THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA MAKES CONTINENTAL HISTORY AT 50.

October 2014 has dealt the world many blows. For Zambians, it is the month and year they became golden. Will they survive the good the bad and ugly blows thrown at them?

 


Originally inhabited by Khoisan peoples, the region was colonized during the Bantu expansion of the thirteenth century. After visits by European explorers in the eighteenth century, Zambia became the British protectorate of Northern Rhodesia towards the end of the nineteenth century. For most of the colonial period, the country was governed by an administration appointed from London with the advice of the British South Africa Company. But on the 24th of October 1964, they got their independence and a president. The Indigent Kenneth Kaunda.
. This president like many other African presidents, ruled the republic of Zambia from that time in 1964 to 1991...A  good 27years...same with the Burkina Faso president, less years than Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe though. So on the 24th of October, the republic of Zambia celebrated their golden jubilee.

Before then, It was widely reported that the president was sick and no where to be seen. It was later revealed that he was  in a London hospital. He wasnt part of this celebration but yours truly in far away Netherland celebrated this august day with a zambian colleague  Justine Kawisha of the ZNBC and others.
From left to right is Soelami from Surinamo, Amil from Algeria, Tuti from Indonesia, Me from Nigeria, Flora from Tanzania, Saroj from Nepal, JK the real Zambian, Naijeria from Kenya(Yes that's her name) and Sagir also from Nepal. We wished Zambia the best of the golden years.

...Vruiyr from Armenia joined us here.

We were later told that the 77year old president of Zambia had been sick and out of public glare for at least 6months before this date.
 Michael Chilufya Sata  was born on the 6 July 1937  and died four days after Zambia celebrated her golden jubilee on the  28 October 2014. Yes, he was a Zambian politician and fifth President of Zambia, from 23rd September 2011 until his death. A social democrat,^[2] he led the Patriotic Front (PF), a major political party in Zambia. He is said to have died from an undisclosed illness till date.
The remains of the Zambian president.

President Sata's widow mourns.





More family and friends mourn the Zambian president.
  President Sata's remains are here being given the last respect.
A well befitting national goodbye i must say. Rest In Peace sir.

But the Zambian experience was just about to come to play.  Would they swear in the  'white Zambian' as president or not? What led to their swearing in a white man as president ultimately?
The world waited to see how the Zambian republic will play out its constitution which says the vice president will take over as president at the death of the president. The trick here however was that the vice president Guy Scott who is a white man was not the acting president as the constitution also says any man with a non indigent parent would not be president.Scott, the white son of English and Scottish immigrants, cannot be a candidate under the existing constitution because his parents were not born in Zambia. (Debate for another day)

But Zambia made history!

Like the epoch story of Barrack Obama, a black man in the white house, the republic of Zambia stood by their constitution and swore in the vice president, Guy Scott a white man as the first white man to democratically preside over the affairs of an African country. Congratulations Guy Scott! Congratulations Zambians!!



The interim president of Zambia salutes his army chiefs shortly after taking his oath of office.

I see a respect for the constitution here and consider this a boundless move that we must all learn from. Today Zambia has gone through October 2014 with many hurdles but stronger and making history. The  70 year old interim president Guy Scott has the mandate to conduct an election within 90days and then, it will yet be the dawn of a new era.

Thank you Justine Kawisha for this expose of the great Zambian entity. This is hoping the many other African countries learn a thing or two.

Long live Guy Scott!
Long live the Zambian constitution !!
Long live the Republic of Zambia!!!
Long live Africaaaa!!!!

One love, to all my boundless readers.