{"id":51886,"date":"2023-11-15T18:47:42","date_gmt":"2023-11-15T18:47:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/ba-lungu-bweleni-pamupando"},"modified":"2023-11-15T19:01:19","modified_gmt":"2023-11-15T19:01:19","slug":"ba-lungu-bweleni-pamupando","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/ba-lungu-bweleni-pamupando","title":{"rendered":"\u201cBa Lungu Bweleni Pamupando\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zambia. <\/strong><\/span>Can President HH Listen to a Toddler\u2019s Call to Lungu on the Cost of Ubunga? If KK came from the grave and had some words for President HH, it would be, \u201cUbunga! Ubunga! Ubunga! Waikatako, wafwa!\u201d<\/p>\n

In the late 1980s, President Kaunda survived a coup because of the price of ubunga\u2013the culprits were the same players embraced by President Hichilema, the World Bank and IMF. They forced him to remove subsidies and increase the price of ubunga. The results were catastrophic\u2013riots and an attempted military coup that almost cost him his Presidency. He reduced the price, and saved his neck, but not his Presidency!<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/reel\/1328605767740413?s=yWDuG2&fs=e&mibextid=Nif5oz A beautiful toddler\u2019s classical call to former President Edgar Lungu on social media highlights this point. \u201cBa Lungu bweleni pamupando,\u201d the adorable girl says with angelic eyes rolling, \u201cubunga nabudula. Tubwesesheniko ubunga. Tatulilepo ifilifyonse. BaDad tabalafola.\u201d<\/p>\n

( Mr. Lungu, please come back to the Chair. The cost of mealie meal is too unbearable, Come and reduce it for us. We haven\u2019t eaten anything. My dad has not been paid).<\/p>\n

When I reposted the video on my Facebook, two UPND members saw it differently. One argued that Lungu is responsible for the high cost of ubunga while the other contended that such an argument is parroted by HH\u2019s cadres.<\/p>\n

Regardless, the girl\u2019s call is a classical political messaging that would pose a big challenge to President HH. The girl\u2019s natural setting is a common neighborhood and she is definitely not from a well to do family. She represents the common starving child on the streets stating the undeniable fact\u2013\u201cwe haven\u2019t eaten anything.\u201d Her voice is authentic, and she is not scripted in her plea to President Lungu to consider returning to active politics so that he can reduce the cost of ubunga!<\/p>\n

Unlike other African nations, ubunga is central to Zambian politics\u2013no wonder President HH campaigned on reducing the price of ubunga to K50. The centrality of ubunga in Zambian politics is something we don\u2019t see in other African nations\u2013ubunga is Zambia and Zambia is ubunga. In fact, ubunga played a role in our return to multi-party politics. P.K. Chishala\u2019s \u201cCommon Man\u201d spoke to this aspect\u2013you can increase the price of anything, Zambians will forgive. But not ubunga! The prosperity of Zambia is linked to the price of ubunga\u2013something one expects President HH to know. Unfortunately, the man is robbed of memory.<\/p>\n

President HH made countless lies, but the lie about reducing the price of ubunga is unforgivable and is likely to sink his Presidency. His minions insult those pointing to this issue as lazy people used to PF handouts. This is bizarre. The majority of Zambians work long hours\u2013they wake up early in the morning to go to the markets and return home very late. They don\u2019t have the luxury to spend a day without work\u2013every single Kwacha counts. Many of them can\u2019t afford bread but only nshima once, or twice a day if really blessed. Some of them need at least two 25kg bags of ubunga a month. Hence spending over K600 on ubunga alone on top of other basic needs is torturous.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s something more.The little girl is speaking for the nation\u2013the majority is eating less while HH lives in two State houses and globe trots at will. Moreover, ubunga has made Lungu a darling to many Zambians. People don\u2019t eat \u201cLungu this and that no matter how many time Mr. Hichilema says it,\u201d they want food on the table. This is the fact that the girl brings out\u2013Mr. Lungu provided ubunga to Zambians. Under HH, our children are starving. The song of \u201cFree Education\u201d does not feed children\u2013our children need to eat too. By making ubunga too expensive, the HH administration is abusing them. Worse still, parents are spending more on a bag of ubunga than they spent on School fees during the Lungu administration. What a shame!<\/p>\n

As for UPND cronies, ubunga is the spark that may end HH\u2019s Presidency. Arrogance blinds one into thinking that he is a god\u2013both Kaunda and Chiluba were humbled when some military officers attempted to overthrow them. One day, such attempts may be successful\u2013for when people are hungry, they are willing to risk it all. Mark my words: it won\u2019t be long before HH arrests opposition leaders and military officers for treason. Ambitious military officers read the mood of the nation. What is happening in other African nations can happen in Zambia also. Mr. President time is of essence\u2013save yourself. REDUCE the price of ubunga. The IMF and World Bank won\u2019t save you from the wrath that awaits you!<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Zambia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zambia. Can President HH Listen to a Toddler\u2019s Call to Lungu on the Cost of Ubunga? If KK came from the grave and had some words for President HH, it would be, \u201cUbunga! Ubunga! Ubunga! Waikatako, wafwa!\u201d In the late 1980s, President Kaunda survived a coup because of the price of ubunga\u2013the culprits […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":51884,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,25,6],"tags":[234,235,233],"class_list":["post-51886","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-featured","category-files","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-zambia","tag-zambia"],"yoast_head":"\n\u201cBa Lungu Bweleni Pamupando\u201d - Zambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Can President HH Listen to a Toddler\u2019s Call to Lungu on the Cost of Ubunga? 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