Big Brother Africa Evictee Mark Mulaza Kair alias Macky 2 Last night nearly missed the #BBHOTSHOTS after party held at Kong when the Zambian artist was informed about the death of President Michael C. Sata.
Friends close to him who went to attend the finale have said that the artiste was devastated when news reached him that the man who inspired him had died.
It is also said this made the Zambia representative fail to attend the after party as he took time to mourn the late president at the hotel.
Macky 2 during his stay in the house he told Big Brother that President Sata inspired him and was the person he looked up as he was a man who never wanted to give up in life to archive his goals.Macky 2 arrived today in Zambia.
Michael Sata, the president of Zambia, reviewed an honor guard in Lusaka in September.Credit Agence France-Presse — Getty
Michael Sata, the president of Zambia who once swept British railroad station platforms for a living and whose reputation for a sharp tongue and abrasive manner earned him the nickname “King Cobra,” died late Tuesday at a London hospital, the Zambian government announced on Wednesday. He was 77.
The cause of his death, after months of largely unchronicled illness, was not made public.
The Zambian government, and Mr. Sata himself, persistently denied suggestions that he had a terminal illness, even when he missed an appearance at the United Nations General Assembly in New York this year after reports that he had taken ill in his hotel room.
Shortly before he left for New York, Mr. Sata mocked people who said he was sick. He was quoted as telling the opening of Parliament in Lusaka, the capital, “I am not dead yet.”
Mr. Sata flew to London 10 days ago for what the authorities called a “medical checkup abroad,” without revealing his destination.
The government met on Wednesday in Lusaka to determine an interim leader until elections are held within 90 days. Two leading candidates are Vice President Guy Scott, a white Zambian and former farmer and government minister, and Edgar Lungu, the defense minister, news reports said. Mr. Lungu was appointed acting president in Mr. Sata’s absence.
Michael Chilufya Sata was born on July 6, 1937, in Mpika, in the north of the country, then under British rule and known as Northern Rhodesia. He had scant formal education and at one point joined a seminary, intending to become a priest, according to a Zambian historian, Field Ruwe, quoted by Agence France-Presse.
Instead, he became a police officer. At one point, Mr. Sata spent time in London, working as a sweeper and porter at a railroad station. He entered politics, first in the labor movement, on his return home. He rose to become governor of Lusaka and worked closely under two former presidents, Kenneth Kaunda and Frederick Chiluba, before joining the opposition in 2001.
After losing three election bids, the gravel-voiced Mr. Sata finally took office in 2011, describing himself as a “man of action” who had tilted against the growing influence of Chinese investors in the economy of Zambia, a landlocked, sparsely populated nation largely dependent on its dominant copper mining industry.
As a candidate, Mr. Sata ran on an explicit promise to protect workers from exploitation by China and tapped into the nation’s divide between rich and poor, pledging to share Zambia’s wealth.
When two Chinese supervisors at a coal mine shot 13 workers protesting over wages in 2010, the episode bolstered Mr. Sata’s campaign. The Zambian government initially indicated that the Chinese managers would be punished, but the charges were quietly dropped. Mr. Sata, an opposition leader at the time, denounced the spilling of “innocent blood” by “merciless so-called investors.”
During his inauguration, Mr. Sata promised that foreign investments would be protected but said that they would not come at the expense of Zambians.
His smooth transition to power was a notable event in African politics, with the incumbent president stepping down peacefully.
Such was Mr. Sata’s willingness to talk bluntly that he once told a senior aide who apologized for public remarks that offended the leadership in South Africa, “You cannot be diplomatic all the time.”
He proved that point in July 2012, during a visit to Zambia by former President George W. Bush, according to African news reports. At a public gathering attended by journalists, Mr. Sata was quoted calling Mr. Bush a colonialist and referring pointedly to the scars of slavery on American society. Mr. Bush replied that the United States had never been a colonial power.
In office, Mr. Sata acquired a reputation for intolerance for political challengers. This year, for instance, an opposition leader, Frank Bwalya, faced defamation charges after likening Mr. Sata to a kind of potato used in local slang to denote a person who does not listen to others.
But his style seemed was far less despotic than that of some other African leaders, including President Robert G. Mugabe in neighboring Zimbabwe, with whom he cultivated friendly relations.
Mr. Sata’s relationship with Mr. Mugabe seemed to confirm his reputation as a bit of a conundrum. At times, he praised Mr. Mugabe’s anti-white policies but nonetheless chose Mr. Scott as his vice president. Mr. Sata and Mr. Scott had worked closely in opposition to promote the Patriotic Front party.
