Maravi

Trying to rule Sata by fear
By Editor
Thu 19 Sep. 2013, 14:00 CAT

In our editorial comment of yesterday, we stated that the events of the last few weeks brought out the worst in the Patriotic Front. We can also say that the ending of the events of the last few weeks brought out some of the best virtues, values one can expect in a political leader.

Despite a protracted attempt to try and manipulate President Michael Sata and create fear in him, he was not swayed. He maintained his belief and faith in other human beings.

There was an attempt to mislead the President by claiming that there was a scheme to dribble him in 2016 so that he doesn't get a second term of office. This manipulation fell on hard rock. Manipulators have never deserved anybody's respect or been successful anywhere.

Manipulators are like little sailboats that go with the wind and the waves. Manipulation is synonymous with opportunism. Manipulation doesn't have substance; it doesn't have roots. We think that everything - respect, relationships, serious analysis and understanding - is only possible among people who are honest with themselves and with others.
Fear is a weapon often used by manipulators. Fear wants you to run away from something that isn't after you. The great evangelist Billy Sunday once said, "Fear knocked at my door. Faith answered… and there was no one there."

Now, that's the proper response to fear. Fears, like babies, grow larger by nursing them. It is said that 'nothing in life is more remarkable than the unnecessary anxiety which we endure, and generally create ourselves'.

We must act in spite of fear, not because of it. If you are afraid to step up the plate, you'll never hit a home run.

It only seems as if you are doing something when you are worrying. Worry doesn't help tomorrow's troubles, but it does ruin today's happiness. It is said that 'a day of worry is more exhausting than a day of work'.

When you worry about the future, there will soon be no future for you to worry about. No matter how much a person dreads the future, he or she usually wants to be around to see it. Unfortunately, more people worry about the future than prepare for it.

It is said that 'never trouble trouble until trouble troubles you' and that 'worry is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained'; 'fear is faith that it won't work out'. Instead, do what the book of 1Peter admonishes: "Let him (God) have all your worries and cares, for he is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you."

It is advised that 'it's alright to have butterflies in your stomach. Just get them to fly in a formation.'

Fear holds you back from flexing your risk muscle, so consider this: what you fear about tomorrow is not here yet. And it is advised, 'always be on guard against your imagination. How many lions it creates in our paths, and so easily! And we suffer so much if we do not turn a deaf ear to its tales and suggestions'.

Worry is like a darkroom, because darkrooms are where negatives are developed. If you can't help worrying, remember worrying can't help you either. Worry is like a rocking chair: it keeps you going but you don't get anywhere. A friend of ours once said, "Don't tell me that worry doesn't do any good. I know better. The things I worry about don't happen."

Worry never fixes anything. Shakespeare wrote, "Our doubts are traitors, and they make us lose what we oft might win, by fearing to attempt."

The Lozis says, 'don't roll up your trousers before you get to the stream.'

Most of our fears can be traced back to a fear of human beings. However, the Bible says that "fear of man brings a snare" (Proverbs 29:25). In Psalms 27:1, we are told: "The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" And in Psalm 56:4, we are reminded: "In God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?"
People would worry less about what others think of them if only they realised how seldom they do. They are not thinking about you - they are wondering what you are thinking about them.

Fear can keep you from going where you could have won. Don't let fears steal from you and prevent you from pursuing your dream. Most people believe their doubts and doubt their beliefs. So do like the old saying: "Feed your faith and watch your doubts starve to death." Worry is a route that leads from somewhere to nowhere; never let it direct your life. Fear of the future is a waste of the present. A famous poem says it best:

Said the robin to the sparrow,
I should really like to know
Why these anxious human beings
Rush about and worry so.
Said the sparrow to the robin,
I think that it must be
That they have no Heavenly Father
Such as cares for you and me.

President Sata was told that he was sitting on fire because there were some people within the Patriotic Front that were scheming against him, trying to unseat him. But the President's response was that there is nothing he doesn't know. This is how dictators are created and tyranny is perpetrated. Simply create fear in the boss and show him that his survival depends on your support. Many foolish leaders have fallen for that and perished. Michael knows these things and he has demonstrated enough wisdom when it comes to such things.

There are people who have their own fears and want to bring those fears to bear on Michael so that he can use his influence and prestige to protect them from their own fears. It is not Michael they are worried about. They are simply worried about themselves. Look at some of them who are members of parliament! What is the state of affairs in their constituencies? Some of them are worried about getting a third term as members of parliament because they are not doing so well in their constituencies. And this is much more so among those from the Copperbelt constituencies who are almost not wanted by their constituents. The party structures are organising away from them and this is worrying them. And because of this, they are accusing innocent people of scheming up things in their constituencies against the President. But their fears will not go away in this way. They need to work at their weaknesses in a forthright and honest manner. The problem is simply their own inefficiency. But they are failing to take the blame and they are putting it on the backs of innocent people. This is the source of their fear. This is the source of their worries. And this is what they have been trying to transfer to Michael and make him their burden-bearer, but he has proved to be too wise and politically too experienced for them.

Labels: MICHAEL SATA

posted by MrK @ 5:00 PM