Sata tasks Chikwanda to officiate at Tuwimba
By Francis Lungu
Wed 18 Sep. 2013, 14:01 CAT
PRESIDENT Michael Sata has delegated finance minister Alexander Chikwanda to represent him during the Tuwimba traditional ceremony of the Nsenga people of Zambia and Mozambique next month.
And Paramount Chief Mpezeni of the Ngoni people of Eastern Province has agreed to grace the Tuwimba ceremony scheduled to take place at chief Ndake's palace in Nyimba.
In a letter to Nsenga Cultural Association chairman Stephen Mwale, dated September 9, President Sata acknowledged receipt of an invitation for him to grace the traditional ceremony.
President Sata, however, stated that he would not be available to grace the ceremony due to other pressing engagements.
"I will not be available to grace the 2013 Tuwimba ceremony of the Nsenga people, which will be held on 12th October 2013 at Chief Ndake's Lwezi Palace in Nyimba district. I have therefore, by copy of this letter, delegated this responsibility to Hon Alexander B. Chikwanda, Minister of Finance, to represent me," read President Sata's letter.
And Paramount Chief Mpezeni's senior Induna George Zulu confirmed receipt of an invitation from Nsenga chiefs for the Paramount Chief to attend their traditional ceremony.
"The Nsenga and Ngoni culture are similar because the two people are one. So Paramount Chief Mpezeni is very happy that his uncles have invited him to be part of the gathering. Paramount Chief Mpezeni is very happy with the existing relationship between the Nsenga and Ngoni people," Zulu said.
He appealed to the Nsenga and Ngoni people to work towards strengthening their relationship to foster development in their respective areas.
He explained that historically, the Nsenga and Ngoni people were one.
"Historically when the Ngoni people invaded the Nsenga people, they forced the Nsenga people to flee to the hills, fearing the Ngonis' spears. The Nsenga wanted to fight back using stones if the Ngoni attempted to follow them up the hills, but the Ngonis followed them knowing that they will be forced to come back to fetch water," explained Zulu.
"Indeed the Nsengas felt thirsty and asked their women to descend from the hill to draw water. These women were captured by the Ngoni warriors and turned them into wives. That is how the Ngoni warriors lost their language as their children began to speak Nsenga. Both I and Paramount Chief Mpezeni are nephews of the Nsenga people. No one will change this history. No Nsenga or Ngoni will dispute this history."
Zulu disclosed that Paramount Chief Mpezeni had since asked chiefs Nyampande and Mumbi to represent the Nsenga chiefs on the N'cwala ceremony organising committee in Chipata.
Between 1860s and 1870s, the Nsenga were raided by the Bemba and Ngoni-speaking peoples. The Bembas were the first to attack the Nsenga people, stealing their domestic animals and yields. Later, the Ngoni warriors invaded the Nsengaland and got away with Nsenga women and livestock.
During both raids, the Nsenga hunters were defeated and fled, leaving behind women and children.
The Ngoni warriors exacted tribute, married, and assumed their language and culture as they headed up east to settle in Fort Jameson now Chipata.
The Bemba and Ngoni raids forced Nsenga leaders to build substantial stockades (linga) for self-defence.
Labels: ALEXANDER CHIKWANDA, CEREMONIES, MICHAEL SATA
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Tumbukas to hold Gonapamhanya cultural festival, JB to attend
By Favour Mazinga, Nyasa Times
November 17, 2012
Tumbukas will hold their annual Gonapamhanya Cultural Ceremony at Themba la Mathemba Chikulamayembe’s headquarters in Bolero, Rumphi on Monday, November 19, 2012 .
President Mrs Joyce Banda is expected to grace the occasion.
Gonapamhanya is an annual commemoration of the arrival of the first Tumbuka king, Gonapamhanya, who ruled the Nkhamanga Kingdom.
Speaking in an interview with Nyasa Times on Friday, Paramount Chief Chikulamayembe said he expects paramount Chiefs M’mbelwa, Lundu and Kyungu to be among other high profile digniteries to attend the function.
”Everything is set. Preparations are in full swing and we expect a colourful ceremony,” said Paramount Chief Chikulamayembe.
Chikulamayembe: All set for the festival
Gonapamhanya is a Tumbuka annual festival that celebrates the Tumbuka heritage.
According to Chikulamayembe, Gonapamhanya ceremony recounts the history and origin of the Tumbuka people.
He said the ceremony aim to preserve the Tumbuka heritage which he said, is facing cultural decay due to westernization.
”Nowadays our youths do not cherish the tradtitional way of doing things. Westernization is influencing moral decay of tradtional values,” he said.
According to trusted sources of history, the first Tumbuka’s arrived in the northern Malawi in 1780 led by Kakalala Kasiwa who was later named Mlowoka after crossing Lake Malawi through Chilumba in Karonga district.
Mlowoka was in company of Kyungu, Katumbi, Mwahenga, Chipofya, Mwamulowe and Kabundui.
Kyungu and Katumbi went to Karonga and settled at Kasantha.
Mwamulowe settled at Mlowe on the shores of Lake Malawi while Mwahenga settled at Kabembe, Mhuju along Rukuru River.
Mlowoka, Chipofya and Kabunduli settled at Mlongoti in Rumphi. Kabunduli later relocated to Nkhata-bay.
Mlowoka was a merchant and traded in holes, clothes (Nsalu), beads which were exchanged with animal skins and Ivory.
His genorisity earned him the Tumbuka chieftancy. The local people married him to Nyaluhanga but had no child.
He was later married to another wife Nkhulinda Kumwenda with whom he had a son Gonapamhanya.
After Mlowoka’s death, his son Gonapamhanya was made chief in his father’s place.
From the reign of Gonapamhanya, 11 other chiefs have ruled under the Tumbuka chiftancy.
The current paramount chief Chikulamayembe, Walter Chenje is the 12th.
Born in 1932, he became chief in 1977. In 2002 he was elevated to Senior Chief. Late president Bingu wa Mtharika then elevated him to paramount chief in 2007.
This year’s function will be marked by traditional dances such as Mtungo, Vimbuza, ulumba and Mchoma among others.
Labels: CEREMONIES, JOYCE BANDA, TUMBUKA
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JB asks Yao people to emulate Ngonis on cultural heritage
By Lucky Mkandawire, Nyasa Times
August 12, 2012
Malawi President Joyce Banda on Saturday called on her clan’s leaders to consider setting up their own heritage group as a way of preserving their culture. The President, who is a Yao by tribe, was speaking Saturday at Hora Mountain in Mzimba district during the annual uMthetho Cultural Festival for the Ngoni people.
While referring to the Umthetho and Kulamba (Chewa), Banda observed that almost every tribe in Malawi had an equivalent of the concept of Umthetho and advised the Yao people to establish their own in order to protect their culture. President Banda presenting a cheque to the chair of Mzimba Heritage Association.
She told Malawians that a few weeks before her ascendency to the presidency, she went to Karonga district to condole the Kyungu family on the death of Paramount Chief Kyungu and was impressed with the richness of their culture.
