ADDRESS TO THE NATION BY HIS EXCELLENCY
MR. EDGAR CHAGWA LUNGU
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA
ON THE
EVE OF AFRICA FREEDOM DAY
THEME: “CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF OUR NATIONAL EXISTENCE AND ACCELERATING SOCIO-ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION.”
STATE HOUSE,
LUSAKA.
24th MAY 2015
COUNTRYMEN AND WOMEN,
GOOD EVENING,
TOMORROW, 25TH MAY 2015 MARKS AFRICA FREEDOM DAY. WE CELEBRATE THIS DAY EVERY YEAR TO COMMEMORATE THE FOUNDING OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AFRICAN UNITY, WHICH WAS TRANSFORMED INTO THE AFRICAN UNION IN 2001.
IN MAY 1963, VISIONARY MEN AND WOMEN FROM ALL PARTS OF AFRICA MET IN ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA, TO FORGE A UNITED FRONT AGAINST COLONIALISM. THEY REALIZED THAT BY ACTING INDIVIDUALLY, NO COUNTRY WAS STRONG ENOUGH TO DEFEAT THE MIGHT OF THE IMPERIAL FORCES, BUT THAT BY JOINING HANDS IN SOLIDARITY WITH ONE ANOTHER, NO COUNTRY WAS TOO SMALL TO RECLAIM ITS RIGHT TO INDEPENDENCE AND SELF-DETERMINATION.
THE CREATION OF THE ORGANISATION OF AFRICAN UNITY ENCOURAGED FREEDOM FIGHTERS, BOTH AT HOME AND ABROAD, TO ACCELERATE THE STRUGGLE FOR THE ATTAINMENT OF INDEPENDENCE.
IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT WE CELEBRATE THE AFRICA FREEDOM DAY. IT IS A DAY TO REMEMBER AND HONOUR OUR OWN MEN AND WOMEN WHO SACRIFICED IMMENSELY FOR OUR FREEDOM AND INDEPENDENCE.
TODAY, ZAMBIA IS A SOVEREIGN STATE BECAUSE OF THE COURAGE, VISION AND SACRIFICE OF THOSE MEN AND WOMEN. FEW ARE STILL WITH US AND MANY HAVE GONE.
TO THEM ALL, WE PAY OUR INDELIBLE DEBT OF GRATITUDE. WE DEDICATE THIS DAY TO THEM AND HONOUR THE MEMORY OF THEIR HEROIC DEEDS. THEY TAUGHT US THE TRUE MEANING OF LOVE OF ONE’S COUNTRY-SERVICE ABOVE SELF.
COUNTRYMEN AND WOMEN:
OUR NATIONAL THEME FOR THIS YEAR’S AFRICA FREEDOM DAY IS: “CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF OUR NATIONAL EXISTENCE AND ACCELERATING SOCIO-ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION.”
THIS THEME IS VERY APPROPRIATE BECAUSE IT REMINDS US OF THE NEED TO REFLECT ON OUR PAST ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES SO AS TO ENABLE US CHART A NEW DIRECTION FOR OUR NATION.
THIS THEME ALSO COMPLEMENTS THE AFRICAN UNION AGENDA 2063 WHOSE VISION IS TO CREATE A STABLE, PEACEFUL, PROSPEROUS AND INTEGRATED AFRICA, FREE OF FOREIGN DOMINATION AND EXPLOITATION.
AS WE REFLECT ON OUR PAST, WE MUST TAKE COGNIZANCE OF THE VARIOUS ACHIEVEMENTS WE HAVE SCORED SINCE OUR INDEPENDENCE AND THE VISION OF OUR FOUNDING FATHERS AND MOTHERS.
FELLOW CITIZENS,
AT THE BIRTH OF OUR SOVEREIGN STATE, THE FIRST GENERATION OF OUR POLITICAL LEADERS EMBARKED ON THE TASK OF NATION-BUILDING WITH A STRONG SENSE OF VISION.
THEY EMBODIED THIS VISION IN CAREFULLY SELECTED NATIONAL SYMBOLS, WHICH INCLUDE THE NATIONAL FLAG, NATIONAL ANTHEM, COAT OF ARMS, OUR MOTTO OF ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION AND THE FISH EAGLE.
IN THE WORDS OF OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM, WE ARE REMINDED OF THEIR SOLEMN UNDERTAKING TO CREATE A UNITED AND UNITARY STATE, PROUD, FREE AND AT PEACE WITH ITSELF, DIGNIFIED AMONG OTHER NATIONS AND SELF-RELIANT, PROSPEROUS THROUGH HARD WORK AND A COUNTRY ANCHORED IN GOD AND BLESSED BY HIS HAND.
