Rupiah describes Mwanakatwe as a beacon of peace
Written by George Chellah and Margaret Habbuno
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 3:44:11 PM
PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda yesterday sent a message of condolences to the family of the late John Mwanakatwe.According to a statement issued by State House special assistant to the President for press and public relations Dickson Jere, President Banda described the late Mwanakatwe as a great nationalist who served the nation in various government portfolios with dignity and believed in national cause.
"I have learnt with sorrow the untimely death of Mr John Mwanakatwe who passed away on 23 August, 2009 after an illness," President Banda said in a letter addressed to late Mwanakatwe's son, Mupanga. "He will be remembered as a beacon of peace, unity and hard work. We will greatly miss him."
And Mpulungu MMD member of parliament Lameck Chibombamilimo has described the death of Mwanakatwe as a loss to the nation. He said Mwanakatwe had left an everlasting positive imprint on the development landscape of both Mpulungu and Mbala.
Mwanakatwe was well-known and highly regarded in Zambia, and Zambian studies.
He was the first African to gain a university degree from the then University of Northern Rhodesia, and he went on to serve in the first independence government of Dr Kenneth Kaunda as minister in the ministries of education, mines and finance.
He variously served as chairman of the Constitutional Review Commission, and as Chancellor of the University of Zambia.
Mwanakatwe died on Sunday at the University Teaching Hospital.
Labels: JOHN MWANAKATWE, RUPIAH BANDA
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Sata negotiates his way into ICU to see Mwanakatwe
Written by Ernest Chanda
Sunday, May 17, 2009 3:06:19 PM
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) leader Michael Sata was yesterday denied entry to John Mwanakatwe's hospital room at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the University Teaching Hospital (UTH). Sata, who was accompanied by Chimwemwe member of parliament Willie Nsanda, arrived at the ICU at about 11:24 hours.
Upon reaching the entrance to the ICU, he found a paper on the door with the words "No visitors for Mr Mwanakatwe - by order."
However, he negotiated his way into the ICU and found some junior health workers in the company of a tall doctor who was only identified as having hailed from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Sata inquired from the doctors and his team why they were making so much noise in the ICU.
The doctor remained mute on the question and maintained that he had issued the instructions to stop anyone from seeing Mwanakatwe purely on medical grounds.
"Mr Mwanakatwe suffered a stroke and his condition does not warrant me to allow anyone to see him. This is not an instruction from the family members sir, but I'm doing this as a professional measure," said the doctor.
But before he could leave, Sata advised the doctor to have a human heart and consider other people's feelings.
"You before you became a doctor, you were a human being like me. And your becoming a doctor does not stop you from having human feelings. JMM [John Mupanga Mwanakatwe] is a part of my family and I wanted to see his condition. In any case I will obey your order and I'm leaving."
Sata later left for late former Bank of Zambia governor Francis Nkhoma's house of mourning in Kabulonga where he met with other leaders, including Chasefu FDD member of parliament Chifumu Banda and parliamentary committee deputy chairperson Mkhondo Lungu.
And family spokesperson Dr Francis Manda said the late Nkhoma was a man of humility and had respect for others.
"Francis Nkhoma was a very humble man with a passion for education. He dedicated his time to reading and this helped him achieve the goals he had set. He was not like most of the leaders I see today who spend their time in bars. He was a visionary who every young Zambian should emulate," said Dr Manda.
Nkhoma died of prostate cancer in Lusaka last Friday.
Labels: JOHN MWANAKATWE, SATA
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Vote for the right person, urges Mwanakatwe
By Kelvin Tembo
Wednesday October 22, 2008 [04:01]
John Mwanakatwe has called on Zambians to work towards building peace and stability in the country. And Mwanakatwe has asked Zambians to vote for the right person in the October 30 presidential election. In his Independence message yesterday, Mwanakatwe said lives were lost during the struggle for the peace the country is currently enjoying.
"There is need for everyone to work towards building peace and prosperity and maintain stability," Mwanakatwe said.
He said maintaining stability was cardinal especially that the independence celebrations were coinciding with the presidential elections. Mwanakatwe said there were a lot of countries which had gone to war because of the carelessness of politicians.
He said Zambians of different generations should all stand up and help keep the peace the country was experiencing.
