Maravi

Rupiah is permanently wedded to lies, deceit

Rupiah is permanently wedded to lies, deceit
Written by Editor

Rupiah Banda seems to be permanently wedded to lies. He cannot live without lies. Rupiah lies even about things that are known by everybody; that are in the public domain. It is surprising that Rupiah can lie to the whole nation that Ng’andu Magande sold 75 per cent of Zambia National Commercial Bank to Rabobank.

If Rupiah does not know how much of Zanaco is owned by Rabobank, then we have a serious problem because we are being led by a totally ignorant person who knows very little about this country and what is going on in it.

Moreover, Rupiah was vice-president of Levy Mwanawasa’s government that sold 49 per cent of Zanaco to RaboBank, and he should know very well who was responsible for that decision and how that decision was arrived at.

It seems Rupiah can lie about anything. He has no problem telling lies. Rupiah seems to be a shameless liar. We say this not because we want to despise the man and bring his standing down. We say this because we have not only heard Rupiah tell lies about other people and about this and that, but we have heard him lie about us.

Rupiah has told many lies about us and because of this, we can confidently call him a liar and easily prove that he is a liar. For instance, the man has lied about us pocketing US $30 million from state institutions, a matter he will never be able to prove because no state institution in this country can ever accuse us of having stolen from it. The man has lied about us being morbid, queer and all sorts of things. Rupiah does not have any bit of truth about all these things he has been saying about us. The only thing he has in abundance about us is hatred for us.

But a wise person knows that when it comes to dealing with people he hates, he considers to be enemies, a lot of care must be exercised before uttering any word or doing anything about them. It is difficult to understand how a man occupying such a high office that is subject to so much public scrutiny can think he can get away with loose talk, lies and all sorts of fabrications against other citizens.

Honesty is a very important virtue. And no person is fit to lead any nation if he seriously lacks this virtue.

It is clear that Rupiah has destroyed himself with lies. Many people may fear him but very few respect him because he is a liar, a dishonest man. “A careless talker destroys himself” (Proverbs 13:3).

It is said that “Honest people hate lies, but the words of wicked people are shameful and disgraceful” (Proverbs 13:5).

We are also reminded that when we tell the truth, justice is done, but lies lead to injustice (Proverbs 12:17). “Stupid people always think they are right. Wise people listen to advice” (Proverbs 12:15). It is actually easy to judge the character of a person by their attitude towards criticism and advice: “One who loves knowledge wants to be told when he is wrong. It is stupid to hate being corrected” (Proverbs 12:1).

Listening to Rupiah sometimes is frightening. The man talks without thinking; he talks about things he doesn’t know, and confidently so. We wonder why the taxpayer is made to pay for all those advisors and assistants around Rupiah. The man doesn’t seem to have facts about anything. All he has is what appears to come from street gossip.

What is also frightening is that Rupiah and those around him don’t seem to have the professional and moral courage to correct wrong statements or to reverse their lies. No matter how much one exposes Rupiah’s lies, deception, falsities, one will never hear a correction or an apology from Rupiah or his aides. They have no respect for truth. Probably they are drunk with power and they think a president can never say sorry or apologise for getting things wrong because nobody can take him to court.

It is difficult to understand how a president of this country, who was the vice-president in the previous government, can fail to know how much of Zanaco was sold to Rabobank and who did it. It seems for Rupiah, it is just a question of throwing any filth that crosses his mind on a political opponent. This is senselessness. This is not how the President should conduct himself because by doing so, he has removed from himself all the moral protection. By lying about innocent fellow citizens, Rupiah has opened himself to being called a liar without being able to challenge that. By insulting ordinary citizens, Rupiah has opened himself to those same insults being thrown back at him. What can today stop us from calling Rupiah a liar? And how can he challenge us when we have all the facts about his lies and we can easily prove that he is a liar? Rupiah has insulted us, he has called us all sorts of names or things. What stops us today from throwing back at him all those insults, all those names he has called us? What would be his defence if we did? Clearly, Rupiah has recklessly brought down the standing of this high office. It is an office that is quickly losing respect because of his recklessness, his lies and lack of moral integrity. A man who lives by lies cannot claim to have any moral integrity in him. “Sensible people accept good advice. People who talk foolishly will come to ruin” (Proverbs 10:8). Truly, “honesty makes a good man’s life easier, but a wicked man will cause his own downfall” (Proverbs 11:5). And “sensible people always think before they act, but stupid people advertise their ignorance” (Proverbs 13:16).

Rupiah needs to urgently learn about leadership and honesty. In cultural norms and societies all around the world, honesty is counted as the most moral of the ethics of leadership. A leader must understand its meaning which says that, leadership means “willingness to openly acknowledge and celebrate the things that are good and critically examine those that are bad without prejudice and sentiment”.

It is essential also that our leaders must be able to acknowledge their weaknesses and engage their political spectrum in decisions about how they can work together to overcome the underlying problems.

Before a politician can maintain his political integrity, there must be some amount of honesty in his background and that honesty is a primary leadership tool. Whoever wants to be respected as a leader in this country must avoid becoming mired in fraud, deceit, artifice and pretence. Telling the truth is the right thing to do to maintain quality leadership. Sticking to facts and clear messages would virtually relieve a leader from the stress that tales create. There is need to have a clear understanding that truth is a virtue, a signature trait of one’s higher self. It is not clear whether today’s atmosphere of seeming disdain for honesty among Rupiah and his friends is driven by greed and cynical gamesmanship or is symptomatic of some deeper rent in the fabric of our society. What is clear, though, is that honesty is the right path to take in our personal, political and professional lives.

It is important to realise that a leader has two important characteristics: first, he is going somewhere; second, he is able to persuade others to go with him. This is not possible if what a leader does every day is to tell lies, deceive people, falsify facts and reality. It is not possible to create a positive environment on the foundation of lies and deceit.

It is clear that Rupiah assumed the office of President last year with a vengeance. If you speak against him, he will brand you as his enemy and he will publicly declare that you should be crushed; he will fabricate lies about you; he will accuse you of all sorts of things you have not done; he will set all state agencies on you to fix you and all that you do. This is the way Rupiah is governing the country. If you have an idea and you try to share it with his government, even when it is for the good of the country, as long as you are not in his camp and you do not come from a certain region of our country, he will brand you as his enemy; you will be arrested in the manner Chansa Kabwela has been arrested and charged with pornography following Rupiah’s order.

We should remember that if you have an idea and you keep yours, and we have an idea and we keep ours, we each have one idea. But if you give us yours and we give you ours, we each have two! That’s the benefit of being able to listen and talk to each other, that’s the benefit of democracy.

Let us all bear in mind that integrity is the calling card that we are going to leave behind when we are gone. It is one trait people will remember most often when they think of us; “a lie has a short life, but truth lives forever” (Proverbs 12:19).

Let us all remember if you give the very best you have in whatever you do, the best will come back to you in a boomerang effect.

Labels: CHILUBA, PRIVATISATION, RUPIAH BANDA, ZAMTEL

posted by MrK @ 11:23 PM