Africa-Press – Zambia. Zambia must focus on slashing down high poverty levels and out of control food prices instead of drawing up laws to send podcasters to jail for five years says Ambassador Anthony Mukwita.
Mr Mukwita also asked the current government to ́take a chill pill ́ and not prosecute everyone that does not agree with them to nurture the countries ́shaky ́ democracy.
“The governments priority must be reducing high costs of mealie above K380 per 25 bags in Lusaka and more in far flung areas not crafting laws to send podcasters to jail for five years,” said Ambassador Mukwita.
Mukwita, an international relations analyst, former editor in chief and published author said the mere ́discussion ́ of a law that possibly send people to jail for speaking on social media without a licence is tantamount to ́going back in the stone age ́ for Zambia once hailed for being a budding democracy due to a huge space of free media and expression.
Recently the IBA publicised a plan to start regulating social media space in Zambia that could see ́erring ́ podcasters without licence jailed for years.
Ambassador Mukwita was speaking during an interview on Millenium TV on Friday as condemnation mounts against government plans to jail podcasters. GET A THICK POLITICAL SKIN SAYS AMB: MUKWITA
He said, “politicians must become thick skinned and resist jailing or prosecuting everyone that disagrees with them like Zambian leaders of the past such as Frederick Chiluba once called a ́twit ́ in a newspaper headline and Levy Mwanawasa once called a ́cabbage ́.”
“Once people get scared of free expression, they will stop speaking and once they stop speaking, they won ́t warn you (government) of any political potholes ahead,” said Ambassador Mukwita, “let Zambians speak now like they did in the past…politicians have become too ́sensitive ́ in my view nowadays.”
DROUGHT DISASTER ANNOUNCMENT BY PRESIDENT HICHILEMA Ambassador Mukwita advised the President to immediately pronounce ́a hunger or food disaster ́ because it is coming one day or another.
“Droughts come with crop failure, lower harvests, food shortages and expensive maize imports,” said Ambassador Mukwita, “I advise the President to man up and announce a food disaster now than later.”
Food ques reminiscent of first President Kenneth Kaunda days in late 1980s have been recorded in Zambia forcing chief government spokesman Cornelius Mweetwa to announce massive maize imports before doubling down to announce that Zambia has sufficient food.
Oxfam places the number of Zambians that face starvation today at about six million or more as the basic food basket in Lusaka teeters at about K10,800 per month on basics alone for a small family of five.
“I wonder how we came from having more than 1,4 million tons of maize to distributing food relief,” said Ambassador Mukwita, “what were our leaders thinking and why does Mr Mweetwa keep twisting his tongue on this serious matter, even contradicting President Hichilema ́s good announcement. Who is telling the truth on the critical food shortage?
Ambassador Mukwita also advised government to allow civil society groups such as OCIDA to operate freely and unrestrained as they lobby for greater freedom of assembly and expression just like the current government did pre-2021 polls.
Recently OCIDA asked the United States to sanction President Hichilema and some government officials to correct ́alleged ́ shrinking democratic space in Zambia. Ambassador Mukwita said it, “is a pity and shame that copper rich Zambia has about 64 pc of people living in poverty today.”
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