Reflecting a much broader debate in Africa, gay rights advocates accused Mr. Sata of failing to challenge a groundswell of homophobia, built on colonial-era laws still on the books and criminalizing homosexual acts.
“Those advocating gay rights should go to hell; that is not an issue we will tolerate,” Mr. Lungu was quoted as saying last year when he was the minister of home affairs. “There will be no such discussion on gay rights. That issue is foreign to this country.”
Mr. Sata died at the private King Edward VII hospital in London. His wife, Christine Kaseba, and his son, Mulenga Sata, were at his bedside, according to Roland Msiska, the cabinet secretary in Lusaka.
His absence from Lusaka meant that he missed one of Zambia’s milestones: the celebration last week of 50 years of independence from Britain.
Few Zambians fear the succession battle will turn violent. Zambia has an enviable track record in sub-Saharan Africa, suffering little of the ethnic strife or political chaos evident in some of its neighbors, like the Democratic Republic of Congo or Mozambique.
Several ministers had been jockeying to take over after the reports that Mr. Sata was ill. It was not clear if those contenders would include Mr. Scott. Since his parents were not born in Zambia, his critics say, he is ineligible to become head of state.
Defence and Justice Minister Edgar Lungu may just be the luck person ailing president Michael Sata may settle to take over the PF presidency, sources from within State House and senior PF officials have disclosed.
Impeccable sources have disclosed that Sata was not expecting his condition to deteriorate so fast and would probably have loved his son Mulenga Sata or some other family member to be fully groomed and possibly takeover, especially if he had managed to reach 2016 and beyond.
“From the word go, Lungu would not really have been his choice for presidency, far from it. But it looks like time is running out now.
So many factors are at play, including the need to remove the Bemba tribal card that has now been associated with the PF. And Sata considers Lungu to be too liberal, too casual for the highest office, and yet too independent, but most of the other PF leaders are just too useless for president Sata to even consider,” sources said.
Of course there are a few outsiders still being considered such former Commerce Minister Felix Mutati, but the tribal tag will be too much if the PF did such a thing.
According to sources, former Justice Minister Wynter Kabimba was the preferred PF candidate and there is even a memorandum of understanding to that effect that was witnessed by former president Kenneth Kaunda prior to 2011 elections.
“It is true Kabimba and Sata signed a memorandum of understanding prior to 2011 elections for him (Kabimba) to takeover. It was witnessed by the likes of Kaunda,Post newspaper editor Fred Mmembe, DPP Mutembo Nchito, former Task Force Chairman Mark Chona and possibly the former American Ambassador Mark Stollera.
And a number of senior PF leaders who were fighting Kabimba knew about this. But these documents have no legal backing at all, and Kabimba as a lawyer should have known better. No wonder they say he is a very dull lawyer.
Perhaps he was also banking on the old friendship he has had with Sata and that he would honour the agreement,” sources have disclosed.
Sources say Kabimba’s problem was also to have become too big-headed in the party because of thePost newspaperbacking and his old friendship with Sata who he even called his father.
“And for Sata, Kabimba was the kind of a brutal president he wanted to takeover from him unlike Lungu who is considered a gentleman and too nice.
The other problem with Kabimba and his backers at thePost newspaperis that they completely underrated the powerful forces within the PF but instead concentrated on attacking and scheming against opposition UPND president Hakainde Hichilema. They were done with PF, and their only obstacle to the presidency was Hichilema. That’s why they are now busy crying because they ignored the powerful enemies within,” sources said.
Sources said anything is possible when Sata clocks 3 years in office after 23rdSeptember and fully qualify for his presidential retirement benefits.
“Again two options are on the table now.
He might just step down on medical advice and pave way for a snap presidential by-election within 3 months and have another general election in 2016.
The other option is for him to dissolve parliament and immediately call for a snap fresh presidential and general election so that whoever takes over goes for a complete five-year mandate, hence changing the electoral cycle,” sources have disclosed.
Sources disclosed currently the Office of the president is conducting an intensive survey to determine the PF strength on the ground in either a presidential by-election or general election in a case where government machinery will not be in a position to completely rig as is the case with a parliamentary by-election.
Time sure changes things. Haste slows every dream and opens the door to failure. What good is running if you are headed in the wrong direction? It is important to know where you are going rather than to see how fast you can get there.
