By Gregory Mofu
“Jesus wept.” — John 11:35
The shortest verse in the Bible. Yet, behind its brevity lies a depth of sorrow too heavy for words. Yesterday, Zambia lived its own version of that verse.
At a solemn press briefing in Lusaka, U.S. Ambassador to Zambia, Michael Gonzales, stood not just as a diplomat, but as a witness to a betrayal too painful to bear. As he announced the United States’ decision to slash K1.4 billion (US$50 million) worth of medical aid to Zambia, his eyes welled with tears. The image of a mzungu—a white man—shedding tears for Zambia became a piercing symbol of just how far we have fallen. Mzungu alila. A white person has cried.
And indeed, so should we all.
The aid cuts are not a matter of politics. They are about life and death. For the thousands living with HIV, battling tuberculosis, or fighting off malaria, this announcement means medicine shelves will run empty, clinics will turn away patients, and lives that could have been saved will be quietly lost in silence.
But these tears were not sudden. Ambassador Gonzales explained that since 2021, the U.S. government had uncovered massive theft in Zambia’s public health supply chain. Over 2,000 pharmacies were investigated—95% were selling stolen medical supplies. Nearly half of those stolen supplies had been donated by the American people, meant to be given freely to Zambians in need. The response from authorities? Silence, cover-ups, and token arrests of low-level individuals, while the real perpetrators remained protected.
How did we come to this? How did a nation that once stood as a beacon of democracy and hope become a place where even medicine for the dying is stolen for profit?
This is not just a funding crisis—it is a moral crisis. And the consequences will be devastating:
• Fewer antiretroviral drugs for HIV patients.
• Interrupted treatments for tuberculosis and malaria.
• A crippled healthcare system pushed further to its knees.
• A broken trust between Zambia and one of its longest-standing development partners.
Ambassador Gonzales’ tear was not just for stolen medicine—it was for stolen integrity, stolen lives, and a stolen future.
Now, Zambia must decide whether that tear will be ignored—or whether it will become the spark of reckoning and reform. Will we allow this to be remembered as the shortest day in our nation’s history, or the turning point?
The world is watching.
And Heaven, too, has already wept.
Neocolonialism is a bad student which keeps coming back in different forms including misozi. Ushe imwe bantu, are you on planet Earth? si muona ve tiona. Aba bantu bali na plani kuti vutikisa. Onani vamene va chita ku Bukina, ku SA, ku Nigeria, ku Congo nako nibeve. Mu Zambia tu chawa na mzungu tileke. “Donchikubeba” They know your thieves very well because they fund them so that they use them against you. Wake up man.
@Future, please write in Tonga, current Zambian universal language. We are not going back to PF language ever.
@ Nostra.. boy
Why in Tonga, Yet the language s/he used is not Tonga.
I wrote in the language which does not belong to anyone because it’s slang to a local dialect. Don’t allow the noise to confuse us. As Zambians we need to pay attention to detail. It’s not just our government being captur3d, these people are figuring out ways to remote control us the people from a distance. Va mahala vina sila kudala.
Pharmacies should sue this guy for defamation… or is he immune?
Let them prove the dont have stolen property. Then they can sue. As far see. When you eat one rotten ground nut, dont you spit out all of them? So if there are good pharmacies, let them call out the theives.
You can not petition a diplomat to a court of law in the host country. But you can ask the home country to recall the individual for gross indiscipline.
If you want to do what the PF did to Forte on the Christmas eve of 2019, go on. However, you are on your own. His Excellency Hichilema is not that wayward to follow your lame advice. Just fix the problem at hand.
I think they should sue. Lawyers will have a hard time defending why he cried when the people who were to lose out were the criminals. Was he crying for the criminals? If like the US says, 90 percent of the medicine from America goes to criminals, patients wont give a hoot whether US aid is coming in or not.
The investigation claim that, “life sustaining drugs has been siphoned into private pharmacies”. My question is, are drugs like ARVs being sold in Chemist or pharmacies? Maybe it’s only where I reside.
The fact remains, that medicines did not reach the intended people. If America wanted to end free drugs and medical supplies by any way other than the reasons given, they would easily have done it. But it is of no consequence. Were those insincere tears from the diplomat?
The Zambian government has admitted to some anomalies and negligence in the logistics chain. Officials have been cited for wrongdoing. The problem should be addressed whether the US rescinds its decision or not. GRZ inertia. HE President Hichilema must be seen to reign supreme, not on those small kapenta but the real big fish of the Cabinet river. Only then will he be morally excused than be seen complicit. We want to see the president weep with a rod in hand. Posterity will say, HH wept.
How petty can we be ???
Chemist or Pharmacy not many know the difference
Let’s just say All perscription meds were being sold on the open market
Let’s not pick hairs here !!!
Iwe naiwe stop off-ramping. The guy’s point isnt about splitting chemists from pharmacies (which as far as I understand are one and the same). He wants to say Pharmacies dont dispense HIV medicines. Only hospitas are allowed to do that
The fact remains, that medicines did not reach the intended people. If America wanted to end free drugs and medical supplies by any way other than the reasons given, they would easily have done it. But it is of no consequence. Were those crocodile tears from the ambassador?The Zambian government has admitted to some anomalies and negligence in the logistics chain. Officials have been cited for theft. The problem should be addressed whether the US rescinds its decision or not. GRZ inertia. HE President Hichilema must be seen to crack a whip, not on those kapenta but the real big fish of the Cabinet river. Only then will he be excused than be seen complicit. We want to see the president weep with a whip in hand. Posterity will say, HH wept.
The individual referred to as “Mzungu” appears to be displaying insincere emotions, often referred to as “crocodile tears.” It seems he is aware that Trump is unlikely to reappoint him, particularly because he aligns with the theory surrounding “Sleepy Joe.” His expressions of sadness do not seem to genuinely relate to concerns for Zambia, but rather reflect his own personal interests. Wake up call
Sorry -cant understand you
Comments on an article which in itself is only a comment or perhaps it qualifies as a short opinion if being generous. Thou shalt not steal. Chapwa. Even if it’s only an American who saw you stealing
He wept for his job?
And why was this “The Shortest Day in Zambia’s History”?
So how much do they sale ma ARVs Mr. Speedy Gonzales since you investigated an in which pharmacies. Give us at least 2 names out of 1909.