PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu’s historic announcement that he will not allow the country to plunge into chaos by clinging to power is divinely inspired.
This is in view of what is happening in Burundi where President Pierre Nkurunziza has obstinately ignored constitutionally-dictated term limits by selfishly choosing to run for a third term.
Despite a failed coup attempt in May, President Nkurunziza has still refused to step down, a situation that has led to nationwide protests that recently saw the killing of nearly 90 people.
Here is a stubborn man who is telling the world that he is above the law and other regulations that put the interests of the citizens above that of the leader.
Other examples of power-hungry African leaders who have shed the blood of innocent people just to remain in power abound.
It is for this reason that we feel President Lungu’s statement is noble and deserving of respect.
In case some people who are advocating for violence do not know, shedding innocent blood has grave consequences as evidenced by so many examples in the Bible.
In Genesis 4:10 we are told and He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.”
In this verse, God revealed to Cain that He, as the all-knowing and omnipresent God, knew Cain had murdered Abel and had lied.
God uses figurative language to represent Abel’s death: “The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me.” Obviously, Abel’s blood was not literally “crying out” because the Bible teaches that the “dead know nothing” (Ecclesiastes 9:5)
We read about Manasseh and his bitter fruit in 2 Kings 24:1-4 when the Babylonians invaded Judah, because Manasseh had shed innocent blood and the Lord was not willing to forgive.
As punishment, God allowed Babylonia, Aramean, Moabite and Ammonite raiders against him, to destroy Judah, in accordance with the word of the Lord proclaimed by his servants the prophets.
Thus we understand what a God-fearing man President Lungu is, especially when he says he has respect for first Republican President Kenneth Kaunda who agreed to step down when he lost elections in 1991, knowing that he could have held on to power using other means at his disposal.
We feel there was divine intervention that made Dr Kaunda agree to step down when he had other options to remain in power.
It was the same intervention that made the second Republican President Frederick Chiluba, who called himself ‘the master dribbler’, fail to go for a third term and instead chose his once sworn enemy Levy Mwanawasa to take the presidential mantle.
The same intervention was at play yet again when the fourth President Rupiah Banda stepped down for Michael Sata when the former could have resisted and used security personnel to stay in power.
Here we are now listening to a man who is building a tabernacle for the Lord being divinely commanded never to use violence to serve his own interests.
President Lungu has also urged all Zambians to denounce violence and tell the politicians to be peaceful in the run up to the next elections.
Zambians should rally behind Mr Lungu’s selfless pronouncement and respect what he is effecting since he is practically guiding us on what democracy is.
We are just disappointed to note that there are elements in this country who want to frustrate the presidential announcement by fomenting violence.
We are equally disappointed to note that among these spiteful people are clergymen who, despite wearing white collars, are inwardly men of violence.
These are men and women whom Christ denounced in Matthew 23:27 when he said “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs which look beautiful on the outside, but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.”
From now onwards, we want the clergy, the Press, NGOs, the judiciary, security personnel, diplomats, online media and anyone who cares about peace to supplement President Lungu’s announcement of promoting peace and not violence.