MY SALARY WAS VERY LOW AS VEEP - NEVERS
…says politics need men of God to remove dirt
MOVEMENT for Multiparty Democracy MMD faction leader Nevers Mumba has said his salary during his time as Republican Vice President was too low that he could not even afford sending his children to school.
And Dr Mumba said it is shocking that people have continued claiming Christians should not engage in active politics because this only contradicts the bible which discourages people that do not quote from it.
Dr Mumba was speaking when he featured on Millennium Radio’s Sunday Personality Chat radio programme.
Dr Mumba who served as Vice President to the late Levy Patrick Mwanawasa between 2003 and 2004 said his salary was very low at that time and had to depend on the church to send his children to school.
“When I was Vice President, the government did not take care of school fees for my children and I had to depend on the church internationally to support my kids in school, but I enjoyed serving as leader of government business at that time,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Mumba said he remains proud that some of the decisions he effected as leader are bearing fruits, among them that include his proposal to increase the number of years for defilers from three years to 15 years. “There was a demonstration by women because this indecent assault, GBV, defilement of children by old people became so common that the women were saying Mr Vice President, how can you have punishment for defilers for three years, that’s why they keep doing it and I proposed to cabinet that we increase the number of years.
“When I was recently in prison, I realised that something I had effected had actually worked because we changed the law,” he said,
And when asked if he ever had regrets of having been fired as Vice President, Dr Mumba said he remains focused that God will give him another opportunity to serve in a more pronounced way both to the church and politics.
Meanwhile, when asked why he continues practicing active politics while preaching, Dr Mumba said there is nowhere in the bible where it is written that politics is not for Christians.
“I’m in politics because it’s a very dark area. It’s very sinful, it’s corrupt and that’s where my faith works. You don’t take soap to clean up people who are already clean but wherever you find dirt that’s where you take soap and that dirt is mostly found in politics,” Dr Mumba said.
Dr Mumba called on Africans to start developing their own beliefs and not just repeating what other people have said to make them their own.
“You have been brainwashed and made to believe a lie. It’s not those first missionaries who came who are stopping me from joining politics but it’s you my fellow Zambians yet you are crying for good leadership from the same God I’m serving and when God gives you Christians you say they should not get involved.
“Are you confused or what? It’s an old lie,” he added.