THIS VISION IS AS RELEVANT TODAY AS IT WAS IN 1964. SUCCESSIVE GENERATIONS OF LEADERS HAVE UPHELD THESE IDEALS AND OUR GENERATION OWES IT TO THEM AND FUTURE GENERATIONS TO ACHIEVE THIS DREAM.
OUR FOUNDING FATHERS AND MOTHERS ALSO CHOSE A COAT OF ARMS THAT DEPICTS A MAN AND WOMAN OF EQUAL HEIGHT AND STATURE AT WORK, ALWAYS TO REMIND US THAT ZAMBIA IS A COUNTRY OF EQUALITY AMONG MEN AND WOMEN, ALL ENTITLED TO THE DIGNITY OF WORK AND ITS REWARDS.
THIS WAS LONG BEFORE WE HEARD ABOUT GENDER. AS A COUNTRY, WE NOW NEED TO DEEPEN OUR LEVELS OF APPRECIATION OF WHAT GENDER EQUALITY REALLY ENTAILS.
PROBABLY, THE GENIUS OF OUR FOUNDING FATHERS WAS IN THEIR WISDOM TO COIN AND EMBRACE THE MOTTO OF ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION.
COUNTRIES ACROSS AFRICA HAVE BEEN TORN APART ALONG TRIBAL OR ETHNIC LINES, RACIAL OR REGIONAL FAULT LINES, OR ALONG RELIGIOUS AND IDEOLOGICAL BELIEFS.
ZAMBIA HAS BEEN SPARED FROM THIS CURSE, LARGELY BY THE PROMOTION OF THE ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION MOTTO, ESPOUSED AND INCULCATED IN OUR NATIONAL CHARACTER RIGHT FROM THE BIRTH OF OUR SOVEREIGN STATE.
COUNTRYMEN AND WOMEN:
IN A VIBRANT DEMOCRACY AND FREE SOCIETY LIKE OURS, THERE IS ALWAYS A DANGER OF LOSING SIGHT OF THE IMPORTANCE OF PUTTING THE COUNTRY ABOVE TRIBE, REGION OR PARTY AFFILIATION.
ZAMBIA IS BIGGER THAN ALL OF US AND OUR NATIONAL UNITY MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANYTHING ELSE THAT DIVIDES US. THAT IS WHY I HAVE TAKEN THE DELIBERATE STEP TO REVIVE AND RESTORE THE CITATION OF THIS MOTTO ON OUR NATIONAL BROADCASTER AS A WAY OF REMINDING US OF THE CRITICAL ROLE IT HAS PLAYED IN THE LIFE OF OUR NATION.
I HAVE ALSO MADE IT A PERSONAL CRUSADE TO INCULCATE THE SPIRIT OF ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION IN ALL OF MY NATIONAL UNDERTAKINGS.
ZAMBIA IS A MULTI-ETHNIC AND MULTI-CULTURAL SOCIETY. THIS DIVERSITY CALLS FOR CO-EXISTENCE AMONG DIFFERENT GROUPS. I AM HAPPY THAT SUCCESSIVE GOVERNMENTS HAVE CONTINUED TO NURTURE THIS UNITY OF OUR PEOPLE, THEREBY CONTRIBUTING TO THE PEACE AND STABILITY THAT WE CONTINUE TO ENJOY.
FELLOW CITIZENS:
THE FOUNDERS OF THIS NATION ALSO GAVE US THE SYMBOL OF A FISH EAGLE SO THAT WE MAY ALWAYS LEARN FROM THE QUALITIES OF THIS UNIQUE AND EXCEPTIONAL BIRD. LIKE AN EAGLE, THEY WANTED US TO BE FAR-SIGHTED IN WHATEVER WE DO, FOCUSED ON THINGS WE WANT TO ACHIEVE AS A COUNTRY, HAVE A SENSE OF RENEWAL IN OUR APPROACH TO NATIONAL ISSUES AND, ABOVE ALL, TO EXUDE NOBILITY IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY BY ALWAYS HAVING THE RESOLVE TO RISE ABOVE OUR PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES.
THESE INGREDIENTS SHOULD ALWAYS SERVE US WELL AS A COUNTRY AND CHALLENGE US TO BUILD THE GREAT NATION THAT IS ENVISIONED IN OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM.
