Yesterday, the nation woke up to an alarming headline in Fred M’membe’s The Mast Newspaper: ZAMSTATS UNDER SIEGE!
“Three directors at the Zambia Statistics Agency (ZamStats) have been fired after they refused to implement directives to falsify statistics about the 2022 Census of Population and Housing,” reported the tabloid.
It further alleged that the President had fired three directors at the agency and demanded that they reduce the number of Bembas, and instead inflate that of Tongas.
Obviously, M’membe sat back in his favourite Western made couch after posting the front page of his tabloid newspaper on Facebook, anticipating the long knives to come out for the man he despises with all his mighty – President Hichilema. Alas, he got a shock of his life instead! The posting attracted over a thousand reactions, with most of them either lambastibg or calling for the closure of his publication as it’s likely to instigate genocide in our country!
“Newspapers yamu kachasu! It’s just that tissue is affordable these days. This is only good for wrapping dry fish,” Mumba Mubanga offered a wisecrack.
Theresa Ndopu was quite blunt, describing the headline as disgusting and advised M’membe not to, “divide this nation with tribal and hateful remarks.”
On the other hand, Christopher Shatewa asserted that, had it been under the PF, this publication would have been closed a long time ago noting that M’membe was notorious for preaching tribalism as a way of salvaging his plummeting political fortunes.
Ackson Ngoma wondered whether the paper was trying to incite uprising in the nation by advancing the agenda of tribalism whereas Chomba Chama described the paper as a disgrace and a bunch of brainless idiots!
Before long, Mutale Mwango chipped in with following comment, “The Mast Newspaper is a successor of The Post Newspapers, the mother of tribal talk and tribalism in Zambia. It has continued where The Post had left off.”
In the same vein, Norita Mwanza stated that Fred M’membe has always been a tribalist who was hell-bent on dividing our beloved nation.
Uncle Koko couldn’t have put it any better when he observed thus, “The Mast is spreading division, chaos and anarchy among citizens!”
Rick Wowo described M’membe’s reporting as atrocious and called on the authorities to cite him for inciting tribalism.
Apart from this, Thoni Yungana exclaimed that the screaming headline was extracted from the Devil’s den, aimed at boosting the dwindling sales of a newspaper which was struggling financially; while Kuwabo Mbullai simply labeled M’membe as “pure evil!”
Additionally, Kabunda appealed to M’membe to stop this kind of reporting as it is not good for the peace and stability that this nation has continued to enjoy since Independence while Fulata Jere appealed to the authorities to “close this divisive, anarchist paper and let it account for its statement.”
Danford Mwenge intimated that such newspapers were a danger to society and didn’t deserve to exist at all while Jos Moses stated that such type of reporting had a tendency to breed discord and hatred in the nation and agreed that it was better to close the paper once and for all.
Rwanda featured prominently in the discourse. Kelvin Mwala observed that the headline reminded him of “how the genocide in Rwanda started as the media has got the power to destroy a nation!”
Sibongile Mudenda equally weighed in and called on the authorities to ban the publication as it is such headlines which caused the genocide in Rwanda.
By the same token, opposition party leader Saviour Chishimba had a few wise words. He writes on his Facebook page, “This kind of reporting is careless and irresponsible! Zambia is a united nation comprising 73 tribal nations that have always lived together way before the coming of colonialists. We must reject and trash this kind of reporting. This country has numerous issues that we must all be addressing our minds to for the goodness of all.”
Unless otherwise, M’membe must be reeling in shame after reading all these comments and walking around with an Ostrich egg on his face! Why should he continue with his evil agenda of sowing seeds of discord and disunity in the nation?
As most readers have observed, this is not the first time M’membe is desperately trying to drive a wedge amongst our people. Before the Lungu administration clamped down on his influential, The Post Newspapers for failure to pay tax, he would constantly churn out screaming headlines maligning the UPND as tribal, a Bantustan. M’membe is a danger to this nation; he has crossed the red line. He needs to be caged, pronto!
Prince Bill M Kaping’a
Social/Political Analyst
Mayeng’u, Zambezi
Before you condemn Mmembe ask why that director questioned the figures when he was never in the field? This has never happened before in this country. They say there’s no smoke without fire…. let’s wait and see how things unfold.
No smoke without fire is an adage that was coined in the days when you could not produce smoke without fire- but now you can and there is a lotta smoke without fire, including tear gas! It makes your eyes to water!
Why should the president want to amend the report. Either the person who compiled the Census report relied on cooked data or he tampered with the figures. It can also mean that the president did not like the facts and wanted to alter the information for selfish motives. Otherwise, the story is fishy and a or some directors who disobeyed the Executive were axed or the issue is in the pending basket. Every which way, it stinks. As for closing the Mast, I dare you.
Fred Membe is very old.You can never teach an old dog new tricks.The man has tried everything in his old book to chenge his image to that of a modern thinker; from proposing to the Baroste that he intends to make some government positions hereditary to adorning himself in western tailored suits.He has changed from posing as gun-toting Che Guevara/Castro wannabe and a Palestinian cause advocate after being exposed as a capital accumulating Socialist.But his results at every polling day are laughable, and now this.The man does not even know how to switch on an Ipad.I pity the ignoramuses at the MAST and the SP
The President has been clear on letting the media to regulate itself but clearly they are not equal to the task yet.
Mmembe has always been a poor journalist. When he took over the Post from journalists he made it a personal vendetta mouthpiece. It was always attacking political opponents. That is not journalism but politics. The Post was turned into a pedestal for political ambitions. That is why its staff were shamelessly and quickly recruited into PF government. They helped PF assasinate MMD.
Nothing is impossible in Zambia these days
Lies and deceitful statements all day long
Will we ever know the truth as to what is going on ???
650 Million $$$$ for the dual carrige way with no mention of 25 Years Toll fees attached
Still bugs me
..the man he despises with all his mighty –
MIGHT is a noun to mean POWER whereas MIGHTY is a descriptive adjective denoting the word POWERFUL.
If one is filled with might then he is mighty. Eg. Mufulira Wanderers
Next time as you write while seated in that Chinese made chair, in a village town 600 kilometres away from Lusaka, please note the differences in those two words.
A newspaper doesn’t print without facts because they can be sued for libel if they fail to prove what they published in court. So either let government take them to court or leave them but if they leave them we the public shall take it that whatever they have written is the truth that’s why there is no action from government.