“I was told about the vibrancy of their culture. Last week, I was in Ntcheu presiding over the coronation of Mswati Kanjedza as Paramount Chief Gomani the Fifth and next week it will be Kulamba and I ask myself what are the Yao doing? If they are hearing me they better do something,” said the President who comes from Domasi in Zomba.
She then advised the Yao people also to look for a historical place where they could be gathering for their annual cultural festival.
Banda said she was aware that every tribe in Malawi had an equivalent of the Umthetho concept, which among others, embodies the values of love for each other and urged “all Malawians, not just the Ngonis, to uphold these values.”
Mzimba Association
She also congratulated the people of Mzimba for founding the Mzimba Heritage Association whose main aim is to preserve and promote the heritage of the Ngoni people.
The association was founded in 2000 and has been organizing the uMthetho Cultural Festival since 2007at Hora Mountain, the Ngonis first settlement in Malawi under Zwangendaba Jere.
The president also said she was aware of the importance of the Umthetho to the culture of the Mzimba Ngonis and her being there connected her with the place as issues of culture have always been of great interest to her.
“People without culture are like a tree without roots and so once more I wish to express my total support for this event,” she said.
The President pledged she would ensure that the place (Hora) is uplifted to better standards that could attract tourists.
She however challenged the Ngoni people to think about how they could revive and promote their language and other related issues through research and advanced studies.
The Ngoni language is still spoken in some parts of Mzimba district, which is a kingdom headed by Inkosi ya Makosi Mbwelwa 4th.
The president then donated K1 million cheque to the Mzimba Heritage Association to help it in its operations.
Among others, the event was attended by guests from South African who included a cultural troupe.
Ngoni culture
At Hola, where Ngoni’s showcase their cultural heritage and share historical and rich moments, traditional dances such as the men’s iNgoma - a very famous dance among the tribe of Mzimba, originally a war dance performed after a successful battle.
During the dance, the men are elaborately decorated in headgear made of feathers and animal skins, ornaments worn on the limbs, a network of beads wrapped across the chest and stomach, and around the neck hang various types of animal skin. They carry a spear or club and a shield. The women wear ordinary ‘Chilundu’ (a piece of cloth) from the waist downwards, and a blouse and a head gear called ‘DUKU’.
In the Ingoma dance, men dance in straight lines while women form lines on the side of the men. Men sing and stamp their feet, wielding their shields, spears and clubs by symbolising a war scene while the women sing, clap and ulutate in unison with the men’s dance performance.
Mzimba district, where the descendents of South Africa’s Ngoni dwell, was formerly called Ngoniland before joining the British Protectorate .
In September 2008 the Angoni were dressed in tribal traditional wear commemorating what was the largest gathering in the past 100 years. The occasion was to celebrate the time 100 years ago when the Mzimba Kingdom signed a peace treaty with England and became part of the “East African Protectorate” later to be Nyasaland then under independence Malawi.
The signing of the treaty was partly responsible for keeping Germany from cutting off the British during World War I. The ceremony was deemed “From Kingdom to Protectorate and Beyond.”—(Additional reporting by Patricia Masinga, Nyasa Times)
Labels: CEREMONIES, MALAWI, NGONI
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Hifa pays homage to Zim ancestors
Wednesday, 02 May 2012 00:00
Richmore Tera Arts Correspondent
ZIMBABWEANS have been urged to respect their cultural and traditional values like marking national occasions by holding traditional ceremonies. The call was made by Wildred Tichaona MaAfrika, leader of the Mawungira Enharira mbira group, after hundreds of people thronged Domboshava Rocks on Monday evening for a pre-Harare International Festival of the Arts party.
The festival kicked off in Harare yesterday and will run until Sunday. MaAfrika, whose group conducted the “traditional opening rituals” at the occasion, played their traditional mbira music with panache and captivating ego, said it was encouraging to note that organisers of Hifa had taken time to observe the country’s traditional rituals by holding a bira on the eve of Harare’s biggest arts fete.
“Most of the people who gathered here are from different countries and it is quite encouraging to see them taking part in this bira to mark the beginning of the arts and cultural festival.
“It is our tradition to pay homage to the custodians of our land (Zimbabwe) by visiting national shrines like Domboshava Rocks and playing mbira.
“By doing so, they are seeking guidance for their event to proceed without hitches,” he said.
Nyamasvisva — as he is known in music circles after his totem — urged locals to emulate this gesture.
“We should emulate this gesture and remember that we have certain traditions that we should observe,” he said.
One observer also agreed with Nyamasvisva saying the fact that organisers had chosen Domboshava for their occasion proved that they respected the spirits of this nation.
“Even the spirits are happy and I don’t see why they can’t guide them throughout the entire festival,” she noted. Apart from mbira, the occasion was also characterised by a visit up the mountain which people climbed using a path lit with candles on both sides. There were also traditional dances and “fire-eaters” among others. Exotic as well as traditional foods and drinks were also on offer.
Labels: CEREMONIES
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Kunda tells Lozis not to believe Post stories
By Mwala Kalaluka in Mongu
Sun 17 Apr. 2011, 04:01 CAT
VICE-PRESIDENT George Kunda on Friday asked people to be careful and reject whatever is written by The Post newspaper because it was all lies and unprofessional.
And Vice-President Kunda was whisked away from Mongu Airport to Country Lodge where he is lodging at breakneck speed amidst tight security through a route that skirted away from Mongu town centre.
Speaking on his over two hours delayed arrival to a visibly sombre reception at Mongu Airstrip to attend this year's Kuomboka Ceremony in Mongu, Vice-President Kunda charged that The Post, which wants to portray that PF leader Michael Sata was popular in Western Province, wanted to divide the country.
Vice-President Kunda, who was addressing a crowd full of civil servants, security personnel and a few cadres that were not so keen on raising the MMD party symbol when asked to, also attacked Mongu's St. John's Parish priest Fr Gregory Muliya over his statement that he was not welcome in the province because he justified the killings by police in Mongu in January this year.
“I am accompanied by the ‘second lady’, Mrs Ireen Kunda. She is here and she is Lozi by tribe. We are grateful with the way you have received us, Mr Provincial Minister and the Provincial Chairman of our party,” Vice-President Kunda said.
“I have been sent by His Excellency Mr Rupiah Bwezani Banda to come and represent him at this year’s Kuomboka Ceremony.”
Vice-President Kunda said President Banda wrote to him that he should officiate at this year's Kuomboka Ceremony.
“When I received a letter from His Excellency that I will represent him, I was so excited; the reason is simple,” he said. “Although I have seen the Kufuluhela Ceremony the opposite of the Kuomboka, I have not seen the Kuomboka.”
Vice-President Kunda, a Catholic, who usually attends mass at Lusaka’s Mary Immaculate Parish in Lake Road area, then launched an attack against Fr Muliya.
“I read a report in The Post newspaper to say I am not welcome here in Western Province,” Vice-President Kunda said whilst asking if there was any Roman Catholic Church priest in the crowd.
“Do you know such a priest? If there is such a priest, he is preaching hatred. We don't want hatred in the country. We don't want hatred in Western Province. In Mongu, we don’t want hatred. I know The Post newspaper has been trying to promote Mr. Sata, saying that he is very popular here in Western Province. What they don't know is that Mr. Sata is unsellable. You can't sell that product here in Western Province.”
