• President Edgar Lungu (right) addresses chiefs from Luapula, North-Western and Eastern provinces at State House  yesterday. Picture by THOMAS NSAMA

By JAMES KUNDA and DELPHINE ZULU –

PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu has with immediate effect recognised Henry Kanyanta Sosala as Paramount Chief Chitimukulu of the Bemba people.
President Lungu signed the Recognition Order of Mr Sosala under Section three of the Chiefs Act, Chapter 287 of the Laws of Zambia yesterday.
This is according to a statement released by special assistant to the president for press and public relations Amos Chanda, yesterday.
The Statutory Instrument recognising Paramount Chief Chitimukulu will be published in the Government Gazette this week.
The President later telephoned the Mwine Lubemba to inform him of the decision.
Upon assumption of office, President Lungu directed the Ministry of Chiefs and Traditional Affairs to examine the impasse surrounding the selection of the Chitimukulu.
“Ministry of Chiefs and Traditional Affairs Permanent Secretary Coillard Chibbonta this morning reported that he was satisfied that the selection was done in accordance with the Bemba traditions and customs recommended that Mr Henry Kanyanta Sosala be recognised,” Mr Chanda said.
Meanwhile Mr Lungu has challenged traditional leaders in the country to play a parental role in fostering unity and peace.
Mr Lungu said chiefs were viewed as fathers of any nation and urged them to revisit their moral conscious and ensure that regional voting witnessed in the last election was corrected as it had severe repercussions.
Speaking when he met 25 chiefs from North-Western, Luapula and Eastern provinces at State House yesterday, Mr Lungu said chiefs played a critical role in ensuring that peace and unity prevailed in the nation.
“Allow me to appoint people on merit throughout the country and not on tribal lines, but am not impressed with the regional vote pattern which is on the ground, this should not be the case because we are all in one nation,” he said.
Mr Lungu told the chiefs that he was concerned with the tribal divisions especially among political players which was why he invited them to State House in order to understand the tribal tags during elections which he described as dangerous.
“I personally do not believe in tribalism, feel free here and don’t be guilty because your people did not vote for me, they voted who they wanted but for me my worry is the regional voting, I want you to re-think how best you can sort out this mess as you are our parents,” he said.
Chief Mumena of the Kaonde speaking people of Solwezi spoke on behalf of others in his vote of thanks and echoed Mr Lungu’s sentiments on the need to revisit the regional voting which characterised the last elections.
He said traditional leaders had the duty to strengthen unity and peace in the nation and that this had to be urgent especially that it had been experienced.
“It is our duty to maintain peace in the nation but also government should always remember that such issues were as a result of inequitable distribution of wealth especially in the rural areas,” Chief Mumena said.
He advised all political parties to denounce regional voting and sensitise their people on severe repercussions of this trend.
Chief Mumena admitted the voting pattern, saying it showed the divisions that had been created on tribal lines and needed to be addressed in order to save the country from deep tribal accusations.