‘Kabusha takolelwe bowa’ is a very common Bemba saying. It simply means asking questions is not a sign of being drunk.
On Thursday, President Edgar Lungu ordered police to investigate the killing that happened on Wednesday in Lusaka. He demanded a report to be availed to him by Monday, 28th December, 2020.
The following day, Friday, he tweets something that sounds like finger pointing! Would it be unfair for someone to accuse him of trying to interfere with the investigation?
“The mindless killing of two citizens at Lusaka could have been avoided, if politiking had been kept aside and if we had remembered our values as a country,” President Lungu tweeted on Friday, December 25th 2020.
Still scratching my heard as it is hard to grasp his point. Is he accusing UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema of politicking or is accusing Zambian people of showing support for Hakainde Hichilema at police station?
It can’t be either and that is why saying he is trying to interfere with the investigation he just ordered makes sense.
Accompanying a neighbor to hospital, funeral, court, or police station is among the core values of Zambians.
Every Zambian, including the president himself knows that accompanying a neighbor to hospital, funeral, court, or police station is among the core values of Zambia.
It is very sad lives were lost when people gathered to show support for the main opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema when he presented himself for questioning at police headquarters in Lusaka on Wednesday.
However, it doesn’t mean people forgot their values as Zambians by accompanying Hakainde Hichilema to police station. They actually performed their duty as Zambians.
The same has happened with other leaders. For example, Health Minister Dr. Chitalu Chilufya was in court few months ago. A huge crowd of supporters accompanied him. They even managed to disrupt the court proceeding. Yet the President failed to condemn the incident.
Because of that, it is clear today the President can’t accuse Zambian people of showing support for UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema at police station.
So, what is the tweet about? Is the President trying to interfere with the investigation on the killing of two citizens at Force Headquarters in Lusaka? It would be nice for the president to explain.
By Venus N Msyani
Concerned citizen
Yes sir!! well said, it was an interferance
Kabusha takolelwe bowa means “he who finds out through asking before engaging in something, usually does not make a wrong decision”, It has nothing to do with being drunk yama!!
Literally the adage says “One who asks/enquires never got poisoned by mushroom!” as in coming across a mushroom and picking it for food! Lovers of mushrooms, and there are a wide variety in Zambia with some being area specific and of all beautiful colors, will first ask locals on encountering a type of mushroom and even fruit if it is edible to avoid poisoning and ascertain safety! The presidents tweet was in code to indicate or guide how he expects the report to be crafted. Lets await its release to the public!
Lungu is just confused as to why , after spending billions of borrowed monies on infrastructure, Zambians are not automatically guaranteeing their votes to him
It is true , lungu thinks Zambians owe him their unflinching allegiance because he has spent billions of borrowed money
What he does not understand is anyone can spend those billions and do a better job then him
Ba Msyani friends and relatives did not accompany HH to court or Police. HH organised political cadres to accompany him that is why he could not make it to police on Monday because he needed time to assemble his cadres. HH did not even know who Nsama was before the fracas. If there is a person in this country that is a danger to peace it is HH. HH started all this with Chilufya Tayali and he should finish it on his own without sacrificing people’s lives. While peoples died, the person who assembled them is and was enjoying with his family on Christmas. Cadres should learn that these politicians with not be in the grave with them. Their families are away from the confusions they create.
Oh shut the eff up you upnd politically inclined rotten maggots. You will do anything to support your God hh even where he is clearly wrong. Even a blind man can see that it was only upnd cadres and police in attendance. So who really can you blame when hh was clearly advised not to come with cadres. How do you disrespect the police that way. Let the police investigate. Your silly assumptions based on zero facts mean nothing. We will give you official updates as government.
Chishimba Shipanuka mwebamano asukeni tulelolela
Kelvin Silwimba this issue attracts not abamano but general knowledge cause the videos clearly shows how the shooting went down and we all know what transpired, we’ll watch from a distance and see how the long arm of the law will take it’s course just as we are awaiting on the gassers. May the lord protect this our great nation
Chishimba Shipanuka tukomfwako report. Temailo ilefuma?