Vice-President Kunda claimed that The Post published Fr Muliya's story because it wanted to discourage him from going to the province to see the Kuomboka.
“Why they want to discourage me is because they know that when I travel countrywide, they know this is the opportunity for me to hammer Mr Sata. So like now they are worried that aaah, George Kunda is going to Mongu, going to Kaoma and he is going to touch the Copperbelt,” Vice-President Kunda said.
“Mr. Sata has reached a level where now he is so scared of me that he is now even writing me letters, complaining, writing to the President complaining.”
Vice-President Kunda said for 10 years the MMD government had been under siege from Sata's defamatory statements and insults.
“We never used to reply. He was insulting me with his nephew lawyer, Wynter Kabimba,” Vice-President Kunda said. “He thought we had no capacity to reply to those insults, to the defamatory statements, except for us when we reply we are factual.”
Vice-President Kunda said he was just trying to expose Sata’s bad character, which makes him not suitable to go to State House.
Vice-President Kunda said before The Post entered what he categorised as the news relationship with the PF, it had scandalized Sata so much to an extent that it described him as a corrupt, vulgar and a sadist.
“They had thrown so much mud at him, so we are going back to past records to what they were saying about Mr. Sata,” Vice-President Kunda said. “Mr. Sata has no capacity to develop Zambia, now he has come up with a manifesto. The so-called manifesto of the Patriotic Front as some form of guidance from which they are going to develop the country.”
Vice-President Kunda said the PF manifesto was not a blueprint for developing the country because the current government was implementing what is contained in it.
He wondered why the aspect of homosexuality was not included in the PF manifesto.
“There is one very important thing which they have deliberately omitted from that manifesto, which forms part of their foreign policy … of raising money, which is homosexuality,” Vice-President Kunda continued his address. “Why have they left that?”
Vice-President Kunda said some newspapers, non-governmental organisations and even the PF were challenging him because of his very strong stance against homosexuality.
“That is why they don't like this government,” he said. “Now, on Mr Sata, and this is very important, his relationship with the church. He has said he is a Catholic fundamentalist. What does that mean? Fundamentalism means that you don't tolerate other beliefs, you don't tolerate other churches, Pentecostals, Mr Sata he doesn't support them because he is a Catholic fundamentalist.”
Vice-President Kunda said such ideas were dangerous.
“We don't want fundamentalism in this country. Fundamentalism is unconstitutional because our Constitution encourages freedom of worship,” Vice-President Kunda said. “Now if Mr Sata is a fundamentalist, he will be fighting everybody who is preaching a different faith.”
Vice-President Kunda said the Kuomboka was about the promotion of peace and sharing ideas on development.
“We look forward to a wonderful Kuomboka,” Vice-President Kunda said. “And for our party, please, we are preparing now for the elections. We want peace here in Western Province, in Mongu. We don't want people who divide us, to bring confusion in any part of Zambia. You have to be careful with The Post because they want to bring division. Let us reject whatever is written in The Post newspaper, lies.”
Western Province minister Sikwibele Mwapela said people peddling lies on why President Banda could not attend this year’s Kuomboka should be dismissed with contempt.
Mwapela said it was not uncommon for a Vice-President to officiate at a Kuomboka Ceremony.
“In you we see the President himself and you are his number two,” said Mwapela. “The MMD party has continued to enjoy massive support here in Western Province as demonstrated by this huge crowd which has come to welcome you.”
However, Vice-President Kunda's motorcade left Mongu Airport for Country Lodge at breakneck speed, leaving behind Mwapela’s and other officials' vehicles far behind.
As the motorcade turned a corner to join the road that rans behind Kambule High School to join the Mongu-Lusaka Road, a group of people were seen standing on both sides of the road at Kapulanga Market, which was one of the hotspots during the January 14, 2011 Mongu fracas.
Most residents just glanced at the motorcade with resigned looks as they continued with their normal daily business.
Labels: CEREMONIES, GEORGE KUNDA, MMD, MONGU, THE POST, WESTERN PROVINCE
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Rupiah refuses to ‘waste his money’ in W/Province
By Mwala Kalaluka
Wed 13 Apr. 2011, 04:01 CAT
PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda will not attend this weekend’s Kuomboka ceremony of the Lozi people in Mongu because he feels hated by the citizenry in Western Province.
Well-placed government sources told The Post yesterday that President Banda has instead delegated Vice-President George Kunda to attend the ceremony in Mongu this Saturday.
“The one who is going to grace this year’s Kuomboka is Vice-President George Kunda. President Banda said he can't go to Mongu because he feels the people there hate him,” the source said. “Vice-President Kunda will be in Mongu on Friday.”
The sources also disclosed that efforts to urge President Banda to undertake damage-control activities in Western Province in the wake of deaths and injuries that occured during the Barotseland Agreement-linked Mongu fracas have failed.
“President Banda said he is not going to waste his money in Western Province because he won’t gain anything from the area,” the source said.
The sources said members of the public were expressing a very cold and unusual reaction towards this year's Kuomboka ceremony.
“It’s like there is no Kuomboka. The people here seem to be very cold,” the sources said. “Those days you would see people already wearing red berets and the traditional Lozi gear but this time there is nothing.”
During last year’s Kuomboka ceremony, President Banda pledged that he would attend this year’s Kuomboka.
The sources further disclosed that during his visit to the province for the Kuomboka, Vice-President Kunda would also hold a campaign rally in Kaoma district, about 180 kilometres from Mongu.
Other sources said the MMD campaign rally would be held on Monday at Nkeyema TBZ area of Kaoma.
“There will be no rally in Mongu,” said the source.
Labels: CEREMONIES, RUPIAH BANDA, WESTERN PROVINCE
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Thandiwe hails traditional ceremonies
By George Zulu
Mon 14 Feb. 2011, 04:01 CAT
TRADITIONAL ceremonies are a unifying factor which brings people from different walks of life together, says first lady Thandiwe Banda.
During the fundraising dinner for the 2011 Kuomboka traditional ceremony at Hotel InterContinental on Saturday, Thandiwe said the event was important as it signified the passing on of a cultural expression from one generation to the other.
“A cultural expression such as the Kuomboka ceremony plays a vital role in binding communities together and creating meaning in people's lives,” Thandiwe said.
She urged people to reflect deeply on the significance of the ceremony, which she said was a human victory over modernity.
“Quite often, we in Africa get carried away by the belief that to be modern' you should forsake your traditional values and customs. We place more value on the western culture forgetting that a nation that is not proud of its own indigenous value systems and cultural expressions is like a tree without roots,” she said. “A country without an indigenous culture remains prone to external influence in ways that are not always in its best interest.”
She said the nation shall be judged harshly by the future generations if it failed to sustain and preserve cultural expression because people would be denied an important reference against which to build their own developments.
Thandiwe said the success of the Kuomboka ceremony would accord the nation an opportunity to market Zambia as an important tourist destination.
“For many years now, the number of tourists that grace the ceremony has been increasing, which translates into improved government revenue, the success of this ceremony in terms of pulling huge crowds comes with considerable challenges,” said Thandiwe.
