By Dr Vernon J. Mwaanga, GOEZ
It is hard to believe that has Zambia turned 60 years.
I still have vivid recollections of midnight on October 23, 1964 at the then Independence Stadium, as the Union Jack came down and the Zambian Flag was hoisted, tears ran down from my eyes.
It was the end of the struggle for independence from Britain.
It was a long journey of self sacrifice and commitment.
I pay tribute to all those who sacrificed their lives for Zambia to be free. Generous tribute goes to the people of Zambia, men,women and youth, for the unrelenting and uncompromising support they gave to the freedom struggle.
A lot of things have happened in the last 60 years, most of them positive, others less so.
The population has grown from under three million in 1964 to over 20 million in 2024.
We were at multi-party state from 1964 to 1973, a one party state from 1973 to 1991, when we reverted to multi-partyism.
We now have our seventh President, elected by the people of Zambia through peaceful democratic elections.
We have witnessed a peaceful handover of power from UNIP to MMD in 1991, from MMD to PF in 2011 and from PF to UPND in 2021.
This peaceful transfer of power, is the envy of many countries.
The national motto “One Zambia, One Nation”, has kept our country peaceful. Every country has got challenges and Zambia is no exception.
We have had challenges of nation building, and maturing our politics, which have become toxic.
There is an unfortunate tendency for some politicians to treat each other as enemies, which is not right.
We have seen and heard about horrifying cases of corruption, by people holding public offices.
Democratic rule is being interpreted by some as meaning unlimited freedom to say and do anything.
Yes in a democratic environment, the views of the minority must always be heard.
But the views and wishes of the majority must always have their way.0
Great nations and great people always get together in times of hardship, like the severe drought we are experiencing as a result of El Nino, which is part of climate change and come up with viable solutions, regardless of political party affiliation.
Going forward, it is my prayer and fervent hope that our politics will mature, for the sake of mother Zambia.
I wish you all my fellow citizens,a happy 60th birthday.
The author is a freedom fighter.
The current crop of politicians would never have achieved independence owing to their greed. Accordingly, we salute our freedom fighters and owe them too great a debt to pay back.