We undo ourselves with impatience. And this is exactly what this corrupt and tribalistic clique is doing to itself. They are so much in a hurry to get Michael Sata’s presidential powers. They seem to have a timetable for Michael’s total handover of power to them.
Look at how desperate they were when Michael had appointed Wynter Kabimba to act as President of the Republic during the time he was away in Israel! In their own shallow and evil thinking, they were convinced Michael was not going to make it back from Israel. And leaving Wynter to act as President was going to make power slip away from them.
They tried to challenge Wynter’s acting appointment. They were not ready to accept that appointment. They were even conniving with the opposition in Parliament to raise questions challenging that acting appointment.
And as we have stated before, some of them were going round telling people that was the end of Michael’s presidency; he was not coming back from Israel, and they were positioning or repositioning themselves to take over. The question was how?
The only way that was left for them was to get rid of Wynter by all sorts of schemes of lies, deceit, forgeries and manipulation. And they have succeeded in doing so – at least for now.
But such desperation and impatience is very dangerous, especially when what is involved or what is at stake is political power, is the governance of a nation.
Now they are in control of things. At least that’s what they are telling everybody. They are bragging about being in control. They have got power. But this is not their power. This power was not given to them. If any of them had stood as a presidential candidate in 2011, no one would have voted for them.
This is Michael’s power, the power the Zambian people have given to him. And this power, the people’s power, cannot be circumvented that way.
It has been easy for them to loot public resources through all sorts of contracts, bribes, commissions and so on and so forth. But they cannot steal the people’s power, the power the people gave to Michael, in that way.
As we stated in our editorial comment yesterday, it is Michael the Zambian people love. It is Michael the Zambian people trust. It is Michael the Zambian people cherish. It is Michael the Zambian people voted for, and not them.
Their desperation and haste to usurp power from Michael is frightening. And with this desperation, Michael will never be safe in their company.
But if tomorrow the Zambian people wake up to find something has happened to Michael, they will be in serious trouble. The Zambian people will put whatever happens to Michael on their heads. They will be made accountable for whatever happens to Michael.
It won’t be long before the Zambian people come to know their deceitful schemes and how they have mercilessly manipulated their way into power. Soon, the Zambian people will know that they took advantage of Michael to pursue personal ends. When this happens, they are in trouble. And it won’t be long before they are seen for what they are.
They are too much in a hurry to get the power that the people have given to Michael and use it for personal ends and cover up their plunder and other misdeeds. These are liars. These are manipulators. And people like these are very dangerous. If a man can lie in this way, what else can he not do? People who lie can also kill. And this is what makes them very dangerous.
And whoever is in a hurry shows that the thing he is doing is too big for him. There is a time to let things happen and a time to make things happen. Life is lived in seasons, which means we are to do different things at different times. Do the right thing at the right time. A Chinese proverb says, “Never leave your field in spring or your house in winter.”
What this corrupt and tribalistic clique should know is that God never sends winter without the joy of spring, the growth of summer, or the harvest of fall.
It is said that the greatest assassin of dreams is haste, the desire to reach things before the right time – claiming victory prematurely. There is no time lost in waiting if you are waiting on the Lord. “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he delights in his way” (Psalm 37:23). Nothing is permanent unless it is built on God’s will and word.
If you burn the candle at both ends, you are not as bright as you think. All great achievements require time. And happiness is the right direction, not a final destination. We are told never to cross a bridge till we come to it, but today, we seem to be under the control of a corrupt and tribalistic clique that has crossed bridges in its imagination far ahead of the crowd.
It is always wise to observe the future and act before it occurs.
A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn no other way.
An old German proverb says, “Grow where you are planted. Begin to weave, and God will give the thread.”
Mediocrity has its own type of intensity. It wants to control you. It can influence and affect every area of our life if we let it. A fruitful life is not an accident; it is a result of right choices. Small mounds of dirt add up to a mountain. If you are not alert, the mountain can dominate your day.
Every tomorrow has two handles; we can hold it by the handle of anxiety or by the handle of faith. No man can climb out beyond the limitations of his own character. A man who lives right and is right has more power in his silence than another has in his words. And the time is always right to do the right thing.
When you look at the world in a narrow way, how mean it is! When you look at it selfishly, how selfish it is! But when you look at it in a broad, generous, friendly spirit, how wonderful you find it!
