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Mourn Frederick Chiluba with respect - Rupiah

Mourn Frederick Chiluba with respect - Rupiah
By Chibaula Silwamba
Sun 19 June 2011, 04:00 CAT

PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda has appealed to the nation to mourn former president Frederick Chiluba with dignity and respect. Addressing a media briefing in Chipata yesterday, President Banda said Chiluba would be remembered for the pivotal role he played in pioneering the reintroduction of multiparty democracy to Zambia and the whole of Africa.

President Banda said during Chiluba’s tenure as president of the Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), he built a solid labour movement which extensively advocated the rights of workers in Zambia and across the world.

“President Chiluba will be remembered, among other things, for laying the foundation towards the liberalisation of the economy which has led to the present economic growth Zambia is experiencing.

He will be sadly missed by all Zambians and human rights activists across the world,” President Banda said. “Further, details about the funeral and burial arrangements will be communicated periodically by Cabinet Office.”

And Secretary to the Cabinet Dr Joshua Kanganja announced that arrangements were already underway for Chiluba’s state funeral.
“Government is working closely with the family of the late president on the preparation of the funeral programme.

Cabinet Office will brief the nation on the details of the period of national mourning and other related matters soon. Consequently, mourners across the country should not travel to Lusaka until arrangements are finalised and a detailed programme is issued,” said Dr Kanganja.

And addressing the press earlier in the day, Chiluba’s spokesperson Emmanuel Mwamba said the former president suffered from an unknown attack leading to his death at home in the early hour of Saturday.

Announcing Chiluba’s death at Belvedere Lodge in Lusaka, Mwamba said the former president’s personal physician Dr Justin Kangwa tried in vain to resuscitate him for ten minutes.

Mwamba explained that on Friday Chiluba had a normal day in his life and held meetings with his lawyers at 11:00 hours and another meeting with members of parliament from constituencies in Luapula Province at 16:00 hours for two hours.

Mwamba said Chiluba felt rather unwell after 18:30 hours when the members of parliament left. He later called for Dr Kangwa who arrived at 19:30hours.
Mwamba said this was not a unique call from Chiluba for Dr Kangwa, who has been his personal physician since 1994.

Mwamba said Dr Kangwa attended to Chiluba who indicated that he was feeling much better and asked his physician to leave and allow him to rest because his wife, Regina, who had been in Ndola, was on her way to back home.
“He was joking that ‘my doctor, go and rest’. But Dr Kangwa chose to stay and waited until Mrs Regina Chiluba arrived.

During this period, Dr Chiluba showed signs of improvement. He was taken from the living room to his bedroom,” Mwamba said. “When Mrs Chiluba arrived from Ndola at 23:30, everyone welcomed her. When they went to the bedroom, Dr Chiluba sat up from the bed because he was lying down and sat on the edge of the bed.”

He said Chiluba sat in that position for about 20 minutes.
“Then a few minutes before midnight, 10 minutes before midnight, Dr Chiluba suffered unknown attack. I am not a medical doctor so I don’t know what it is.

Frantically, Dr Kangwa tried to test him for his BP because he has all those machines at his home. Dr Kangwa got Dr Chiluba and lay him down on the bed.

He realised that Dr Chiluba was not breathing. He tried to resuscitate him for the next ten minutes, he performed CPR and he realised that Dr Chiluba had died. He declared Dr Chiluba dead at 00:05 hours on Saturday.”

Mwamba said Dr Charles Mwandame from the University Teaching Hospital was called in and he also confirmed that Chiluba had died, after which former first lady Vera Chiluba Tembo, the former president’s children and family as well as State House and senior government officials were informed.

“For the last six years, Dr Chiluba has been treated for a heart condition by specialist doctors from South Africa’s Garden City Clinic. He was last in South Africa last month, in May 2011, and stayed for treatment and observation (for) 20 days.

His doctors were satisfied with his progress. Back home he is monitored and observed by Dr Justin Kangwa,” Mwamba explained. “Dr Chiluba was born on 30th April 1943 and celebrated his 68th birthday while we were in South Africa.”

Mwamba said doctors in South Africa had told Chiluba to return there for review in three months but the former president said he would only go back after Zambia’s presidential and general elections.

He said Chiluba’s health had been very well of late.
“We are also inundated with calls from relatives, friends, and supporters from all over the country whether they should travel to Lusaka.

I will urge that we wait for further communication from government and the committee that is headed by defence minister Dr Kalombo Mwansa. Chiluba remains a property of the state and we will therefore wait for government to give details of the official funeral and burial programme,” Mwamba said.

He said Chiluba would be accorded a state funeral.
And responding to a question on whether Chiluba’s active participation in campaigns had affected his health leading to his death, Mwamba said that could not be the reason for his demise.

On whether Chiluba’s long running corruption trial soiled his legacy, Mwamba said there was no way his legacy could have been impaired by the graft allegations.

“He was president for 10 years; there were challenges he had but there are numerous achievements he made and posterity will record him as such,” Mwamba said.

FDD president Edith Nawakwi who served in several ministerial posts during Chiluba’s 10-year presidency, paid tribute to the former president, saying she and her party had received his passing on with shock. She said it was sad that Zambia had lost a sitting president Levy Mwanawasa and his predecessor, Chiluba within a space of two and half years.

“Those of us who worked with him will remember him as a person whom you could engage with at an intellectual level on national issues,” Nawakwi said. “He allowed us his ministers to advise him where necessary and gave us an opportunity to serve. He contributed to turning Zambia and Africa, in general, from Dark Age of one party state to where we are today.”

And the ZCTU expressed deep sorrow on the demise of Chiluba, who was its leader.
“ZCTU regrets that the nation has been robbed of both a gallant workers’ rights activist and a champion of democracy. Dr Chiluba will be remembered for having reintroduced multiparty democracy and revolutionized the spirit of workers’ struggle in the labour movement of Zambia,” the union mother body stated in a media release.

ZCTU appealed to Zambians to mourn Chiluba in a respectful manner and urged all political parties to put aside their political differences and preach unity.
At the funeral house, MMD Lusaka Province youth chairperson Chris Chalwe attacked politician Cosmo Mumba, warning that he would be killed if he attended the procession.

According to Mumba, Chalwe accused him of hating Chiluba and that he would not be allowed at the funeral. Mumba said Lusaka Province minister Charles Shawa had made threats against him.

Chiluba began his political career from the trade union where he rose to the position of chairman general president of the ZCTU. Using his ZCTU prominence, Chiluba was elected president of MMD and subsequently elected president of Zambia, taking over from Kenneth Kaunda in the 1991 elections.

Labels: FREDERICK CHILUBA, JOSHUA KANGANJA, RUPIAH BANDA, ZCTU

posted by MrK @ 3:33 PM