By SAM PHIRI –
NATIONAL Guidance and Religious Affairs Minister Godfridah Sumaili has challenged the Church in Luapula Province to take advantage of the huge gathering at the Luapula Expo and Investment Conference, as well as the Umutomboko traditional ceremony to remind people of good moral values.
Reverend Sumaili said reports that the National Aids Council of Zambia (NAC) had sent 120,000 condoms to the Expo clearly showed that there would be sexual and other related illicit activities like alcohol and drug abuse at the events.
The minister said it would be prudent for the Church to also fully participate in the prevention of the spread of HIV and the collapsing morals through preaching abstinence and against alcohol and drug abuse.

REV. SUMAILI

“This is a challenge to all men and women of God in Luapula to take this call seriously, of preaching the Word of God, and a strong message of abstinence as NAC carries out its mandate as well,” she said.
Rev Sumaili said President Edgar Lungu had made it clear that Zambia’s prosperity depended on people’s behavioural change of embracing good morals.
On Tuesday, NAC announced that it had offloaded more than 100,000 male and 20,000 female condoms ahead of the Luapula Expo and Investment Conference to be distributed in all social and public places in the province.
Luapula Province Aids  coordinator advisor Nathan Kabwe said the move was to ensure that preventive measures were put in place to avoid the spread of the pandemic, which Rev Sumaili said could be better enhanced by putting  emphasis on abstinence.