Labels: CEREMONIES, THANDIWE BANDA
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Stop lying, C/belt PF advises Rupiah
By Kabanda Chulu
Tue 02 Nov. 2010, 04:01 CAT
THE Patriotic Front (PF) has
advised President Rupiah Banda to stop telling lies about developmental programmes in rural parts of the Copperbelt Province. But Lufwanyama MMD chairman Moses Chiyuka asked the people not to politicise visible developmental programmes in the country.
Reacting to President Banda’s statement at the Chabalankata traditional ceremony of the Lamba people that there was every reason for Zambians to have hope for the future since his government was building up on various projects including those initiated by late president Levy Mwanawasa, Copperbelt PF vice youth secretary George Sichula said President Banda was wrongly advised.
“It is a lie and put in black and white, and the problem with President Banda is that he does not mix with people on the ground and those fake advisors are misleading him because they see things and tell him different stories. For instance, President Banda has never been to Lufwanyama, and how many times have people complained about the state of Kalengwa-Kalulushi road and many other roads?” Sichula asked.
“Imagine this government has decided to speed up construction works for a prison and a police station, does it imply that people here are criminals? In fact people are furious and they want President Banda to come and point at those projects which his government is claiming to have done because development is simply not here.”
Masaiti district PF chairman Stardy Mwale challenged the MMD government to stop telling lies and build a hospital in Masaiti since people were walking to the nearest hospital over 50 kilometres St Theresa Mission at Ibenga in Mpongwe.
“The MMD government is claiming that by January 2011 there will be a hospital here but these are lies since nothing is happening and building plans were drawn many years ago,” Mwale said. “People here want roads leading to markets for their produce and imagine, this area is rich in emeralds and various precious metals but government has just failed to develop it; and come 2011, people have made up their minds and the MMD is on its way out.”
He said it was disappointing that the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) had not paid farmers who were now experiencing financial challenges despite delivering their produce.
“… Masaiti will experience hunger because the planting season is near but farmers can’t plant and farmers are concerned that they will not receive inputs for failing to pay cooperative annual membership fees,” said Mwale.
But Chiyuka said developmental projects being undertaken by the government were visible in Copperbelt rural and the country in general.
“It is a false story especially here in Lufwanyama. Government has done so much; for example, we have a new boarding high school which is almost complete and construction of the district hospital has entered phase two; and there are various projects being undertaken such as construction of prisons and police station, council houses and offices for the district health management and district education officials are under construction and for the Kalengwa road, government assured that the road will be tarred starting from 2011,” said Chiyuka. “So we find no reason why our colleagues should politicise developmental activities that are visible for everyone to see.”
Officiating at the Chabalankata ceremony of senior chief Mushili, President Banda assured that the government would achieve education for all through construction and upgrading of schools at Katanino, Kankoshi, Muwaya, Misapa and Nkambo.
President Banda said construction of Masaiti and Masangano boarding high schools would be completed soon while feeder roads were also being worked on.
Labels: CEREMONIES, COPPERBELT PROVINCE, MOSES CHIYUKA, RUPIAH BANDA
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COMMENT - Despite the 'NGO angle' of 'climate change', this is a reasonably respectful description of the Kuomboka Ceremony from South Africa.
Ancient ways in deep water
NICOLE JOHNSTON - May 10 2010 12:47
As the temperature dips and we slip into winter, most of us adapt by putting on an extra jersey, stocking up on soup and carrying on as usual. For the Lozi people of western Zambia, the end of summer traditionally means packing their household belongings, livestock and farming implements on to a boat and leaving their houses and fields to the encroaching waters of the Zambezi flood plain.
This annual migration is an ancient tradition, heralded by the ceremonial relocation of the Lozi king, the Litunga, from his summer palace in the flood plain -- where the Lozi farm in a soil rich with nutrients once the waters have receded -- to his winter palace in the arid uplands.
The ceremony, called the Kuomboka ("to come out of the water"), is the cultural highlight of the year in the Western Province. But climate change is affecting all that.
"This changing of the climate is really impacting on the Kuomboka ceremony," says Fine Nasilele, who works for a local NGO, People's Participation Services. "It is becoming difficult to predict the time when we should move."
The Lozi rely on knowledge handed down over generations to predict when the floods will come and when they should prepare their move. But the increasing unpredictability of the seasons means that many of the omens traditionally used cannot necessarily be relied on any more.
"In the olden days the ceremony would be held in March, but for the past few years it has been in April," says Nasilele. "We would look at signs like the colour of the sand beaches -- when it turns brown we know the flood is coming. We would look at the position of the moon and at the water levels to predict when to move."
For days preceding the ceremony the town of Mongu, which lies in the heart of the flood plain, is abuzz with activity. Most accommodation is booked up months in advance, and hotel rooms are being let for five to 10 times their usual price as dignitaries arrive from Lusaka and chiefs come from other provinces. Mikolo (canoes) filled with entire families pole their way into Mongu harbour from distant villages and women sell red-and-black patterned chitenge (wraps) emblazoned with "Kuomboka 2010", while vuvuzelas blare from all over the town.
At Lealui village the royal barge, Nalikwanda, is moored. But the unusually high water levels this year means that guests who would normally stroll from the mooring to the palace have to wade knee-deep through water. At the palace the water has risen to within metres of the royal pavilion and has flooded the traditional courthouse.
At last the Litunga emerges, to great ululation and whistling, and is escorted to the Nalikwanda. The barge glides out of the village and into the waterways of the flood plain, followed by hundreds of boats and canoes.
"Sometimes it takes eight hours to paddle to the winter palace at Limulunga," says Nasilele. "But this year the water is very high, so it only took five hours."
The change in weather patterns also means that it's becoming difficult for people to plan their move because the flood waters come late -- and fast. "Their fields get flooded before they can harvest and people have to be evacuated," Nasilele says. "Boreholes and latrines get flooded and diseases can spread."
When people are evacuated they often have to leave behind their harvests and seed for replanting and lose their belongings, such as clothes and cooking utensils, which is devastating for poor subsistence farmers.
So, as the seasons grow ever more changeable, the Lozi will have to face difficult choices -- move permanently to the arid high ground, or try to adapt and live their migratory lives on a rich but increasingly unpredictable flood plain.
Nicole Johnston is regional media and communications coordinator for Oxfam
Labels: CEREMONIES, NGOs
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Bishop Duffy queries Rupiah over white beret
By Mwala Kalaluka
Fri 23 Apr. 2010, 03:00 CAT
MONGU Diocese Bishop Paul Duffy yesterday said he was flabbergasted, surprised and amazed to see President Rupiah Banda wearing a white beret, instead of a red one at last weekend’s Kuomboka Ceremony.
And Bishop Duffy has wondered why Mongu Central’s Namushakende area has had no water for the past two weeks when there is a government in place.
Bishop Duffy said President Banda’s wearing of a white beret during this year’s Kuomboka ceremony showed that he was insensitive to the culture of the Lozi people.
“What surprised me is the wearing of the white beret. I could not believe it. He really violated the sensitivity of the Lozi people,” Bishop Duffy said.
“Even the Vatican Ambassador when he came to the Kuomboka two years ago he put on a red beret.”
Bishop Duffy said he was flabbergasted that he could not see a specter of red on the traditional attire that President Banda wore to the ceremony.