"Peace is closest to my heart and everyone should protect it because it has existed for a long time now," he said.
And Mwanakatwe advised presidential candidates for the October 30 elections against using foul language during campaigns because it had the potential to create anarchy. He said the current language from different politicians was unacceptable.
"Those who have been exhibiting hatred for each other should tone down because it is not good for the country," he said. "We should lessen on the insults, I’m not happy."
Mwanakatwe advised people to vote for a candidate who would look at the interest of the local people. Zambia will be celebrating its 44th independence anniversary this Friday, six days before the presidential election. It is the first time the country will be celebrating its independence without a president.
Labels: JOHN MWANAKATWE
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Dual citizenship isn't an absolute necessity, says Mwanakatwe
By Mwila Chansa
Monday June 16, 2008 [04:00]
THE issue of dual citizenship for Zambia is not an absolute necessity, academician John Mwanakatwe has observed. And Mwanakatwe said although remuneration of freedom fighters was justified, there was no need to constitutionalise their benefits. In an interview at his Kabulonga residence, Mwanakatwe said the question of dual citizenship for Zambia was quite controversial.
“It is certainly not an absolute necessity for the people in Zambia today. That is my opinion, other people are free to hold their own opinions in a democratic state,” he said.
However, Mwanakatwe said provisions of the constitution needed to reflect the views of majority Zambians and if it was their wish that dual citizenship be included, then it should be adopted.
“In other words if the people of Zambia would like dual citizenship for whatever reason, then it can be adopted. I do not know what those good reasons would be,” he said
And Mwanakatwe said it was not necessary to constitutionalise the benefits of freedom fighters.
“I belong to the group of Zambian men and women who strongly feel that remuneration in one form or another of freedom fighters is justified and necessary,” he said. “However, how should that be done? Speaking as a senior lawyer in our country, I do not think it is necessary at all to make a provision in the constitution merely in order to promote the concept of remuneration or support for freedom fighters and their families.”
Mwanakatwe said the constitution should be used to provide for policies of importance today and for many years to come.
Mwanakatwe said in his opinion, this did not apply to the issue of finding support and livelihood for freedom fighters as this could be done by passing a law in Parliament that would authorise the provision of benefits in addition to defining the terms applicable.
He said passing a law in Parliament would be a better approach as the number of freedom fighters and their immediate families had been decreasing every year since independence.
“In other words, the need to remunerate and support freedom fighters is likely to be irrelevant in a short time hence forth,” said Mwanakatwe.
Labels: DUAL CITIZENSHIP, JOHN MWANAKATWE
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American institute awards John Mwanakatwe
By Mwala Kalaluka
Thursday March 27, 2008 [03:00]
THE American Biographical Institute has awarded educationist John Mwanakatwe a Gold Medal for Zambia for his autobiography, which was published in 2005. In an interview yesterday, Mwanakatwe, who is also a lawyer, said this was the third time he was receiving honours from international literary institutions for the books he has authored.
“You are aware that one of my hobbies in my entire lifetime is book writing; I enjoy writing books. So far I have written three books,” Mwanakatwe said. “The third book, which is the subject of our discussion, was published in 2005 and is entitled, John Mwanakatwe; Politician, Teacher and Lawyer.”
He said following a review of the books that were published between 2005 to date, the American Biographical Institute established that Mwanakatwe’s autobiography deserves honour.
“They decided to offer me a Gold Medal for my own country,” Mwanakatwe said. “This implies that they have received favourable reviews of my books.
The reviews came from institutions in several parts of the world; particularly parliamentary organisations, museums, libraries in institutions of learning. These are the institutions which made comments on the book.”
The letter from the American Biographical Institute to Mwanakatwe stated that the award bestowed on him transmits a passion and spirit that animate others to strive for the highest ideals on the betterment of humankind.
“As one who has contributed in a particularly creative way to national life, it is with profound pleasure that the highest officers of the Institute have nominated you to receive the Gold Medal for Zambia,” the letter read in part.
And Mwanakatwe, who reduced the price of his book from K120,000 to K80,000, said the poor reading culture in Zambia will continue to be an issue as long as costs of books remain astronomical.
Labels: EDUCATION, JOHN MWANAKATWE
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