JUBILEE COMMEMORATION OR CELEBRATION? FIFTY YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE BRINGS MUCH TO COMMEMORATE, WHICH IS SIMPLY TO REMEMBER IN CONTEXT, THE SIGNIFICANCE OF HOW WE ARRIVED AT 24 OCTOBER 1964. YOU WILL RECALL, THAT DURING THE BUDGET SPEECH, WE WERE TOLD 90% OF ZAMBIANS WERE BORN AFTER 1968, BEING 45 AND BELOW. THIS GENERATION MUST NEVER FORGET NOR TAKE FOR GRANTED, THE COURAGE SHOWN BY THOSE WHO CAME BEFORE US AND DEMANDED FOR SELF RULE. THERE ARE MANY WELL KNOWN FREEDOM FIGHTERS BUT ALSO MANY UNKNOWN ONES, WHOSE EFFORT MUST NEVER BE INVAIN. WE COMMEMORATE AND PAY TRIBUTE TO THOSE MEN AND WOMEN WHO MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR US TO SHARE ONE IMPORTANT AND COMMON FACTOR: BEING ZAMBIAN. THIS COMMON HERITAGE IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT IN A COUNTRY WITH SUCH DIVERSE ETHNIC GROUPINGS AND LANGUAGES SPOKEN. IT IS EVEN MORE SIGNIFICANT THAT NATIONAL UNITY HAS BEEN MAINTAINED, A MAJOR CHALLENGE IN OTHER AFRICAN DEMOCRACIES WITH EVEN LESS ETHINC GROUPINGS THAN ZAMBIA. AND THAT IS WHY WE MUST CELEBRATE THE JUBILEE TOO. WE MUST CELEBRATE OUR COUNTRY AS A GIFT TO HAVE DOMINION OVER FOR THE GOOD OF ALL CITIZENS. WE MUST CELEBRATE OUR DIVERSITY IN UNITY THAT HAS KEPT US PEACEFUL FOR FIFTY YEARS. WE MUST CELEBRATE THE PRE-INDEPENDENCE GENERATION SHARING THE JUBILEE PLATFORM WITH THE POST INDEPENDENCE GENERATION, AS A SIGN OF CONTINUITY. WE MUST SIMPLY CELEBRATE BEING ALIVE DURING ZAMBIAS JUBILEE. HOW DO WE COMMEMORATE AND CELEBRATE AT THE SAME TIME? OUR COUNTRY HAS EXPERIENCED THE JOYS AND CRIES OF SELF DETERMINATION. AT FIFTY, WE KNOW WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOES NOT. WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO EMBRACE THAT WHICH CAN MAKE US EVEN MORE PROUD OF BEING ZAMBIAN TO INCLUDE FAMILY VALUES OF KINDNESS, RESPONSIBILITY, HARDWORK ETHIC, HONESTY, SELF DISCIPLINE, AND INCLUSIVENESS. LET US ALL COMMEMORATE WITH REVERENCE OUR FIFTIETH INDEPENDENCE ANNIVERSARY AND CELEBRATE WITH MEASURE, KNOWING THE FUTURE CALLS US ALL TO MAKE ZAMBIA BETTER FOR THE NEXT GENERATION.
Posted on: Thu, 23 Oct 2014 07:43:51 +0000
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