“That is being insensitive to the Lozi culture. I was really amazed when I saw the pictures. I could not believe that and everybody was waiting to see a white card in his hand as well,” Bishop Duffy said.
Bishop Duffy said President Banda’s white beret at Kuomboka made him wonder why those people that recently launched the white card campaign had not been arrested immediately as was the case with the ‘poor’ people that launched the red card.
“Why the difference between the two?” Bishop Duffy asked.
“The white card was leading to potential violence for sure. It seems that something is wrong. I do not know, maybe government needs to hire somebody well-versed in logic, to give them a course in logic and clear thinking and also in deductive thinking so that, you know, they can draw proper conclusions.”
Bishop Duffy agreed that the message that President Banda sent to the people of Mongu by adorning a white beret at Kuomboka was that he was endorsing the white card campaign.
“That is why they were looking for the white card,” Bishop Duffy said. “He President Banda is so paranoid about the colour red.”
And Bishop Duffy, who was in some parts of Mongu Central and Nalikwanda constituencies on a tour of duty, said the people of Namushakende were suffering because of a protracted lack of water.
Bishop Duffy said although technicians had been sent to the area to rectify the problem it had persisted.
He wondered if the government really cared for its people.
Bishop Duffy said the people in most of the places that he visited were very poor naturally and the road network was horrible.
“Like Thursday I went to Luandui, on Friday to Litoya, on Saturday to Moyo and you know, the roads are horrible. You have to have four wheel drive,” Bishop Duffy said. “At Luandui, which is only about 40 kilometres it takes over four hours.”
Bishop Duffy said the area member of parliament, Professor Geoffrey Lungwangwa, had promised to tar the road leading to the area when he campaigned during the last general elections.
“They are waiting for him to come back and start campaigning for next year’s election and they are saying ‘why should we pay attention to what you are saying this time when you have not fulfilled what you promised last time?’” said Bishop Duffy.
Labels: CEREMONIES, PAUL DUFFY, RUPIAH BANDA
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Post reporter challenges Rupiah over his white beret
By Joseph Mwenda
Wed 21 Apr. 2010, 14:00 CAT
Post reporter Mwala Kalaluka at his work station in the newsroom at The Post Newspaper head office in Lusaka
POST reporter Mwala Kalaluka has denounced claims by President Rupiah Banda that the reporter admired his outfit at this year’s Kuomboka ceremony hence a story published in the Post newspaper titled “Rupiah surprises people with white beret at Kuomboka”.
And Post managing editor Amos Malupenga has said it was trivial for the President to say that people who questioned his outfit during Kuomboka ceremony were jealousy of him.
President Banda yesterday told Kitwe residents that people who were questioning his attire at this year’s Kuomboka ceremony were just jealousy of him because he looked nice.
During a live phone-in programme on Lusaka’s Qfm radio this morning, Kalaluka said he was merely doing his job by reporting an anomaly in the President’s attire at a very special occasion.
“I am not only a journalist, I am also a Lozi by tribe and I know the tradition very well. So I wondered why the president was wearing a white beret when last year he wore a red beret, Kalaluka said.”
“People also started wondering and complaining about it and it was my responsibility as a journalist to report what I saw, and I did not admire the President’s outfit.”
He explained that the red beret that was introduced at Kuomboka during the reign of Mulambwa, who was the tenth Litunga, has a special significance to the Lozi tradition and that white equally had a different meaning.
“White berets are worn by those men who take care of graves for the past Lozi kings, they are for the grave caretakers, so people were surprised to see him in a white beret,” Kalaluka said.
On Saturday April 17, President Banda surprised people at Mongu Airstrip when he emerged from a Zambia Air Force (ZAF) plane clad in a traditional Lozi attire of a kilt and a waistcoat but with a white, instead of the normal red beret on his head.
And reacting to other callers’ comments on the same programme who suggested that the Post was being trivial by publicizing the presidents attire, Malupenga observed that the attire worn at the ceremony was symbolic to the occasion.
“The reporter picked on that angle because he noticed something unusual and he was not the only one who noticed, many other Lozis questioned that. But for us, the Barotse Royal Establishment has commented on that and if it is their position that there was nothing wrong with the President’ attire, then the story ends there.”
Malupenga said the story was not trivial but instead observed that it was President Banda who was being trivial by saying that those who questioned his attire were jealousy of him.
“Surely that was trivial of him, it was trivial coming from the President to say we were jealousy of him. It was just the critical eye of the reporter who noticed that there was a departure from what is usual because the President wore a red beret last year,” said Malupenga.
Labels: AMOS MALUPENGA, CEREMONIES, MWALA KALALUKA, RUPIAH BANDA, THE POST
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Get out of my boat, Sinyinda tells UN VIPs at Kuomboka
By Moses Kuwema in Mongu
Mon 19 Apr. 2010, 04:00 CAT
EDUCATION deputy minister Clement Sinyinda on Saturday publicly embarrassed United Nations resident coordinator Mcleod Nyirongo, UNDP country director Viola Morgan and other UN staff by chasing them from the speedboat, which he claimed was his.
The incident happened during the build-up to the Kuomboka ceremony in the morning at Mongu harbour as Nyirongo and Morgan were heading to Lealui to see off the Litunga. The eight-seater boat was assigned to Nyirongo and Morgan by Western Province deputy permanent secretary Seth Muleya who assured the duo that everything was well.
But when the UN team led by Nyirongo got on the boat, Sinyinda suddenly appeared and demanded that the crew move out of the boat because it belonged to him.
At this point, Kuomboka ceremony Lusaka organising committee chairman Professor Oliver Saasa tried to explain to Sinyinda about Nyirongo and Morgan’s positions and the need for diplomacy on his part.
In response, Sinyinda said, “I know who they are but I’m just expressing myself. So let them get out of my boat.”
Nyirongo and Morgan, who were accompanied by their spouses, then got out of the boat and had to wait for another speedboat.
And on Friday, Western Province permanent secretary Ikanuke Noyoo appealed to the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) and the hostels board to address the issue of inflated accommodation rates during the period of Kuomboka.
Speaking when Nyirongo paid a courtesy call on him at his office, Noyoo said it was unacceptable for lodges and guesthouses to hike rates during the Kuomboka ceremony.
“The hiking of services is just the question of greedy and poor business skills, the other thing also could be that we don’t have industries,” Noyoo said.
Noyoo said over K1 billion was pumped into the province during the Kuomboka ceremony.
Accommodation rates in Mongu during the Kuomboka ceremony ranges between K800,000 and K3 million for rooms which are normally pegged at K100,000 and K500,000 respectively.
Noyoo also said there was low condom use in the province because people had a casual attitude.
And Nyirongo said his visit to the province was focused on HIV and AIDS because he wanted to check on areas where the government could do better.
Nyirongo said in the last four years, the UN had been supporting District AIDS Coordination Advisors (DACA) and the Provincial AIDS Coordination Advisors (PACA).
“We have been told that one of the drivers of HIV and AIDS is culture and as we go round we shall try and focus on these areas to help the government do better,” said Nyirongo.
