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Bishop Mulenga urges positive attitude towards govt

Bishop Mulenga urges positive attitude towards govt
By Mwala Kalaluka in Kabwe
Tue 04 Sep. 2012, 09:26 CAT

KABWE Diocese Bishop Clement Mulenga says the euphoria that followed the PF's electoral victory last year has not completely died down although there is a negative feeling among the people in his area over the way things are moving.

And Bishop Mulenga says the government should be corrected whenever they make a mistake and encouraged when they do the right thing as opposed to consistently taking a negative stance against it.

Meanwhile, Bishop Mulenga says Zambia's Christian nation declaration should be struck out from the draft constitution because not only is it discriminatory but that it is also empty.

During an interview in Kabwe on Wednesday, Bishop Mulenga said the new government's acid test was transforming the beautiful promises it made during the electoral campaigns into reality.

"But the situation is not very good, no. It's not inspiring. So for some of us... it's too early for the new government. It's true but I think there should be the move to give new hope to the people; to say we are going to do ABC and D," Bishop Mulenga said.

Bishop Mulenga said following the demise of industries such as Mulungushi Textiles, the collapse of the mines and other industries, many people in Kabwe Diocese do not have something to give them bread and butter.

"I don't think there is anything tangible that has been put in place to try and absorb most of those who were employed in these industries," Bishop Mulenga said. "How do you survive? You just have to become a business person whether you are selling tomatoes or whatever that can provide you with a livelihood; somehow you have to survive. So that is the creativity of the people in order to keep their heads above the water, to avoid sinking and drowning."

Bishop Mulenga said the government should take decisive actions to bring back hope to the people.
"If something can be done really to try and bring hope to our people but this must be a decisive action from the government. For instance, reviving that Mulungushi thing; it might not be in the direction of production of clothes or something like that. Maybe something else but let us use the facilities," he said.

Bishop Mulenga said it was difficult for locals to even know what was going on within the Mulungushi Textiles premises and he wondered how hope could be instilled in the people when they were unable to access the facility.

"I don't know what is going on there anyway. We see the buildings from outside. And sometimes we see some trucks packed there, whatever they carry, we don't know but it's not hope inspiring," Bishop Mulenga said.

Asked what the feeling of the people was over how things were moving under the new government, Bishop Mulenga said the feeling was quite negative.

"I would say the feeling is quite negative at the moment, although that euphoria that was there, as I said, is not yet diminished. It has not disappeared. It is still there but the signs are not very positive,"
Bishop Mulenga said. "We say one thing; beautiful words are uttered and many promises are made but then to execute this, that is the acid test. Because what we produce are merely the bones - we have to put flesh to them and that is going to be the challenge with our new government. We hope and pray that their promises will be realised because if they can come to fruition, Zambia will be a better country."

Bishop Mulenga said Zambians were people full of hope but they need to sustain that hope and make sure it becomes a reality.

"When we see with our eyes, then we can say we are going somewhere but hope is there. I pray that the good Lord will go on blessing our country and all of us and will help us to become more focused, especially when we are talking about development," Bishop Mulenga said. "Let us see these things in reality, where they can even trickle down to the poor man or woman in the street."

Bishop Mulenga said there was nothing much to talk about in Kabwe apart from potholes, dust, unemployment, and a poor drainage system, which was now being worked on.

"The road network is very poor because of negligence from the past. I think there wasn't much attention that was paid to Kabwe. No, it wasn't there. Now there is a bit of hope. I know that some money has been allocated to tar, I think, 34 kilometres in Central Kabwe and also Kapiri Mposhi," Bishop Mulenga said. "It's a good thing, I would say, but if the same efforts can be sustained on an annual basis, not just doing it once and from there you go to sleep. There are still many roads that need to be done. So, 34 kilometres is not enough. It's just the beginning, I would say."

And Bishop Mulenga said relations between some opposition parties and the government were a bit tense but that the country could do better than it was doing.

"Things are not coming together very well. So I think we can do better to become friendly to one another," Bishop Mulenga said. "Whenever there is a loss, people are not happy. It is true they may not be happy but I think it's also good to go back to them and say let us work together as a country because whether we like it or not, we belong together as a nation, anyway. Today this one is in power, tomorrow another leader will come and it has to continue that way."

He said this could be coupled with a lot of forgiveness.

"Maybe there are frustrations since we are not clicking together but we need to forgive one another. Reconciliation with one another is
extremely important. It's a good thing to implement forgiveness and reconciliation. We become more and more human, more Christian

actually, when we realise that tensions among us shouldn't last," Bishop Mulenga said. "The truth is that the more one forgives, the
freer they become. We have to look for solutions together as a nation. We have to work as a team. It is true that, like anybody else,
sometimes, the people in government make mistakes but we should be honest enough to admit that there are also some good things which they are doing, e.g., creation of more universities and districts."

Bishop Mulenga urged opposition politicians to come out of themselves and work for the betterment of the country.

"So whatever is good, we praise and it's good and we also encourage them government to make sure they go on working like that but if there is a mistake then let's tell them that you would have done better in this or that area. In that way, we encourage them to correct the situation. Not whether your friend does something good or bad you are constantly on the negative. Everything to you appears to be wrong," he said. "Let us work as a united country. We call ourselves Christians. So what does that mean?"

Meanwhile, Bishop Mulenga wondered what type of Christian nation Zambia would be when issues of corruption, cheating and killing of women persisted.

"I mean it sounds nice to say we are a Christian nation, although the reality is different in many cases but I always wonder, now suppose I was a Buddhist, a Muslim, or a Hindu living in Zambia and I am a Zambian by the way, would I really consider Zambia as my country?" Bishop Mulenga asked. "I think, it is segregation to a large extent. As a democracy, there is no need to maintain the article that declares Zambia a Christian nation. There is no need. Zambia belongs to all of us. It belongs to everybody; and so on my part, I speak not for any other person but just for my own sake, it's not a progressive article because what it encourages is discrimination based on one's religion."

Bishop Mulenga said the Christian nation declaration was not a good move.

"People will come up with so many reasons to maintain it in our future constitution, but it's empty and does not serve much of a purpose. Action speaks louder than words, so if we are true Christians, then let it come out in our actions, and not just in our pronouncements.

The best thing we can do is to remove it, delete it completely. Okay, leave Zambia as a democracy, finished; that is already enough for all of us. In this way, all of can interact with one another on the same level, since we are all Zambians," said Bishop Mulenga. "That is okay on my part, that's what I think. Honestly speaking, there is nothing Christian about corruption, killing of women, gender-based violence, cheating, defilement of children, etc. We don't have anything tangible to show for that declaration; it's simply an empty shell!"

Labels: CLEMENT MULENGA, OPPOSITION

posted by MrK @ 1:57 PM