Zambia needs change

Zambia needs change
Written by Editor

THE profound hypocrisy, betrayal, treachery, deceit, lies of Rupiah Banda, George Kunda and Dora Siliya have been unveiled before our eyes and today they go naked. This dishonesty has to be curbed. Only then will we make progress and will our politics cease to resemble that hideous pagan idol, who would not drink the nectar but from the skulls of the slain.

No one in this country today can deny the fact that Rupiah, George and Dora lied to the nation about their government's deals or involvement with RP Capital Partners Limited. Last week's report of the tribunal set up under the parliamentary and ministerial code of conduct Act by the Chief Justice to investigate Dora's dealings with RP Capital has confirmed the charges of dishonesty, lies and deceit that were made against Rupiah, George and Dora.

We have in the past been accused of 'hard' language when we have called people who tell lies, regardless of the positions they hold in society, liars or people who have stolen, again regardless of their social status, thieves. Today we don't know if it will still not be permissible for us to call Rupiah, George and Dora liars. If it is not right to do so, we ask: what should we call them?

It is said that when a heart is untruthful, when honesty has gone from it, then it is prepared to be the seed plot of every evil thing. Any crime is possible to a liar. He who is rotten with falsehood will break at the touch of every temptation. And this is one thing our people don't seem to realise when dealing with liars. We tend to treat lies as not being something very bad, a serious crime, especially for those in very high public offices.

It just means that if a person will lie, and develops a pattern of lying as a way of life, that person will do anything. Someone who becomes good at lying loses his fear of being discovered and will move on to any number of evil actions. He becomes arrogant and self-assured. He comes to truly believe that he is above the law. We should fear people like this. If such a person is caught red-handed in a lie and confronted with the evidence, that sort of man or woman will be forced to admit it, but he or she won't like it. It will make him angry and vengeful. He will do all he can to move on and leave it behind. It is what the Bible calls evidence of a seared conscience, not a sensitive conscience, but a seared conscience.

We are to be people of truth, not in any self-righteous way, but humbly speaking the truth. Proverbs 12:22: "God delights in those who tell the truth." Titus 1:2: "God cannot lie." John 1:14 tells of the son of God that He was "full of truth". He is described in John 14 as "the way, the truth". We are told by St Paul, in Ephesians 4 and 5 to speak the truth in love, laying aside falsehood, taking up only that which is true.

Last week, Rupiah told MMD members in Solwezi that he was the most cheated person in the country, the people come to him with all sorts of lies about each other. What Rupiah did not tell his audience is that he also tells lies about other people and there was need for all, including himself, to change. It seems Rupiah attracts liars like the flowers attract bees to their nectar. If you tell lies, if you live by the lie, you will attract liars into your life and business dealings. "Evil people listen to evil ideas and liars listen to lies" (Proverbs 17:4). A wicked doer gives heed to false lips; and a liar gives ear to a naughty tongue. Flatterers, especially false teachers, are welcome to those that live in lies, deceit, falsehood, dishonesty, manipulation and opportunism.

If you live a life of telling lies, you will lack understanding. Psalms 119:104: "Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way."

If you are dishonest, you will never enjoy permanent success. Dishonest people, manipulators have never deserved anybody's respect or been successful anywhere. They are like little sailboats that go with the wind and the waves. Dishonesty, manipulation has no substance, it doesn't have roots. We think everything - respect, relationships, serious analysis and understanding - is only possible among people who are honest with themselves and others. Proverbs 12:19: "The lip of truth shall be established forever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment." We are told that a lie has a short life, but truth lives on forever; those who plan evil are in for a rude surprise, but those who work for good will find happiness; if truth is spoken, it will hold good; whoever may be obliged, still it will keep its ground; truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment; a false witness shall perish: but the man that hears, speaks constantly. We are also reminded that " the doom of a false witness is certain".

If you are deceitful you will eventually end up in bondage and failure (Gal 2:4).

The deceitful, the crooked, the dishonest, those who tell lies will eventually be punished. "A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaks lies shall not escape" (Proverbs 19:5). We are also reminded that "those that tell lies in discourse, are in a fair way to be guilty of bearing false witness".

