Maravi

Brown envelopes

Brown envelopes
By Editor
Mon 07 Dec. 2009, 04:00 CAT

It’s not proper for Rupiah Banda, as President of the Republic, to be going around dishing out brown envelopes, distributing cash to people.

This is not the way for a President to improve the lives of his people because this is nothing but an attempt to buy patronage. This is characteristic of the ‘big-man’ syndrome where people get excited when Rupiah is around because they know that payday has arrived, the day of eating has come.

People need to have money in their pockets without waiting for brown envelopes from the President. This dishing out of money by the President is a prima facie case of corruption on the part of Rupiah. Everyone knows what Rupiah’s salary is because it is gazetted. We also know what his earnings should be because there was a declaration last year of his assets and business interests. But all of a sudden, Rupiah’s ‘economy’ has picked up and he has got money to dish around here and there. Where is this money coming from?

Is it personal money or government funds? If it’s personal money, where is it coming from? And is this the right way to spend it? There are many worth causes in this country that need financial support than dishing out cash to youths to go and spend on beer and dagga. Rupiah is not dishing out these brown envelopes to help people in any meaningful way. He is simply trying to buy support, to become popular. Rupiah is doing nothing but the same thing he has been doing over the years: bribing people with cash. This is not the way to run a country. You don’t see Barak Obama, Gordon Brown, Nicholas Sarkozy, Hu Jintao and other many decent leaders with more money than Rupiah going around dishing out cash here and there to youth or cadres. Why? It’s simply because it’s not right. That’s not the way decent people behave.

Those are practices of lumpens, drug-traffickers and crooked characters who want to show that they are well-to-do and they are the bosses in the area. It’s definitely not for presidents or other leaders of standing. We never saw that type of practice from a decent leader, a man of integrity and honour like Dr Kenneth Kaunda. We only started to hear and see brown envelopes when Frederick Chiluba took over power, especially during his second term of office. But we know what happened to Chiluba later. He was found to be a thief. It was not his money he was dishing out but stolen public funds.

Zambian presidents don’t earn that much; they are not millionaires per se and don’t have that type of personal money to dish out in the style of Rupiah and Chiluba. It is not surprising that Chiluba had even to give himself a presidential discretionary fund, a slash fund to distribute to people he wanted to patronise. Part of that fund ended in the pockets of some pastors who are today defending his corruption. That’s what Chiluba has used public money for – to buy patronage. And that money was not enough because abuse and corruption have no limit. Chiluba went on to steal. But he was not a Robin Hood the robber. What he was giving to our poor souls was nothing but peanuts and the loot stayed in his pocket for himself.

What Rupiah is doing is nothing but to corrupt poor souls with cash handouts. And this is why some of them even fight each other over that money because it’s dirty money. There is no self-respecting person who should accept a brown envelope from Rupiah. Clean money is never given that way; money people have worked for is not dished out that way. It is only stolen money that is squandered in such a reckless way. And moreover, Rupiah was not a rich man a few months ago, he was actually very broke. Where has he found this money all of a sudden to be dishing out?

We know that gifts and bribes make even wise men blind to the truth, and prevent them from being honest in their dealings. There are people today who cannot criticise Rupiah even when they can see clearly that the man has lost it simply because they had received a brown envelope from him.

This is lawlessness Rupiah is encouraging. And every lawless act leaves an incurable wound, like one left by a double-edged sword. Well, foolish people are deceived by vain hopes. Nothing that comes from bribery or injustice will last, but the effects of loyalty will remain forever.

It is said that wealth that has been obtained dishonestly is like a stream that runs full during a thunderstorm, tumbling rocks along as it flows, but then suddenly goes dry.

No self-respecting president can do what Rupiah is doing, going round dishing out cash like a lumpen. There is need for Rupiah to value himself at his true worth. His acts are running him down because no one respects a person who has no respect for himself. It is said that poor people can be honoured for their good sense, and rich people can be honoured for their wealth.

If someone is honoured while he is poor, while he is not dishing out money the way Dr Kaunda did not dish out brown envelopes, think how much he will be honoured if he becomes rich! If someone is despised while he is rich, while he is dishing out brown envelopes, think how much more he will be despised if he becomes poor, if he stops dishing out cash! If a poor man is wise, he has good reason to be proud, and he will be thought of as a great man. Many are the kings who have ended their careers sitting on the ground, while their crowns were worn by men no one had heard of before. Many are the rulers who have suffered disgrace. Many are the famous men who have fallen into the power of others. It’s not wise to rely on money to make oneself popular.

Rupiah can dish out as many brown envelopes as he wants but when the hour comes, it won’t help him. Chiluba did that but it didn’t help him secure his third term bid and he is still today being denounced as a lazo, a thief probably even by people he had given brown envelopes. It doesn’t pay to try and rely on dishonest wealth; it will do you no good on that day of disaster.

It’s very clear that things are not going well for Rupiah and there is panic around him. But dishing out money, brown envelopes is not the cure. People are not opposed to Rupiah because he is not giving them brown envelopes. The great majority of our people are decent human beings who are not interested in such things even if they have nothing in their pockets. What Rupiah needs to do is to try and understand the true cause of this dissension. If not, if he will fail to find a viable solution to his problems and his difficulties will be compounded by the day.

The truth is if you stick something in your eye, tears will flow; and if you hurt a person deeply, you will discover his true feelings. The Zambian people are starting to show Rupiah their true feelings – there are fires everywhere waiting to be put out. But does Rupiah have the capacity to do so? It is said that if you throw rocks at birds, you will scare them away; and if you insult a friend, you will break the friendship. Fumes and smoke appear before the flames do. When justice is done, good people are happy, but evil people are brought to despair. The wicked bring on themselves the suffering they try to cause good people. The more easily you get your wealth, the less good it will do you.

If Rupiah thinks he can buy loyalty and lasting support with brown envelopes, he is in for a rude shock, a rude awakening. Everyone talks about how loyal and faithful he is, but just try to find someone who really is! Some people ruin themselves by their own stupid actions and then blame others. No one is respected unless he is humble; arrogant people are on the way to ruin and no amount of dishing out cash to buy patronage, support or loyalty will save them.
If Rupiah does not realise that what he is doing is wrong, that dishing out cash to people the way he is doing is corruption, then his ending will be disastrous.

Rupiah needs to learn from the great men of our region. Nelson Mandela never went around dishing out cash to ANC cadres, poor youth or chiefs of his country yet he had more money than Rupiah. Julius Nyerere was not a Father Christmas but died a very respected African statesman. Our own, our very own Comrade KK is highly respected in this country and all over the world but does not carry bags of brown envelopes anywhere to dish out. Even Levy Mwanawasa was not involved in this kind of business. Initially, cadres who were used to cash handouts from Chiluba didn’t like him but eventually they grew to understand his nobility on this score. But Rupiah has decided to emulate the criminal and corrupt behaviour of his friend Chiluba and so like him, popularity is bought and maintained with brown envelopes. Anyway, it is said that birds come to roost with their own kind.

Labels: CORRUPTION, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 5:58 AM