Labels: CEREMONIES, CLEMENT SINYINDA, MCLEOD NYIRONGO, UN, UNDP
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Saasa warns politicians against using Kuomboka ceremony for campaigns
By Florence Bupe
Tue 06 Apr. 2010, 04:01 CAT
LUSAKA Province Kuomboka organising committee chairperson Professor Oliver Saasa has cautioned politicians against using the forthcoming Kuomboka Ceremony as a podium for campaigns.
And MTN Zambia has donated K175 million towards this year's Kuomboka Ceremony, which will take place on April 17. During a press briefing yesterday, Prof Saasa said the Kuomboka Ceremony was a crowd-puller, but it should not be used to promote political agenda.
“The Kuomboka Ceremony is a crowd-puller and politicians may want to use it to gain popularity. However, this is a national event which is political party neutral and should not be used as a ground for campaigns,” he said.
Prof Saasa urged those intending to attend this year's ceremony not to show their political inclination by wearing political party branded gear.
He announced that the ceremony would be graced by President Rupiah Banda.
Prof Saasa also emphasised the importance of culture and the need for the corporate world to support cultural preservation.
“A country without culture is a country that is dead. Culture is very important and there is need for stakeholders such as the corporate world to promote activities aimed at preserving our culture,” he said.
Prof Saasa further announced the cancellation of the Lozi Day, an annual event aimed at fundraising for the Kuomboka Ceremony, due to recent bereavements in the Barotse Royal establishment.
“We recently lost a chief who is being put to rest today yesterday and chief Inyambo Yeta also lost his close relatives, so we have cancelled any event of celebratory nature,” said Prof Saasa.
And MTN Zambia pledged its continued support to cultural preservation in the country.
Company brand and sponsorship manager Sally Namutowe said MTN Zambia was committed to empowering Zambians though ploughing back into the community.
“MTN Zambia will continue to give back to the communities from a corporate social responsibility perspective,” said Namutowe.
Labels: CEREMONIES, OLIVER SAASA
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Lozi women dance in very dignified manner, observes Munkombwe
By Edwin Mbulo in Livingstone
Mon 22 Mar. 2010, 04:01 CAT
SOUTHERN Province minister Daniel Munkombwe has observed that Lozi women dance in a very dignified manner because their movements are not suggestive or provocative. Officiating at the fundraising dinner dance organised by Kuomboka Kufuluhela Livingstone committee at Rhapsody’s on Saturday, Munkombwe said Lozi women’s dances could not be compared with those that were inductive.
Munkombwe, who joked as a Tonga and, therefore, traditional cousin of the Lozi people, said he was more comfortable to sit with a Lozi than any other person from other tribes.
“As your traditional cousin I have never been comfortable to sit with anybody from other tribes but you because I can denounce you or praise you. I speak Lozi very fluently amukoni ku ni seba you cannot backbite me. Lozi women dance in a very significant manner not suggestive or provocative. Their movements during dance is not inductive, not the way others dance, very provocative and inductive,” Munkombwe said.
“It is very bad, but the way you dance your Siomboka, it is proper, proper, proper! If you embrace a Lozi girl, not the spoilt ones of course, then you are okay.”
He caused laughter when he said he could not go for any woman under the age of 60 since he was over 70 years old.
Munkombwe also remarked that he would have loved to know the “geography” of the master of ceremonies but she was not his type.
“Na nilata bachembele I want old women Mulena a kupi wa ng’wata fela a king does not beg, he just grabs. All people are my relatives regardless of tribe, Bemba or Lozi that is why I handika chilubale, and Lozi fluently, situtu satutuluka, situtu satukuka if you don’t understand that then you are not a Lozi,” he said.
Munkombwe said he was delighted that the Lozi culture and the Kuomboka ceremony had never been diluted or spoiled by modern culture.
He added that this year’s sufficient rains were a blessing to the Lozi people.
“It does not matter whether you are a professor or doctor that is why you put on those Mikanjos Misisi,” Munkombwe said.
Munkombwe pledged K500,000 to the committee.
And Patriotic Front (PF) provincial chairman Josephs Akafumba pledged K1 million to the committee.
“The MMD government under Rupiah Banda is not interested in cultural development let alone national developments and has since turned towards conning traditional leaders to be Rupiah’s image builders. That is why we are now seeing a lot of red cards. MMD is going out next year,” Akafumba said.
Kuomboka Kufuluhela committee chairperson Vincent Katanekwa said each year that passed by, the Kuomboka ceremony grew bigger in terms of attendance and this year’s event would be televised worldwide via satellite.
Katanekwa said the Kufuluhela Kuomboka traditional ceremony organising committee did not get good feedback from residents in the tourist capital.
“This year’s Kuomboka ceremony shall be broadcast worldwide and already they are mounting the interlink satellite system in Mongu for that broadcast, our culture forges ahead. As westerners either Totela or Kwangwa like me we have a duty to meet the requirements of these demands,” he said.
Katanekwa observed that in the olden days the goods and products that were to go on the Nalikwanda royal barge were not bought and donated to the Litunga but were gathered from each district.
And there was laughter during the dinner dance after the audience failed to sing the national anthem in Lozi.
Labels: CEREMONIES, DANIEL MUNKOMBWE
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Zain pledges support for traditional ceremonies
By Christopher Miti in Chipata
Sun 28 Feb. 2010, 03:40 CAT
ZAIN Zambia has pledged to continue supporting various traditional ceremonies in the country.
Handing over a guest wing built at a cost of K200 million to paramount chief Mpezeni at Laweni where he lodges before the Nc'wala ceremony, Zain acting managing director Mark Ocitti said the campany was humbled and honoured for having been asked by Mpezeni to erect a guest wing to be used especially during the annual ceremony as he moves from his palace to Laweni, his temporal one.
He said the guest wing had been built in almost two months. Ocitti also said Zain had sponsored the refurbishment of a VIP shelter at the Nc'wala ceremony's main arena at a cost of K35 million and K15 million to the organising committee for logistical support.
And Mpezeni who spoke through chief Madzimawe commended Zain for the gesture.
"Consider the Ngoni Kingdom as your partner. As you would like to make the lives of our people better, we want to commit ourselves to partner with you to see to it that we achieve that goal.
We are looking forward to continue partnering with you in the many years to come as we embark on this journey where we would want the entire world to know who the Ngonis are," Mpezeni said.
And during the donation of education materials valued at over K10 million to Kamwankhuku Basic School in Katete, Ocitti said Zain was committed to supporting government efforts in uplifting education standards in the country.
He said one school in each of the nine provinces would be empowered under the Build Our Nation programme this year.
Ocitti said since its inception, Zain had spent over K6 billion on the initiative, benefiting 123 schools in all 72 districts in Zambia.
Labels: CEREMONIES, CHIEF MPEZENI, CORRUPTION, ZAIN ZAMBIA LIMITED PLC
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First Lady urges membership diversity in traditional ceremony committees
Saturday, February 6, 2010, 15:26
First Lady Thandiwe Banda has called upon traditional ceremonies committees to expands their membership by having members who do not reside or hail from one Province.
Mrs. Banda observed that if the Committee succeeds in having members who hail from other provinces, the Committee would also have succeeded in making the ceremony more popular
Mrs. Banda made the call in Lusaka last evening at the fund raising dinner dance for the Kuomboka-Kufuluhela Lusaka Committee. This was in a speech read on her behalf by wife of the Vice President George Kunda, Irene.
