Maravi

Appealing for donor aid to fight measles

Appealing for donor aid to fight measles
By Editor
Fri 02 July 2010, 04:00 CAT

Kapembwa Simbao, our Minister of Health, has shown great leadership by asking for donor aid to carry out a measles vaccination exercise countrywide at a time when his boss has been playing sleight with people’s lives.

We are saying Kapembwa has shown leadership because his request to the donors for aid at a time when Rupiah Banda and George Kunda have been posturing, pretending that they have the resources required to address the many challenges and problems facing our people, requires honesty and courage. Kapembwa has shown the nation that politics is not about arrogance or lack of humility but about serving our people, and caring for their lives.

The other day, we asked if what Rupiah was saying about donor aid not being asked for or as something that can be done away with was the position of his Minister of Health. It is clear today that what Rupiah and George were saying is not a position shared by many rational ministers and government officials in this country.

If Rupiah and George’s position on donor aid was shared by Kapembwa, he wouldn’t be today asking for donor aid. And this whole request just goes to show how unreasonable the utterances or outbursts of Rupiah and his minion George were. We can only ask the cooperating partners of our country to ignore the utterances of selfish and greedy politicians who have no heart for the people and who don’t care how many Zambians die from preventable diseases like this measles that has broken out in our country.

The posturing of Rupiah and George will not help to stop the spread of this measles. If they have the money, as they are trying to portray, let them give it to Kapembwa so that he can deal a deadly blow on this killer disease – measles. The truth is they have no money, they are running a bankrupt government that they have milked through all sorts of questionable deals, contracts, endless expensive trips abroad and so on and so forth. Again, we challenge George and Rupiah to say they don’t need donor aid.

There is no future development without healthy citizens. Every dollar that is given to us to improve the health of our people, to serve their lives should be accounted for to the last cent, dime. And when the time comes for accounting to the providers of that aid, there should be no arrogance or truancy – simply account, provide explanations on how the money has been used.

We cannot play games with people’s lives. One cannot claim to uphold the sanctity of life if he allows money that is donated to our health sector to be stolen in all sorts of ways by unscrupulous politicians, civil servants and all sorts of dubious businessmen.

But it doesn’t take long before arrogant people are shamed and their lies exposed. And this is why arrogant and dishonest people are usually smeared with their own offals.

Just yesterday, they were busy denouncing donors with all the arrogance they could marshal, claiming they have never asked anyone to help Zambia. But today, this same government, albeit through an honest man – Kapembwa - are asking the same donors they were denouncing just a few hours ago to come to their aid. This reminds us of Proverbs 30:32-33: “If you have been foolish enough to be arrogant and plan evil, stop and think! If you churn milk, you get butter. If you hit someone’s nose, it bleeds. If you stir up anger, you get in trouble.”

The sad part of all this drama about donor aid is that Rupiah and George are not affected by the withdrawal of support to our health sector by the donors. George will still go to Johannesburg for his medication, for his drugs or therapy. Rupiah will still fly to Cape Town to have his knee attended to. And this is extended to their families who may need medical care.

It is the ordinary baby, child, woman or man who will suffer the withdrawal of donor aid to our country. The families of Rupiah and George can afford measles vaccination because if they want it, the taxpayer will pay for it in South Africa. But money for the vaccination of the poor who make up the majority of our country’s population is not there.

It is this that concerns the donors and all citizens of goodwill. These people are failing to account for funds entrusted to them by donors on behalf of the poor Zambians and want to claim that there is interference in the internal affairs of our country. They have been misusing, misapplying public funds in the Ministry of Health and when they are called upon to account, they want to turn truant and accuse donors of all sorts of things. This just goes to show how base they are.

The poor shouldn’t be left to die because this government is corrupt and does not want to account for the resources entrusted to it on behalf of the poor. Ways must be found to help our people without the support extended to them being stolen by these heartless people. No Zambian should be allowed to die of measles because of the arrogance of their leaders.

Kapembwa’s request deserves to be considered favourably by all our cooperating partners because people are dying and shouldn’t be left to die because of an inept and corrupt political leadership. Let that money come and help us vaccinate all those who need to be vaccinated so that there is no further loss of lives – 66 deaths is already too high a figure, it should not be allowed to increase. This is a crisis that should be treated like all other crises. Give us the support, but give it to us in a manner that will be easy for us to account for it.

Accountability, even in a crisis, will always remain important because people in this country steal even at a funeral. And in saying this, we are not exaggerating anything because money was stolen at Levy Mwanawasa’s funeral. Relief funds and food are always stolen in this country. This is a country where the political leadership is not ashamed to take relief food that is meant for disaster areas to by-election campaigns to exchange for votes. Go to Luena and see what they are doing with public resources that were meant for the legitimate needs of our people!

We should continue to ask for aid. What Kapembwa is doing is the right thing and he deserves the support of all Zambians. But as we support him in his efforts to seek donor aid, let’s also support the donors in their efforts to increase levels of accountability in the use of such aid. If we succeed in doing this, the benefits to our people will increase and accordingly, their suffering will be reduced; we will be able to wipe out measles and other preventable diseases that we thought we had wiped out just to see them re-emerge.

Let’s speak out against practices that deprive the poor of this valuable donor support. Let’s heed the biblical advice: “Speak up for people who cannot speak for themselves. Protect the rights of all who are helpless. Speak for them and be a righteous judge. Protect the rights of the poor and needy” (Proverbs 31:8-9).

To Kapembwa, we can only say: continue doing what you are doing because our people need help; and accept whatever happens to you as a result of this. This can be humiliating, but even if you suffer humiliation, be patient. They say gold is tested by fire, and human character is tested in the furnace of humiliation. Stand up for what is right, even if it costs you your life; the Lord will be fighting on your side.

Labels: DONORS, KAPEMBWA SIMBAO

posted by MrK @ 9:45 PM