ESMA SUPPORTS LUNGU ON TRADITIONAL CEREMONIES
By BENNIE MUNDANDO WE support President Edgar Lungu’s decision to forego the gracing of traditional ceremonies because some people have taken the opportunity to politicise these events to discredit those in power, the Emerald Association of Zambia (ESMAZ) president Victor Kalesha has said.
President Lungu has said that he will no longer attend some traditional ceremonies as they were dividing the country since some tribal groupings got offended when he failed to attend their ceremonies after being invited.
And Mr. Kalesha yesterday said he supported such a bold decision as traditional ceremonies were now becoming political and proposed that such duties should be delegated to provincial ministers, permanent secretaries, and district commissioners, among other Government officials, to prevent the dissent surrounding who graced them.
He said it was wrong to assert that President Lungu was avoiding certain ceremonies on purpose because such events were just too many and that he could not manage to attend all of them when he had a more pressing issues to which he needed to attend.
“The problem is that some people want to politicise everything. This is a matter that is meant to make the president unite the country but that too has been politicised. It is also amazing that these traditional ceremonies now are coming up from everywhere and when you attend some there is very little to show in terms of culture as they have become a way of receiving presents.
“I stand with the President with the decision not to attend traditional ceremonies because these can be done by ministers and permanent secretaries delegated by himself. The President has enough national events that he needs to grace that border on every Zambian,” Mr. Kalesha said.
He said in order to quell the discord that may emanate from President Lungu’s decision, there was need for those in touch with the grassroots to explain what had necessitated such a decision.
“I expect the Provincial Ministers, permanent secretaries, DCs, and other government leaders to disseminate this information to the grass roots so that they understand that the president is not shunning these traditional ceremonies but that he cannot afford to attend all of them.
“These are events that can be graced by people delegated by the president. We have too many traditional ceremonies and if the president attends all these traditional ceremonies, he will never find himself in the office. This is an issue that can easily be explained to our traditional leaders and their subjects that it is beyond the president’s ability to attend all of them,” he said.
He suggested that the House of Chiefs should initiate regional traditional ceremonies where all the traditional groupings pooled their cultural heritage together and showcased what the region had to offer.