She said the Kuomboka-Kufuluhela Lusaka Committee should consider having members who do not come or hail from Western Province because a number of non-Lozis have increasingly taken pride in wearing the Msisi, a traditional attire for the Lozi speaking people even during other national events.
The First Lady said having a balanced membership is vital to accerating national development thereby marketing Zambia’s rich cultural gheritage home and abroad.
Mrs. Banda said this would also assist in uniting the country through the popularization of the common heritages irrespective of the origin of the traditional attire as well as other cultural deeds; cultural music and expressions.
Meanwhile, the First Lady also called upon Zambians from other regions to become members of the Kuomboka-Kufuluhela Lusaka Committee.
Mrs. Banda added that this would assist the ceremony acclaim its elevated status not only at its organizational level.
And Kuomboka-Kufuluhela Lusaka Committee Chairperson Oliver Saasa urged government and other stakeholders to continue rendering support to the Kuomboka ceremony.
Professor Saasa said this year’s Kuomboka would be different from last year’s in that the Organizing Committee is doing everything possible to make it more colourful.
The Kuomboka traditional Ceremony is an annual event held in April by the Lozi people of Western Province. It symbolizes coming out the waters by the Lozi Chief Litunga.
ZANIS
Labels: CEREMONIES, THANDIWE BANDA
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Nyau dance festival slated for next month
Entertainment Reporter
THE Nyau Dancers Organisation and Allies are expected to hold a three-day Nyau dance festival from December 4 to 6 in the country.
Several dance groups drawn from the Sadc region are expected to participate at the festival, an event that would afford locals to interact with participants of this highly intriguing, but secretive culture.
Kennedy Kachiruka chairman of Ndoga said preparations were at an advanced stage, saying more than 51 representatives from various dance groups in and outside the country participated in a workshop held in the country last Friday.
"More than 50 representatives from various groups across the country including others from outside the country registered their willingness to participate at the festival.
"We are still negotiating on the venue as arguments arose during the workshop as to where to hold the festival.
"The Minister of Media, Information and Publicity, Webster Shamu, had proposed a venue along Bulawayo Road near Norton but our concern was on accessibility by many people who might be willing to witness the event," said Kachiruka.
He added that those who wanted to attend the festival would be asked to pay a nominal fee, in either regional currencies, Zimbabwe or United States dollars.
Kachiruka promised an "extraordinary" festival that was going to shed light on the Nyau culture.
"Although it is the first time to have such an event, we have covered much ground and this event is going to be an extra-ordinary one," he said.
He, however, expressed great concern over people who were masquerading as Nyau members defrauding people of their money, a development which he said was tainting the image of the Nyau culture.
Labels: CEREMONIES, ENTERTAINMENT, NYAU
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Traditional ceremonies are a unifying factor – Rupiah
By Chibaula Silwamba
Mon 02 Nov. 2009, 04:01 CAT
TRADITIONAL ceremonies are a unifying factor in Zambia, President Rupiah Banda has said. And senior chieftainess Nkomeshya Mukamambo II has urged the government to increase the number of fertiliser given to small scale farmers and upgrade Chalimbana Teacher in-service training College into a university.
Speaking at the Chakwela Makumbi traditional ceremony of the Soli people in Chongwe on Saturday, President Banda said traditional ceremonies bring people from all walks of life together.
“We should be proud of this heritage because culture is the means by which a people express itself through language, traditional wisdom, religion, art, music, tools, greetings, symbols, festivals, ethics, values and collective identity. Without culture, a community loses self-awareness and guidance, and grows weak and vulnerable,” President Banda said. “Our rich cultural heritage should also be used to promote national unity.
The challenge for the Soli people and indeed for all Zambians is to preserve cultural events like this one as they serve as important fora through which the community can learn and assimilate useful customs, values and attitudes.”
He said the government was committed to supporting traditional ceremonies because there could be no meaningful development without culture.
“The challenge for us is to harness the potential of these cultural activities to create jobs for our people especially in rural areas,” he said.
On agriculture, President Banda said the government would continue to subsidise the production of maize by paying up to 60 per cent of the cost under the farmer input support programme (FISP) for the province for the 2009/2010 farming season.
“I am, therefore, happy to note that Chongwe District has received 24,500 by 50 kilogramme of D Compound and 16,000 by 50 kilogramme of Urea. Within the next few days, seed should arrive in Chongwe in readiness for the planting season,” he said.
“The government, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives, has also established mobile depots so that our farmers do not travel long distances to sell their products.”
He said soon the government would send motor bikes to all the district agricultural camp site officers to enable them to provide small-scale farmers with information on good farming practices.
On health, President Banda said the government with the aid of the Korean government had allocated three ambulances and assorted medical equipment to Chongwe district to improve health service delivery.
On education and in reaction to chieftainess Nkomeshya, President Banda said the government would rehabilitate Chalimbana College.
“I agree with you, your royal highness, we have allocated a lot of money for this school, perhaps we should consider in our next budget to allocate money to repair this important institution of benefit to the whole of Zambia,” he said.
On roads, President Banda said the government had rehabilitated several roads in the district.
“As a custodian of our cultural heritage, I implore you to bring to the attention of your subjects issues pertaining to contemporary agricultural methods, girl child education, early marriages, HIV and AIDS, risky traditional practices such as sexual cleansing, spouse inheritance and spouse battering,” President Banda said.
President Banda commended paramount chief Chitimukulu of the Bemba people for traveling all the way to Chongwe despite his poor health, and other traditional rulers from various parts of Zambia.
Chakwela Makumbi, literary meaning gathering clouds to bring rains, is a ceremony where chieftainess Nkomeshya asks ancestral spirits to provide rains to her people.
And chieftainess Nkomeshya commended the government for the development projects in agriculture, health, education and others in the district.
She said Chalimbana Teachers Training College was being underutilized due to the removal of a number of courses.
“My appeal is that Chalimbana should be transformed into a university like our colleges,” chieftainess Nkomeshya said.
Earlier, chieftainess Nkomeshya thanked President Banda for agreeing to officiate at the Chakwela Makumbi traditional ceremony.
She also said late president Levy Mwanawasa was supportive to the ceremony when he was alive.
Giving a vote of thanks, Chongwe member of parliament Sylvia Masebo said President Banda’s speech “was not only inspiring, it was also encouraging” because he touched on most issues that were very dear to the people of Lusaka particularly on agriculture.
Labels: CEREMONIES, RUPIAH BANDA
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Mutharika says nothing wrong for him to be patron of Mulhakho
By Nyasa Times
Published: October 25, 2009
President Bingu wa Mutharika says Malawians of different tribes have the right to celebrate their traditions in their own different styles, and therefore it is not wrong for him even if he is Head of State to be patron of the Mulhakho wa Alhomwe grouping.
Mutharika was speaking to thousands of Malawians and other nationals from across the nation who braved the scorching heat to gather at Chonde in Mulanje, southern Malawi, to celebrate the organizations first anniversary on Sunday, October 25.