FELLOW CITIZENS:
ZAMBIA HAS OVER THE YEARS FOSTERED AND SUSTAINED A DEMOCRATIC CULTURE. THIS HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED BY SUCCESSIVE PEACEFUL AND DEMOCRATIC ELECTIONS. THESE ELECTIONS HAVE ALSO BEEN CHARACTERISED BY SMOOTH TRANSITIONS OF GOVERNMENT AND TRANSFER OF POWER FROM ONE PRESIDENT TO ANOTHER. THIS IS A PLUS TO OUR COUNTRY’S DEMOCRATIC CREDENTIALS AND WE SHOULD ALL COMMIT TO CONSOLIDATING THIS ACHIEVEMENT.
COUNTRYMEN AND WOMEN:
AT INDEPENDENCE, ZAMBIA INHERITED COLONIAL INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WAS DESIGNED TO FACILITATE THE EXPORT OF OUR COPPER ABROAD, LEAVING MAJOR PARTS OF THE COUNTRY, ESPECIALLY RURAL AREAS UN-SERVICED, HENCE, ONE OF THE FIRST TASKS OF OUR FOUNDING FATHERS WAS TO EMBARK ON A RAPID INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME.
BUT THIS WAS HAMPPERED BY ECONOMIC CRISIS IN THE 1970S FOLLOWING THE COLLAPSE OF COPPER PRICES ON THE WORLD MARKET AND THE SHARP RISE IN OIL PRICES.
THE PF GOVERNMENT HAS SINCE 2011 EMBARKED ON UNPRECEDENTED INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME IN THE AREAS OF ROADS, HEALTH, SCHOOLS SANITATION, ENERGY, COMMUNICATION AND RAILWAYS, AMONG OTHERS.
WHILE DEVELOPING THIS NEW INFRASTRUCTURE, WE MUST ALSO PAY EQUAL ATTENTION TO REHABILITATING EXISTING ASSETS AND PUT IN PLACE PLANS AND RESOURCES FOR PERIODIC MAINTENANCE.
COUNTRYMEN AND WOMEN:
AT INDEPENDENCE, ZAMBIA HAD FEW EDUCATED CITIZENS. THIS SITUATION CALLED FOR RAPID GOVERNMENT RESPONSE BY CONSTRUCTING THE FIRST UNIVERSITY AND COLLEGES IN EVERY PROVINCE TO EDUCATE AND TRAIN OUR PEOPLE TO RUN THE ECONOMY.
I AM HAPPY TO NOTE THAT SUCCESSIVE GOVERNMENTS HAVE CONTINUED TO DEMONSTRATE DEEP COMMITMENT TO THE EXPANSION AND INCREASE OF ACCESS TO QUALITY EDUCATION.
THE PRESENT GOVERNMENT HAS COMMITTED ITSELF TO BUILDING A UNIVERSITY IN EACH OF THE PROVINCIAL CENTRES.
THREE UNIVERSITIES ARE ALREADY UNDER CONSTRUCTION. THIS HAS BEEN COMPLEMENTED BY THE PRIVATE SECTOR PARTICIPATION IN THE PROVISION OF TERTIARY EDUCATION.
FELLOW CITIZENS:
OUR POLITICAL INDEPENDENCE IS MEANINGLESS IF WE CANNOT FEED OURSELVES. THAT IS WHY AGRICULTURE HAS BEEN A PRIORITY AREA OF THIS GOVERNMENT AS IT CONTRIBUTES TO FOOD SECURITY, POVERTY REDUCTION, EMPLOYMENT CREATION AND ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION.
TO THIS END, WE ARE COMMITTED TO DEVELOPING THE SECTOR FURTHER AND LINKING IT TO AGRO PROCESSING SO THAT THERE IS ENHANCED VALUE ADDITION.
COUNTRY MEN AND WOMEN:
OUR POLITICAL INDEPENDENCE IS NOT COMPLETE WITHOUT TELLING THE STORY OF OUR COPPER AND THE ROLE THE MINES PLAY IN OUR COUNTRY.
COPPER HAS CONTINUED TO BE A MAJOR PILLAR OF THE ECONOMY, ESPECIALLY IN THE GENERATION OF FOREIGN EXCHANGE. HOWEVER, THIS DEPENDENCE ON COPPER EXPOSES THE COUNTRY TO INSTABILITY WHEN PRICES GO DOWN.
IN ADDITION, THERE IS A CONCERN THROUGHOUT OUR SOCIETY THAT ZAMBIA IS NOT BENEFITING MUCH FROM HER COPPER PROCEEDS. THIS THEREFORE, CALLS FOR ENSURING THAT ZAMBIANS BECOME MAJOR SUPPLIERS TO COPPER MINING COMPANIES AS WELL AS PROMOTING VALUE ADDITION THROUGH COPPER PROCESSING IN THE COUNTRY.