Kelvin Silwimba kamailo mukwai but iya ka gass yachila na 8 months nomba
There is no law in Zambia that outlaws giving solidarity to a leader. These chaps in government know very well that there was no order from HH to be accompanied, they know that supporters are like fans, they will come whether HH invites them to come or not, but which ever the circumstances nobody has the right to kill them, and the guy was not even riotous, why not arrest him and take him to court, is that not the civilized way of doing things. So stop the tweets and sort out the killers
Edgar lungu thinks we zambians are foolish but I will remind him that US zambians which you think are foolish are your employers and they’re your boss, since you have shown us your true character, wait for Us next year August after general elections that’s when US your bosses will guarge or weigh you and your contract, if you want use your sofisticated guns to kill Us foolish zambians and will use rights fire you remember we foolish zambians did it to RB who are you for US not to do it again to you, continue in that path of biting the finger that feeds you so you will understand the repucation
Even the PF deputy SG lost as usual saying HH should have gone to the Police alone, as if HH ever asked anybody to give him solidarity. And the way these PF characters like blaming HH, is unbelievable, like kids. Even when there was drought some time back they said it was HH
The one who interfered with Police work is the Minister of Home Affairs who was issuing unwarranted threats to citizens before the killings, way out of his mandate
That’s how *****s think…..I dont blame this ***** president but the Zambian people who forced a visionless drunkard to be our head of state are the ones to blame.This man is so weak that he is being used by very rude chaps like kampyongo,davis mwila and prostitutes like mumbi phiri and cadres like lusambo.
Very true. They are seeing shadows. They are hallucinating.
Who doesn’t know that it is poor politics which led to the killings? When u are preoccupied by opposing minds, u oppose everything that is put across from the other camp and in the end u don’t make sense. The ferrying of cadres was purely political. If a political leader heed the warnings made, there was going to be peace. But his arrogance has once again claimed 2 lives
Young Frank Mugala, Grade 8,shot dead for being at school, Vespers killed for being in her dormitory, Mapenzi Chibulo shot dead for no apparent reasons, Graziar and Lawrence also killed, and here we are somebody is still busy tweeting. Since when did reckless killing of our people become law, on one hand you have recklessly borrowed on the other you are recklessly killing innocent citizens
Accompanying a friend to court is a good idea but announcing that they would be anarchy when police call the friend to police is enough reason for the police to be prepared with the people who are announcing such threats. Upnd had announced that should anyone touch HH they were going to cause havoc in the country. Country men and women let’s be fair with what we are saying against government for a change. So for the President to direct the IG to investigate the matter, he just did the right thing to his subordinate because he is surprised that such a thing could have been done by the police who are on strict instructions not to use live ammunition to disperse the cloud especially after the earlier announcement by Upnd to cause havoc when their reader is called by the police.
It appears laws are being created on the fly. It is like that part of a job description that says “…and any other duty your supervisor may assign.” Government is not like that. Do not create things that go against your own constitution.
Journalists who practiced before the internet media arrived were very careful and well read. Nowadays people wake up and write what was in their dreams and give it to us. But Before putting pen to paper you must research. Kabusha takolelwe ubowa literally means ‘the one who asks never was intoxicated from mushrooms”
Yes we know some of the mushrooms can be poisonous so before you pick ask the veterans
Venus N Msyani please avoid using proverbs that you do not know or understand. Kabusha has nothing to do with getting drunk. The direct translation is “the person who asks didn’t get poisoned by mushrooms”. It has nothing to do with getting drunk. Bemba is a very rich language that needs to be used carefully. That is why some leaders have ended up insulting a multitudes of people and trying to sound clever.
Chachine We are so poor in English grammar are we much better in the vernaculars? If we are not we must get concerned because soon we will not be able to communicate.