You will be a fool to choose to live a life of lies, of dishonesty, a deceitful life. "He that hides hatred with lying lips, and he that utters a slander, is a fool" (Proverbs 10:18). Truly "he is especially a fool who thinks to hide everything from God; and malice is no better".

Your lies will always come back to haunt you. "Behold, he travels with iniquity and has conceived mischief, and brought forth falsehood" (Psalm 7:16). We shouldn't forget: "He made a pit, and digged it, and is fallen into the ditch which he made." We are also reminded: "His mischief shall return upon his own head and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own pate."

All we can say to Rupiah, George, Dora and all others is: determine today to speak the truth!

Clearly, the Bible, the Christian teachings are against lies. And it is very difficult for us to understand and appreciate why this country that some people, some very evil people have declared a Christian nation, continues to condone, to defend lies, deceit, dishonesty, crookedness and manipulation - things that the Bible totally abhors.

Truth doesn't only have a moral value, it also has a practical one. For our country to move forward and for our nation to remain united, the citizens of this country and their leaders must believe in truth. To unite and work together, each one of us must be able to rely on the other. If we were to take to lying when the moment seemed opportune, the effect would be disastrous.

The cost of lying, dishonesty, deceit is very high. This is because something happens in a relationship once someone lies to the other person - one person is now hiding something, and the other loses trust, one of the most important aspects of any relationship. The person who is lying is bringing dishonesty and suspicion and fear into the relationship, all extremely damaging elements. And, interestingly enough, one lie leads to another as the liar tries to cover his or her lie with more lies, once the other person starts to feel the suspicion. What happens to trust? The person being lied to usually wants to trust the other, and the liar wants to be trusted, but knows that he or she doesn't deserve the trust - it is a vicious cycle from which there is no escape except telling the truth, a painful remedy that some people aren't willing to face - they would rather the relationship end than tell a truth that may harm them by exposing their actions and their dishonesty.

Lying, deceit and dishonesty are addictive, they are like cocaine or heroine and all those addictive drugs. It is said that he who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual; he tells lies without attending to it, and truth without the world's believing him.

This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all its good depositions.

And lying starts with the self. We are advised that the important thing is to stop lying to yourself. A man who lies to himself, and believes his own lies, becomes unable to recognise truth, either in himself or in anyone else, and he ends up losing respect for himself as well as for others. When he has no respect for anyone, he can no longer love and, in order to divert himself, having no love in him he yields to his impulses, indulges in the lowest forms of pleasure, and behaves in the end like an animal - a jackal, hyena, wolf, fox, crocodile, monkey or even a lion - in satisfying his vices. And it all comes from lying - lying to others and to yourself.

This is the danger our country has driven itself into. Today we have people in government - Rupiah, George, Dora - and in the Church, and even in the media who live by lying to themselves and to others without any remorse. This is not a sensible way to live, this is not the way to govern a country.

When we raise all these issues about lying, dishonesty, deceit, crookedness, manipulation, we are accused of insulting people, of having no respect for the political leader of our country. Surely, fellow countrymen and women, if this is the Zambia you want, we will not be part of it. If this is the type of life you want to live, we will not live it with you. If denouncing lies, dishonesty, deceit, crookedness, theft makes us lose favour with you, let it be so. Condemn us, it's alright, our time will come. We will never denounce these biblical principles of honesty, truthfulness, uprightness just to be in good terms with you.

It is clear that this is the way Rupiah and his friends are governing this country. They are governing it on the basis of lies and deceit. And they seem to be allowed to get away with it because lying, deceit, dishonesty, crookedness and manipulation have become the norm and not the exception in the governance of our country. And we are expected to embrace this clearly idiotic and senseless way of life because if we don't we will be accused of this and that? Accuse us, condemn us; time will absolve us, our time will come.

These are the things the Zambian people should critically examine when they look at the findings made by the tribunal that was constituted to investigate Dora.

Truly, Zambia needs change; the nation needs to change its attitude toward lies, deceit, dishonesty, crookedness if we are to harbour any hope of survival.