ULTIMATELY, THIS WILL CREATE MORE JOBS FOR OUR PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY THE YOUTH. FURTHERMORE, WE NEED TO IMPROVE THE MONITORING AND AUDITING OF COPPER MINING TO ENSURE THAT WE EFFECTIVELY TAX THE SECTOR FOR THE BENEFIT OF OUR PEOPLE.
I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO ENCOURAGE ZAMBIANS TO GO INTO JOINT VENTURES WITH FOREIGN MINING COMPANIES IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT SOME OF THE PROCEEDS FROM COPPER MINING ARE RETAINED IN THE COUNTRY.
FELLOW CITIZENS:
OUR FOUNDING FATHERS REALIZED THAT POLITICAL FREEDOM WAS EMPTY WITHOUT ECONOMIC EMANCIPATION. IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT ZAMBIA NATIONALIZED STRATEGIC INDUSTRIES AND BUSINESS CONCERNS IN 1968 WITH THE AIM OF GIVING ZAMBIANS OPPORTUNITIES TO PLAY A GREATER ROLE IN THE ECONOMY.
HOWEVER, THIS VISION WAS NOT FULLY REALIZED DUE TO BOTH INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL FACTORS. WE THEN MOVED TO LIBERALIZING THE ECONOMY, WHICH WAS COMPLEMENTED, WITH THE CREATION OF THE LUSAKA STOCK EXCHANGE TO ENABLE CITIZENS GAIN A STAKE IN THE ECONOMY.
THIS WAS FURTHER FOLLOWED BY THE CREATION OF THE CITIZENS ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT COMMISSION AND INDUSTRIAL CLUSTERS. THE TASK AHEAD IS FOR ZAMBIANS TO EMERGE AS MAJOR ENTREPRENEURS WITH THE ADDED CAPACITY OF INVESTING BOTH IN ZAMBIA AND OTHER COUNTRIES.
INDEPENDENCE IS ABOUT COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT. TO THIS END, THE GOVERNMENT HAS EMBARKED ON A DECENTRALISATION PROGRAMME AIMED AT BRINGING SERVICES CLOSER TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY FULLY ENJOY THE MATERIAL BENEFITS OF FREEDOM FROM COLONIAL RULE.
FELLOW CITIZENS:
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE ALSO REFLECT ON THE CHALLENGES WE HAVE ENCOUNTERED AS A NATION AND HOW WE HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH THEM.
IT IS FROM THESE CHALLENGES THAT WE SHOULD PICK OUT LESSONS FOR THE FUTURE. THE KEY CHALLENGES THAT WE MUST CONFRONT WITH URGENCY ARE HIGH DISEASE BURDEN, CORRUPTION, HIGH POVERTY LEVELS, LIMITED EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, CONTINUED UNDER DEVELOPMENT OF THE RURAL AREAS, UNPLANNED SETTLEMENTS IN BOTH RURAL AND URBAN AREAS AND THE NATIONAL HOUSING DEFICIT, AMONG OTHERS.
AS ENVISIONED BY OUR FOUNDING FATHERS, WE MUST STRIVE TO RISE TO THE OCCASION IN THE FACE OF CHALLENGES AND FORGE AHEAD TO ENSURE PROSPERITY FOR ALL ZAMBIANS.
IT IS IN THIS REGARD THAT WE MUST ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT GOD HAS BESTOWED ABUNDANT NATURAL RESOURCES UPON THIS COUNTRY THAT CAN AND SHOULD BE USED TO ENHANCE OUR SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
THE REAL CHALLENGE FOR US IS TO TRANSLATE THIS VAST POTENTIAL INTO CONCRETE PROGRAMMES OF DEVELOPMENT THAT BENEFIT ALL OUR PEOPLE.
FELLOW CITIZENS:
AS WE CONCLUDE THE CELEBRATIONS OF THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF OUR INDEPENDENCE IN OCTOBER THIS YEAR, WE SHOULD CONTINUE OUR JOURNEY OF NATION-BUILDING. THEREFORE, OUR RESPONSIBILITIES AS THE PRESENT GENERATION OF ZAMBIANS ARE THREEFOLD.
FIRSTLY, WE HAVE TO CONSOLIDATE THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE FOUNDING FATHERS IN NATION-BUILDING.
SECONDLY, WE HAVE THE UNSHAKABLE DUTY TO MEET THE CHALLENGES THAT OUR COUNTRY FACES.
