PF really upset.
Comment: Good analysis Mwamba. Why negativity all the time? Zambians always complain,they are never positive.
They are being REALISTIC!
Who can sing praises about NO WATER?
Who is happy with load shedding?
Who is happy with doubled Mealie meal prices?
Who is happy with a A COLLAPSED KWACHA?
Only PF vuvuzelas that have enriched themselves by stealing from the borrowed EUROBONDS!
And will leave poor Zambians and FUTURE GENERATIONS to pay back the THE DEBT!
The largest emerald dag out of kagem? And how much was it sold for, what did the country gain?? How can I tell anyone about that when the dull zambians don’t even know what it was worth or what we gained?? Theives.
Just in Zambia now and have seen that PF win again next year whether HH wins on Internet or not
as long as our mindsets are not change even if Government started offloading billions of dollars in our pockets people Will never stop complaining. I believe the best change starts with yourself if can’t change things around you then you will never see change in your life.
even the children of asreal complained and boycotted for eating honey and milk everyday when they where being taken to the promised land by God instead they preferred remaining slaves in Egypt.
Mwemba is right,why should we always be negative about our mother country as if there is only bad things what about the good things we have achieved as a country?
@seniormostman, some of us changed ourselves by taking the opportunity to leave and offer our skills elsewhere where we are appreciated (and I have experience to share on this one – it was HELL because one of my ancestors wronged the UNIP regime). The behavior has continued since. I visit my country once every year and enjoy the sun – but believe me I DO NOT enjoy most of the other things I see and experience when I am visiting. So I do what is appropriate and talk about the weather, the wildlife, and the thick forests, ifishimu, kapenta, nshima. Nothing else is worth highlighting lest “wasebana”…
Mwamba is not being honest. We are proud of our country. We raised our flag high where ever we were when we won the afcon. We speak highly of our compatriots who rise above average across the globe. We tell anyone who cares to listen that the Vic falls is in Zed.
What Mwamba calls negative is when we mention amongst ourselves that his govt is a bunch of failures.
Its no surprise that his boss wanted to send him far away to Malaysia because he is a noisemaker!!
We do tell the story of the good side of Zambia and I can assure the current political leadership doesn’t feature in any chapter of that story. What is laughable…is this corrupt Mwamba encouraging us to do this when it comes natural to us and his lazy dull bum of boss cowered away from a free opportunity to do this selfsame thing on VA and BBC when he is abroad.
@Jay Jay
Very true! This is a classic case of *do as I say, but do not do as I do*.
If the incompetent clown that is failing to do the job that he is PAID TO DO, and spends MILLIONS of Taxpayers money travelling cannot even face the press, why must poor ordinary people do his job for him for free?
The lazy bum must get off his backside and earn his pay! Instead of campaigning all the time
IN THE FIRST INSTANCE IT IS WRONG FOR A DIPLOMAT TO PUBLICLY SPEAK NEGATIVELY ABOUT HIS COUNTRY OF ACCREDITATION.
WE ARE ANNOYED BECAUSE THE COUNTRY IS BEING DESTROYED, IT IS NOT BEING BUILT. DO YOU WANT US TO BE SINGING AND DANCING WHILE THE COUNTRY IS ON FIRE? WHEN YOU WERE WITH PRESIDENT CHILUBA, UNDER PRESIDENT MWANAWASA THE COUNTRY WAS DEVELOPING, DID YOU CELEBRATE THE DEVELOPMENT THAT WAS TAKING PLACE THEN? YOU WANT US TO CELEBRATE THE HIGH POVERTY LEVELS, THE HIGH INFLATION RATE, THE LOSS OF JOBS AND THE ENSUING SUFFERING OF OUR PEOPLE, THE LOAD SHADING, THE HIGH COST OF LIVING AND THE COLLAPSING ECONOMY?
MY FRIEND, WE KNOW ABOUT THE NEGATIVES IN SOUTH AFRICA. PERSONALLY I WOULD PREFER TO LIVE IN ZAMBIA THAN IN SOUTH AFRICA. WE KNOW ABOUT THE HIGH CRIME RATE, THE MAREKANA…
Mwachusa, uleumfwa bwino mu Zambian soup. Walilaba naku mwenu ku Tanzania
Emmanuel, we hit a snag when people ask us why amidst all that abundance we are still an impoverished country. Why with all those good people we elect id!ots & thieves for leaders.
We are not hidden in some corner in utopia, we are so visible in Kambwili’s global so we can not afford to portray a lie about ourselves.
CONTINUED: MASSACRE, PRESIDENT ZUMA’S CONTROVERTIAL HOUSE SCANDAL, HIS ARMS DEAL SCANDAL WHEN HE WAS VICE PRESIDENT, THE XENOPHOBIA, THE RECENT CONTROVERTIAL CHARTERING OF A PRIVATE PLANE BY THE VP, AND MANY OTHER ISSUES. SOUTH AFRICANS TALK ABOUT THESE ISSUES OPENLY AND THEY DON’T SWEEP THEM UNDER THE CARPET AS YOU WANT US TO BELIEVE.
THE NAIVETY OF OUR LEADERS IS SHOCKING TO SAY THE LEAST. HE WANTS US TO BE HAPPY ABOUT THE EMERALDS FROM WHICH THE OWNERS HAVE NOT BENEFITED. THE PEOPLE IN LAMBA LAND ARE WALLOWING IN ABJECT POVERTY WHILE THEIR WEALTH HAS GONE TO BENEFIT OTHER NATIONALS. COPPER HAS ENRICHED OTHER COUNTRIES AND WHILE ZAMBIANS ARE AMONG THE POOREST IN THE WORLD.
SHAMEFUL INDEED!
WE LOVE OUR COUNTRY THAT IS WHY WE WANT TO PREVENT THE TOTAL DESTRUCTION OF OUR BEAUTIFUL…
This guy doesn’t even have the will to gather some positive facts so HE HIMSELF can speak positively about Zambia. He can give brilliant statistics about South Africa but he doesn’t have any about Zambia. Matete??? Is this 1991 or 2015?
@What did you smoke, what you have pointed out in your very last sentence is why we have Chikwanda as Finance Minister in 2015. It is a Zambian weakness to linger on one-time wonders and prop them up long after their sale-by-date. As an example, who wants to speak anything good about UNIP-fashioned economics influenced by one UNIP economic and finance policy architect…?
” how friendly and jovial the people Zambians are”; Zambians are only friendly and jovial to foreigners but cruel to one another. …….and that is why foreigners always exploit Zambia.
And do you know why he is in South Africa and not the other country he was atached to? So that he tempers with the ballot …..which will be printed from that country. Which means pf is going beyond 2015. FACT.
We have good stories to tell. The challenges that we have today does not mean we do not have good stories to tell.
I suppoe Mwamba on this one.
Why do we all have to compleing.what do you losing in telling a story abt zambia.what do u gain by compleing .and what are you doing abt chellages we face at individual level