A CLEAN NEW YEAR!

ZAMBIA should dedicate the year 2018 to all-round sustainable growth without pandering in unproductive political discourse that has previously scuttled dialogue and reconciliation.

Many a time, the political space has been contaminated with provocative commentary which has further inflamed political rivalry.

Therefore, the Church, civil society organisations, political parties and other interest groups must steer the country out of the current intolerance and allow co-existence as well as sustainable development to proceed smoothly.

Firstly, leaders across the political divide as well as the civil society must identify the barriers and pitfalls which they need to outrightly weed out. They ought to appreciate that a problem can only be resolved if the real cause is established and addressed.

In this case, political players must forthwith stop stimulating provocative debate in public but consult each other with civility through their respective secretariats. They should tame their cadres whose pre-occupation is to stir trouble blindly.

Secondly, politicians must espouse honesty, integrity, hard work, selflessness and Christian values. They must look beyond their immediate benefits and re-assert themselves as servants of the people with a defined development agenda.

Politicians from the ruling and opposition parties should from now on look at one another as partners in development and not competitors. Punching holes in each other’s ideas is not only malicious but retrogressive.

This year, the starting point for Zambia must be hard work, innovation and forgiveness from a Christian perspective. In fact, the Bible states in Ephesians 4:31-32 that, “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.”

Further, Jesus makes it clear that forgiveness of others must be modelled on God’s forgiveness of our sins and he demonstrates this in Luke 6:37, “Do not judge others, and God will not judge you; do not condemn others, and God will not condemn you; forgive others, and God will forgive you.”

Politicians should demonstrate true love, forgiveness, anchor their discussions on development and uphold public interest.

In particular, the ruling party must drive the reconciliation agenda; remain open to suggestions and constructive criticism. Most importantly, they should embrace transparency and honesty.

On the flip side, opposition political leaders must equally embrace honesty and engage their counterparts in the governing party with civility; they should not posture themselves as “the-know-it-all” through condemnation of everything including productive ideas.

They should not be ostentatious to the extent of unduly pitting the people against the Government, but offer checks and balances in good faith.

It is frustrating for Zambians when most of the time politicians engage in petty debates that demean the political platform. Politicians must clean up this mess!

It is time politicians from opposite camps came together on the same forum to discuss critical national matters with civility and honesty as a demonstration that indeed they are in the political and leadership segment for selfless service.

Yes, economic development moves in tandem with political harmony and maturity.

This means therefore that a politically stable country is a fertile ground for credible economic development and Zambia must exploit this avenue going forward.

If economic and political matters are inseparable, opposition and Patriotic Front (PF) politicians should hold each other in confronting economic challenges. This way, it will be easy for this country to reach fully-fledged economic prosperity.

Leaders from various political parties should use the current promising economic indicators as a launch-pad to collectively move this country to prosperity instead of wishing one another failure.

A quick look at economic indicators shows current inflation at 6.1 per cent, currency exchange rate at K9 to US dollar, benchmark interest rates at 10.25 per cent and attractive copper prices of about $6, 800 per tonne on the international market.

This is a positive pointer for the country to improve fragile economic fundamentals such as the low employment rate and the stuttering agricultural industry. Tourism and manufacturing sectors need improvement while the civil service is yearning for a clean-up.

It is inevitable, therefore, that Zambia moves into a clean New Year!