THIRDLY, IT IS OUR SUPREME RESPONSIBILITY TO BEQUEATH THE NEXT GENERATION A ZAMBIA THAT IS PROSPEROUS, UNITED, PROUD AND RESPECTED IN THE COMMUNITY OF NATIONS.
COUNTRY MEN AND WOMEN:
THE WORLD IS UNDERGOING RAPID ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION. IT IS, THEREFORE, IMPORTANT FOR OUR COUNTRY TO MOVE IN TANDEM WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD.
IF A MAJORITY OF ECONOMIES CONSISTENTLY INCREASE THEIR NATIONAL OUTPUTS DUE TO GROWING PRODUCTIVITY, ZAMBIA SHOULD BE AMONG THEM. LET US, THEREFORE, UPHOLD THAT NATIONAL ASPIRATION AND TRANSFORM OURSELVES INTO A HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE SOCIETY BY BEING INNOVATIVE AND COMPETITIVE. THIS WILL REAFFIRM THE SPIRIT OF OUR BEING A LAND OF WORK IN JOY AND UNITY, AS CAPTURED IN OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM.
COUNTRY MEN AND WOMEN:
AS OUR COUNTRY CONTINUES MAKING ADVANCES IN NATION-BUILDING, PRESSURE WILL UNDOUBTEDLY MOUNT FOR SELF-ADVANCEMENT.
EVERYBODY ASPIRES FOR A BETTER LIFE. IN THIS CONNECTION, I WOULD LIKE TO URGE EVERYONE IN OUR COUNTRY TO PURSUE SELF-ADVANCEMENT, BASED ON FIRM MORAL AND ETHICAL PRINCIPLES.
FELLOW CITIZENS,
ZAMBIA HAS NEVER EXISTED IN ISOLATION FROM THE REST OF THE WORLD. THAT IS WHY RIGHT FROM THE START OUR FOUNDING FATHERS EMBRACED THE SPIRIT OF PAN-AFRICANISM. IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT ZAMBIA SELFLESSLY PLAYED HOST TO MANY LIBERATION MOVEMENTS, ESPECIALLY THOSE FROM SOUTHERN AFRICA. IN ADDITION, WE PROVIDED MATERIAL ASSISTANCE TO OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS WHO WERE STILL FIGHTING FOR INDEPENDENCE.
TODAY, OUR PRIORITY SHOULD BE TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH ALL AFRICANS ON THE CONTINENT AND IN THE DIASPORA FOR SOCIO-ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION OF OUR CONTINENT.
WE ALL HAVE A DUTY TO BE PATRIOTIC TO OUR COUNTRY. BUT THIS SHOULD NOT BE AT THE EXPENSE OF AFRICAN SOLIDARITY. THIS IS WHAT POSITIVE NATIONALISM IS ALL ABOUT.
FELOW CITIZENS:
IN CONCLUSION, I WOULD LIKE TO REMIND THE NATION THAT WE ARE ON A JOURNEY DEFINING OUR DESTINY AS A NATION. TO SUCCEED, WE MUST AGAIN LOOK AT ONE OF OUR NATIONAL SYMBOLS, THE FISH EAGLE. THE FISH EAGLE IS OUR NATIONAL IDENTITY, OUR DNA.
WE MUST BE FAR SIGHTED TO SEE OPPORTUNITIES AND SOLUTIONS IN EVERY CHALLENGE. IT IS THIS STRONG VISION THAT WILL ENABLE US TO SEE OPPORTUNITIES AND SOLUTIONS IN EVERY CHALLENGE THAT CONFRONTS US.
WE MUST BE READY AND WILLING TO WEATHER THE STORMS OF NATION BUILDING, WHICH WILL ALWAYS BE THERE.
THE EAGLE NURTURES ITS YOUNG TO DEVELOP AND GROW INTO A STRONG AND STRATEGIC BIRD. WE MUST, LIKEWISE, EDUCATE OUR YOUNG PEOPLE TO BECOME STRONG, RESPONSIBLE, RESOURCEFUL, ENTEPRISING, DISCIPLINED AND STRATEGIC THINKERS CAPABLE OF RUNNING OUR NATIONAL AFFAIRS ONCE OUR TURN TO PASS ON THE BATON COMES.
FINALLY, LET ME CALL ON ALL OF US TO CONTINUE THE DIVINE TASK OF BUILDING A FREE, STABLE, PEACEFUL AND PROSPEROUS ZAMBIA THAT WE SHALL ALL BE PROUD OF IN THE NEXT 50 YEARS.
MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL!
MAY GOD BLESS OUR GREAT NATION ZAMBIA!
THANK YOU AND GOOD NIGHT!
-State House Press Office