.LUNGU

By STEPHEN KAPAMBWE –

On Friday, April 24 2015, Israel celebrated its 67th Independence anniversary.
This came nearly a month after President Edgar Lungu restored full relations with that country by appointing former Zambia Security Intelligence Service Director General Martin Mwanambale who was sworn in on May 25, 2015 as Zambia’s Ambassador-designate to Israel to be resident in Jerusalem.
Mr Lungu asked Mr Mwanambale to focus on agricultural technology to help prevent hunger which could affect Suthern Africa in general and Zambia in particular due to a partial drought that has affected parts of the region.
President Lungu urged Mr Mwanambale to scout for technology which will help the country address challenges in the new and unfolding weather patterns as Israel is successful in that sector.
He urged the envoy to foster the growth of direct investment between the two countries.
He said Zambia would be looking up to Mr Mwanambale to see how best the country benefits from diplomatic relations with Israel.
Traditional leaders through Save Rural Africa Foundation (SARAF) hailed Mr Mwanambale’s appointment.
SARAF General Secretary Pastor Wisdom Gondwe also congratulated Israel on its national day.
He paid tribute to President Lungu, saying his decision to restore full diplomatic relations with Israel is not only prophetic but also opens doors to economic, social and cultural benefits that Zambia stands to gain from Israel’s superior economic and technological advancement.
Pastor Gondwe said his organisation, which is led by its president Chief Chipepo, is happy that Zambia’s sixth President has fully restored diplomatic relations with Israel.
He said in 1964, the UNIP administration under Zambia’s founding President Kenneth Kaunda established relations with Israel.
“That was a Biblical decision. It was a divine decision because in Genesis 12:3, the Bible says that whoever blesses Israel remains
blessed himself, whether it’s an individual, a family, a community or a country; whoever blesses Israel according to God’s law will remain blessed himself; and whoever curses Israel remains cursed,” Pastor Gondwe said.
He said prior to 1973 when Zambia had diplomatic relations with Israel, the country received support in the building of some of the halls at the University of Zambia (UNZA), construction of part of Kafue township and the establishment of the Kafubu bloc agricultural resettlement scheme in Luanshya, among other things.
Israel was also helpful in the introduction of hybrid poultry in Zambia as well as the dairy industry which, for the first time, made it possible for a cow to produce milk without having a calf just like chickens were able to lay eggs without a rooster.
Pastor Gondwe said Israel also helped introduce the growing of citrus fruits like seedless oranges that are still available in the country to this day. He said during the time Zambia had active relations with Israel, the Kwacha had more exchange value than the British pound sterling and the United States (US) dollar.
“I personally went to England, and I travelled several places, 45 Ngwee was before 1973 equivalent to £1.25. Similarly, it was
equivalent to US$1.25 and the Kwacha was trading on the international market. You could go with it anywhere,” he said.
However, when the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the forerunner to the African Union (AU), broke relations with Israel because of politics involving Palestine, the Zambian economy just like that of the entire continent of Africa went into decline except for Malawi and a few other countries that were still trading with Israel.
Nevertheless, when Dr Chiluba assumed the Zambian presidency, he re-established diplomatic relations between Zambia and Israel.
Dr Chiluba, a professed Pentecostal believer declared Zambia as a Christian Nation. But the declaration guaranteed religious freedoms by supporting freedom of worship, as it was said Zambia would be tolerant of other religions.
The declaration was based on the second book of Corinthians 7:14 in the Bible which quotes God as having said, “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn away from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
It is said Zambia was declared a Christian nation because it was Dr Chiluba’s belief that a nation whose leader fears God prospers
economically, a position that is supported by the Christian faith.
The declaration has since been enshrined in the Republican Constitution where it appears in the preamble.
However, although Dr Chiluba subsequently restored diplomatic relations with Israel, he did not send an ambassador to Jerusalem.
According to Pastor Gondwe, it was roughly 24 years from the time Zambia severed relations with Israel during the Kaunda regime to the time relations were restored by Dr Chiluba.
According to Pastor Gondwe, the number 24 has a Biblical significance.
It is divisible twice by 12 which is considered a perfect number. It is said the number also symbolises God’s power and authority and serves as a perfect governmental foundation.
It can also symbolise completeness of the nation of Israel as a whole.
For example, there were 12 patriarchs from the generation of Shem to that of Jacob; there were 12 sons of Jacob (in Genesis) and those 12 sons formed the 12 tribes of Israel.
Jacob (also named Israel) had twelve sons, each of which represented a tribe begun by a prince, for 12 princes total. Ishmael, who was born to Abraham through Hagar, also had twelve princes.
Jesus Christ called and chose 12 disciples to bear witness to what he did and to spread the good news of the gospel to the entire world.