The Malawi leader, a Lhomwe himself from the southern district Thyolo, said this in reaction to critics who have been questioning why he should be patron of Mulhakho wa Alhomwe organization when he was president of all ethnic groups in the southern African state.
“Am surprised as to why I should not exercise my right to be part of this organization,” said Wa Mutharika who proudly and ably addressed the gathering in Lhomwe and Chichewa languages.
“I was a Lhomwe before becoming president of this country and I will always be after descending from the seat of presidency,” said Mutharika.
The President said he founded the heritage, which he repeatedly reminded Malawians was a non-political organization.
He further said as all tribes in the country were proud of their languages, dances, food and different cultural tribes, the Lhomwes, were not turning back from digging, preserving and promoting their culture.
“I would like to tell all jealousy people not to dare stopping us because we will not be moved,” assured Mutharika who added as president he would continue attending and encouraging different events promoting various tribal values in Malawi.
Speaking earlier, Mulhakho wa Alhomwe chairperson Joseph Mwanamveka also observed that the formation of their organization would promote togetherness among the Lhomwes and other tribes in Malawi and beyond her borders.
President Mutharika also performed the official opening of a Lhomwe school at Chonde, which according to the grouping aims at enabling all Lhomwes and non-Lhomwes of different age groups not able to write or speak Lhomwe to learn the language. They also say the institution will benefit the next Lhomwe generation.
Besides diplomats of different countries in Malawi, the anniversary celebrations were also attended by other Malawian tribal chiefs as well as Chief Mutharika from Mozambique and a representative of Kalonga Gawa Undi Paramount Chief of the Chewa tribe in Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia.
Mulhako wa Alhomwe was formed twelve months ago with the aim of reviving, developing, promoting and preserving the Alhomwe traditions, culture, customs and cultural heritage.
Labels: BINGU WA MUTHARIKA, CEREMONIES
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Wa Mutharika fails to show up at Kulamba ceremony
Written by Mwala Kalaluka and Christopher Miti in Mkaika, Katete
Monday, September 07, 2009 2:47:52 PM
MALAWIAN President Bingu wa Mutharika, who was expected to grace this year's Kulamba traditional ceremony with President Rupiah Banda in Eastern Province, did not make it but instead sent his local government minister to represent him.
And the Chewa people have maintained that paramount chief Kalonga Gawa Undi is not fit to be called a 'paramount chief' but a king because he rules over 13.5 million people in the three nations.
President Wa Mutharika, who was expected to co-officiate at the 2009 Kulamba ceremony of the people of Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique, with President Banda, failed to attend and but represented by Malawian local government minister Goodall Gondwe.
The attendance of President Mutharika at this year's ceremony, following last year's unprecedented attendance of presidents from the three countries, was marred with uncertainty.
President Mutharika was expected to arrive in Zambia for the Kulamba Ceremony on Saturday after an earlier tentative programme released by the Eastern Province administration indicated that he would be in Chipata ahead of the ceremony on Friday afternoon.
Mozambican President Armando Guebuza equally sent one of his ministers to represent him.
Speaking through his representative, former Malawian vice-president during the Bakili Muluzi administration, Justine Malewezi, Kalonga Gawa Undi thanked the three presidents from Malawi, Zambia and Malawi, for their presence at the event and he noted that the presidents of Malawi and Mozambique had sent representatives.
"We are most grateful to see in their absence (presidents) the attendance of the first president of the republic of Zambia, Dr Kenneth Kaunda," Kalonga Gawa Undi said. "Your presence is a testimony of the warm relations that exist among the three countries."
Kalonga Gawa Undi said Dr Kaunda's attendance would go a long way to cement the bilateral relations between Zambia and the two countries.
He said as the people celebrated Kulamba, they should remember all those that endured great difficulties to uphold the Chewa tradition and culture.
Kalonga Gawa Undi thanked Wa Mutharika and his government for upholding the Chewa tradition by adhering to the Chewa hierarchy and he observed that there had been a marked improvement in the communication between him and the chiefs in Mozambique since President Armando Guebuza's last visit to Katete.
Kalonga Gawa Undi thanked President Banda for his involvement in ensuring that presidents of the three countries attended the traditional ceremony.
He said the Kulamba ceremony was revived in the 1980s after the colonialists banned it, saying the ban was an act of subjugation by the colonialists.
Kalonga Gawa Undi thanked the Chewa Heritage Foundation and all the people that had played a role in ensuring that this year's Kulamba ceremony was a success.
He apologised to some of the dignitaries who may not have been satisfied with the hospitality accorded to them at this year's ceremony.
"I do not want to spoil the ceremony but allow me to bring to attention a few issues that need government attention," he said.
Kalonga Gawa Undi said peasant farmers in the province were unable to make ends meet because of the high costs of inputs.
He said the late entry of the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) into the province's rural areas exposed small-scale farmers to briefcase business people, who usually bought maize at exploitative prices.
Kalonga Gawa Undi said the numerous interruptions and low electricity voltages experienced in the province affected the area's economic development.
"We are hopeful that with government involvement, these problems would be addressed," he said.
He urged President Banda to ensure that the government attracted investors in the agro-processing sector to the province, which he described as predominantly agricultural.
Several traditional leaders, from the three countries, including paramount chiefs M'mbelwa and Mpezeni of the Ngoni people in Malawi and Zambia respectively, attended the ceremony.
A representative of the 13 Chewa chiefs who travelled from Mozambique to Zambia to attend the traditional ceremony said the chiefs were always keen on having constant interaction with Kalonga Gawa Undi but that they had a problem of communication.
The chief said the Chewa chiefs in that country were fully behind the leadership of Kalonga Gawa Undi.
Several people from all walks of life and nationalities converged at the Chewa capital, situated about four kilometres from the Great East Road in Katete, as early as 08:00 hours to witness the proceedings of the ceremony, which were characterised by various dances.
And former Chipangali member of parliament Lucas Phiri said the classification of Kalonga Gawa Undi as a paramount chief was belittling because he was a king.
He said during his role as master of ceremony at the traditional event, that the title of paramount chief was lumped on the traditional leader, arising from the exploitation that the black man faced from the colonialists.
Officiating at the ceremony, President Banda said a few years from now, the people of Zambia and Malawi would be able to travel by train from Malawi to Kitwe following the completion on the rail link between the countries.
He said the government was in the process of drilling 500 boreholes to service some districts in the Eastern Province.
President Banda said he joined hands with Kalonga Gawa Undi in calling on Zambians to attach great importance to educating their children.
"That is why my government is busy building new schools...and encouraging education as the first front to fighting poverty," he said.
President Banda urged Zambians to utilise every available facility to further their education even at old age.
He encouraged all Zambians to go for Voluntary Counselling and Testing so that they know their HIV status and do something about it.
"Thank you for the variety of names of this vicious disease. It can be managed," he said
President Banda said he heard the complaints from Kalonga Gawa Undi and chief Kawaza on the problems in the procurement of maize among other issues.
"There is a big problem in crop marketing but I want to assure everyone that government has learnt lessons from that and steps are being taken," President Banda said.
Labels: BINGU WA MUTHARIKA, CEREMONIES, KALONGA GAWA UNDI, KULAMBA CEREMONY
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