The Bible counsels us to prove all things, holding fast to those that are good (1 Thessalonians 5:21). To know what is right and not do it – this is as bad as doing wrong. Invite trouble and it will show up early. Nothing costs more than doing the wrong thing. The man who borrows trouble is always in debt. The best way to escape evil is to pursue good. Keep your head and heart going in the right direction, and you won’t have to worry about your feet.
President Michael Sata now seems under pressure to keep making some public appearances but without a voice, especially with his former comrades at the Post Newspaper confirming what we have always been saying that he is ailing and unable to work.
On Monday, Sata was forced to swear-in Supreme Court judges with a only picture but no sound.
Yesterday, he again pressured himself and appeared in public to received credentials from the new Chinese envoy Youming Yang, in similar fashion of picture but no sound.
During the short ceremony at State House where there were no journalists, only the Chinese envoy was heard on ZNBC TV saying he was hopeful that he will contribute to the friendship and development of the two peoples.
Youming hailed the cordial relations that have existed between Zambia and China over the past 50 years.
With a mutated voice, a ZNBC journalist claimed President Michael Sata urged the new Chinese Ambassador to Zambia to work for the good of the two countries.
The ceremony was witnessed by Foreign Affairs Minister Harry Kalaba and his Permanent Secretary George Zulu.
Again, conspicuously missing on these ceremonies was Sata’s Press Aid George Chellah who could have sent out a fake statement of what was not even said.
Later, Sata heard there were some young school girls within State House grounds that were playing with his wife Christine Kaseba and proceeded to greet them before he went back in bed at Nkwanzi House, the presidential residence.
Sata is currently receiving heavy medication for cancer throat that has mutated his voice from some South Korean medical personal brought by his son Mulenga Sata.
The Zambia watchdog understands Sata can walk for about 20 meters only and can talk for about 10 minutes only while losing breath in between.
And his voice is completely distorted, completely different from the one he used to tell lies to the nation to win elections.
The Zambian watchdog was the first one to reveal that Mr. Sata was ailing.
With the revelations from his comrades at the Post newspaper that he was facing ‘challenges and lapses that have made him unable to do much work’ Sata is likely to keep pressurizing himself to prove people wrong against medical advice.
At approximately 0200 hours this morning, about 15 security agents from the Office of the President (OP) Special Branch conducted a raid on the home of Wynter Kabimba, the recently ousted former Justice Minister and Secretary General of the ruling Patriotic Front party.
The raid of Kabimba’s home comes just one day after his surprise firing, an event which has shaken the nation and prompted a realignment among the party’s leadership.
According to a source close to the OP, the intelligence wings were conducting the search of Kabimba’s private residence on instructions from the Commander in Chief President Michael Sata, looking for any compromising materials or documents.
Although the official statement announcing Kabimba’s dismissal offered no detailed explanation, it is widely believed that he was involved along with other members of the so-called cartel in leaking a confidential government letter concerning the refund of some $600 million in value-added tax to mining companies by the Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda, who recently became the most favoured successor to take over from President Sata.
According to the source, when the officers arrived at Kabimba’s home they immediately knocked and his wife opened the door. The officers politely introduced themselves and then went ahead with the operations, heading directly upstairs to search Kabimba’s home office.
The raid of the former Justice Minister’s home allegedly resulted in the recovery of several top secret State House documents, including those labeled “For the President’s Eyes Only” and “Confidential” in blue folder files, the source says.
The officers later opened his Dell Computer and copied the contents of its hard drive, as well as making a copy of all the data on an Apple iMac for later examination, the source says.
Although Mr. Kabimba was not on the premises when the search began, the witness says that everyone present – including his wife, his daughter, his nephews and other relatives from his village – were shocked to be the subject of a search by the intelligence wings.
Thirty minutes after receiving a text message from his wife, Kabimba arrived in a Black GRZ Toyota Land Crusier V8 registration 68422 B accompanied by another Blue GRZ Toyota Land Crusier carrying Post editor Fred M’membe and an unidentified woman, the source says.
The former Justice Minister was very angry to discover the search in progress, and began shouting at the agents for disturbing his home at such a late hour, the source says.
Kabimba then telephoned Director of Public Prosecutions Mutembo Nchito to halt the raid, but Nchito said he was powerless to do anything, the source said, while Fred M’membe maintained his silence and watched the events unfold.
Before departing, the OP officers then confiscated the government vehicles the two men had arrived in, as well as repossessing a government owned Toyota Prado that was also on the property at the time.
AFRO (◣_◢) CHoONEz ™ 