Whatever the language we are communicating in we need to be polished. Communication is essential for us to develop. Ministry of Education address the question of communication because communication is what drives everything we do
Does he even know how to operate twitter? These are accounts that are run by cadres on a salary.
@kci:
1. Who gives or gave you the right to murder HH supporters simply because they escorted him to the police station for questioning?
2. Can you explain what law they broke which is punishable by firing them to death without court trial?
Please don’t be make an arse of yourself by saying something that doesn’t make any sense. You must a whore’s only child that doesn’t even know the father and Zambian values!
Forgive him he has too much money and power to know those values! That’s is why he laughs and chuckles when people say things are bad……I would not be shocked if he sanctioned the violence that ensured on that fateful day!!!
I think the President isn’t interfering with investigations because primarily the Ministry of Home Affairs and the dept of the Police did issue warnings not to go there at the Police HQ if you were not called up.
Basically, going there would defy COVID-19 guidelines of not assembling of huge people, secondly the assembly would be without permission to which even UPND if came into power would want people to get permits. This illegality brought up another illegal shootings…..
What is asked to be investigated is the shootings and not something prior to that.
This President is beyond clueless. He totally misunderstood this Proverb. My advice: Leave Proverbs to the wise and stop pretending to be a wise guy.
@Chilyata, I do not think I have done anything to deserve such insults but people who resort to insults usually are unable to use their brains.
THERE ARE TWO EDGAR CHAGWA LUNGUS. There is one who was at Mukuba secondary school, intelligent, and went to UNZA to study law. Became a lawyer, joined UPND, lost an election. That Lungu is the one who ordered the IG to furnish him with a report by Monday. That Lungu speaks through the press aide at State House.
Then, there is another Lungu. This one only opens his mouth after imbibing C2H5OH. This is the Lungu who committed larceny by taking a client’s money. This is the Lungu who claims that he has a big whip and lives in fear of being deposed all the time. He has nightmares of working up in cold sweat in the middle of the night with a racing heart. He dreams that he is in prison after being President. This is the Lungu who tweets and threatens people.
We must just accept that guy has not what it takes to lead a country.
He acts like kid with anxiety – who at the end of trying to fix a toy throws it up in the air with hopes that when it lands it will get itself in place.
This country needs leadership. The earlier we swallow this the better. The earlier sympathisers of PF realise this the better.
For the good of everyone, dear countrymen let’s face it this guy is a failure
Chi colour lungu….. Useless peace of sh1t magott
Bushe kanshi ba upnd baba Shani kwati nitulunshi tulya utunono pa mafi.ukwali nsoke takwafwile muntu nomba pantu tabomfwa.Uyu umulopa uli Pali hh cuumbu munshololwa.
Kabusha takolelwe ubowa, direct translation is, the one who asks will not eat poison mashroom, or if you ask you never go wrong
Danny Kayabala correct!
WHERE ARE THE ADVISERS WHEN THE PRESIDENT IS RELEASING SUCH CONFLICTING STATEMENTS? JUST TELL LUNGU TO LEAVE TWITTER TO TRUMP! I TOTALLY AGREE WITH Mpwi Mpwi THAT WE MUST ACCEPT THAT LUNGU HAS FALLEN SHORT OF THE STANDARDS OF A GOOD PRESIDENT. FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT AGREE, ASK YOURSELVES WHY THE MINISTERS ARE PAYING BACK ILLEGALLY OBTAINED SALARIES. WHO CAUSED THAT?
Translation: He who asks will never go astray.
Literally: He who seeks guidance will never eat a poisonous mushroom.
The commander in chief of the atrocities goes further to issue veiled suggestions that those killed had it coming. Pathetic and further reason why this regime needs to be got rid of sooner rather than later
KZ FAKE…..SHUT THE FK UP U SHIIIIT HOLL
Kikikikikikiki ba Msyani! Before writing this article you should have asked from Bemba veterans what the proverb says and means. Now you gonna get punch drunk from the numerous comments from readers here