Christ’s bride (the Church) in Revelation 12 (in the Bible), wears a crown containing twelve stars.
“When Zambia broke relations with Israel, Dr Kaunda was 49 years old.
Again 49 is another number which is of Biblical significance. It is a multiple of 7 (as in 7×7; and 7 is associated with divine completion and perfection).
“But to the glory of God, Dr Kaunda has been spared. He is the only one of the OAU founding presidents who is still living,” he said.
Pastor Gondwe said it was amazing that at a time when Dr Kaunda is still strong and having celebrated his 91st birthday recently, Zambia,
through President Lungu has fully restored relations with Israel exactly 42 years after the relations were broken; 42 being a genealogy figure in the Bible.
“42 is a genealogy figure. In the Bible when you move from Old Testament to New Testament, from Abraham to Jesus Christ, there are 42
generations. So we are saying, there is a spiritual dimension to this restoration of relations between Zambia and Israel because it was
roughly 24 years when Dr Chiluba re-established relations with Israel, which was a political decision, and it is 42 years when President
Lungu has appointed an able civil servant in the name of Martin Mwanambale to become the first ambassador of Zambia who would be
resident in Jerusalem,” Pastor Gondwe said.
He said this is the first time Zambia is having an ambassador who would be resident in Jerusalem since 1964.
He said previously, Zambia just had non-residential ambassadors who represented the country in Israel but were resident in either Egypt or Ethiopia.
Pastor Gondwe said the restoration of full diplomatic relations between Zambia and Israel came at a time when Israel was preparing to commemorate 67 years of nationhood from 1948.
“We are saying happy birthday to the citizens of Israel. We are wishing Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu and his cabinet and the
honorary president the best of life, the best of lack and God’s blessings,” he said.
He said SARAF looked forward to greater economic, scientific, agricultural, technological and educational cooperation with the Jewish State from which Zambia can learn a lot.
Zambia also stands to gain in the area of tourism where Israel has a lot to offer.
SARAF further paid tribute to the family of Rabai Ram and his sister Ronnie Natanel which has given a fully mechanised farm in Jerusalem to the Messianic Church in Zambia.
“We want to appreciate their gesture. Zambia is the only foreign nation today which has land in Jerusalem,” he said.
He said the family has also been praying and seeking the face of God for the sake of Zambia.
Pastor Gondwe said SARAF and the church in Zambia are appreciative of what the Patriotic Front (PF) Government of President Lungu has done by restoring full relations with Israel because they have fulfilled scripture.
“Zambia and Israel stand together before heaven and before God and that is because Israel is by God, Zambia is by man surrendering to God. So in Africa, Zambia carries the mantle of God and we hope all other countries on the continent can follow the example of Zambia by having their embassies based in Jerusalem because Jerusalem is the city-centre for the world, it is the capital city of the world spiritually,” he said.
He said traditional leaders in the country are totally in support of Israel.
SARAF is a faith based organisation that is registered by the Registrar of Societies. It subscribes to Christian principles and
evangelism in Zambia’s villages, is its’ primary role, given that Zambia is basically a village society upon which every individual’s national registration is based.
“We as a country have strength in our National Registration Card which was introduced way back between 1964 and 1966. The identity of a person is connected to his parents, his village and his chief – as a tribe – and then the national identity.
“The chiefs, who number 288, created and established SARAF in 2009. It was launched by Dr Chiluba and it has been supported by all the presidents that came after him, including President Lungu,” Pastor Gondwe said.
In its efforts to evangelise, SARAF is the first organisation in Zambia to provide copies of the Bible to all traditional leaders in the country. Two Bibles, each worth $100, were provided to all the 288 chiefdoms across the country.
SARAF also provided copies of the Bible to all the judges in the country who numbered 55 at the time of distribution.
SARAF worked with the late President Michael Sata’s office to distribute Bible copies to all ministerial offices for the benefit of
all the ministers serving in the Cabinet.
The organisation has also provided Bibles to the Zambia Police from the rank of Inspector General (IG) to provincial commanding
officers throughout the country.
SARAF is currently working towards giving translated versions of the Bible to all village headmen in the country. The copies would be in key local languages to make it easier to evangelise to village headmen.
Pastor Gondwe said it is by divine providence that SARAF, which coincidentally is a name of a high-level angel in the Hebrew language, has identified itself with President Lungu over his decision to fully restore diplomatic ties with Israel.
It is equally not a coincidence that relations with Israel were made by President Lungu who is married to First Lady Esther.
The name Esther in the Hebrew language is Adasa or Hadassah, a Biblical name of Queen Esther, the greatest Jewish heroin who saved the Jewish people from annhilation.