Zambia has always fascinated me as a country since it came into my consciousness as a young boy through the captivating words of the recently departed ‘father’ of the Nation, Pa Kenneth (K.K.) Kaunda, in his iconic autobiography, ZAMBIA MUST BE FREE. I have been privileged to experience in real life, a lot of the amazing pictures painted through words in the books of my childhood. From descending deep into the belly of the earth in the Copper mines, to gaping in awe at the Black Mountains of Kitwe which K.K. described in his book, I lived the stories that intrigued me as a young boy. I have experienced the taste and smell of Nkomboti, which I once wondered about in the captivating pages of MINE BOY by Peter Abrahams. While I never made it to Soweto, I shared nkombonti in a Cape Town shanty with people that I had never met but who were genuinely thrilled that I, a Nigerian, had come into the Shanties to imbibe their local brew. I could barely stand the taste and smell which was reminiscent of the popular ‘burukutu’ of Jos, Plateau State but I soldiered on for the sake of the fatherland and finished my tin cup of horrible smelling brew. Remembering the irrepressible ‘Leah’ of Abraham’s book, I happily paid for a full drum of the liquid for my new friends and dashed back to my hotel just in time before the sickness took over. But the experience was worth it. I have also danced with Maasai tribesmen, peered over the Rift valley in Kenya, and tasted spices in Zanzibar amongst various other unforgettable pleasures around the African continent. I once had grilled boar bollocks in Nairobi but this is about Zambia.
Modern Zambia is a paradox. From a prosperous country with the honour of being the second biggest Copper producer on the continent to being the first to default on its debt repayment obligations to the international community, it now has over half of its citizens living below the poverty line. You would find it difficult to believe this though, especially if you are from Nigeria where vocal, and sometimes violent, complaints about our lot is the vogue. They get on with their lives and make the best of the situation. You do not need a lot of money to be happy but when it comes to having a good time, you can hardly find a people better at it than Zambians. Like Nigeria (and indeed most of Africa), Zambia has a largely youthful population. Most of them are quite politically savvy and their understanding of the democratic process is about a high as I have seen anywhere in the Western world. There had been a deep discontent with the Patriotic Front (PF) government of Edgar Lungu for a while but nobody called for any kind of unconstitutional removal of the government. Last time I was in the country in December of 2020, I observed a quiet determination by those young people I interacted with to get rid of the government of Edgar Lungu at the next possible opportunity – the next election. There was no hysteria and no confusing their angst with the government with disgust for Zambia. Over 50% of the voting population of Zambia is less than 35 years old and they took a collective decision to replace the government of Lungu which they felt was not meeting their aspirations with one that they were convinced would better serve their needs. That is what I call the real ‘Sorosoke’ generation.
When the opportunity to register to vote or update their voters registrations was made available, there was an unprecedented upsurge in the numbers of first-timers who got their names on the voting registers. They did not ‘register’ on social media and continue to advocate for a new government in the ‘Twitter’ Republic of Zambia! No! They went out and got their Voter cards. They had a mission they were serious about and they knew there was only one way to achieve it. I have several young Zambians as friends on Social Media and on my Whatsapp contact list. Thelma was a young lady in a class I ran in December and I followed her messages regarding the election closely. The constant reminders to get Lungu out on the 12th of August. The promotion of ‘Bally’ (the nickname of the eventual winner Hakainde Hichelema), and as the election day dawned, the various announcements of her movement to the voting center to cast her vote, with some voters heading out as early as 6am. I was not a bit surprised when HH who had lost the previous 5 attempts to be President (losing the last effort by a mere 100,000 votes), was declared winner this time around by almost a million votes. When you consider that this difference was from a total votes of just 4.6m voters, you begin to appreciate the margin of defeat suffered by the incumbent.
Some other numbers are relevant here. Zambia has a population of about 19m people. This is the population of Lagos alone (probably even taking out Ajah). The total number of registered voters is 7,023,499 which is 37% of the population. Total voter turnout was put at over 71% of registered voters with more than half of them being youth (I mean real youth, not the type running the youth wing in Nigerian political parties whom those they lead call Uncle or Daddy). Voter turnout in the 2019 election in which Nigeria’s ‘Sorosoke’ generation wanted President Buhari out was less than 35%. The more recent election held in Lagos had a total voting population of less than one million, with some Local Government Chairmen being elected with less than 10,000 votes. What all these figures mean is quite clear: HH is President-elect of Zambia today because people like Thelma decided so. That is what ‘sorosokeism’ should be about. It is recognising and properly channelling the potent power of the numbers they have into creating the opportunities for the future they desire. It is realising that they can make a difference if they are willing to work at it. It is accepting to play by the rules with patience and resoluteness. HH contested 6 times before he won the election to become President. It has taken him 16 years of building the UNDP and making his voice heard to get to the seat he will be occupying in a few weeks. He did not try to bring Zambia down to the ground because he lost an election. Despite being one of the richest men in Zambia, he spent months in jail on a frivolous accusation of blocking the President’s convoy. He didn’t think that was enough reason to instigate strife and discord in the country. He knew the day would come and the people would speak with their cards. He identified the bloc that would make the difference and endeared himself to them.
2023 Presidential elections in Nigeria are around the corner. Yes, it might still be almost 2 years away but when you consider the amount of work that is required to achieve the kind of change that Nigerians claim they want to make, then time is far gone. Where are the ‘Ballys’? Who is galvanising the youth and infusing them with the passion and fervour to sacrifice in order to achieve the change they claim they want in the system? If Nigerian youths can remain awake all night to watch and cast over 100 million votes to choose a contestant as winner in a pointless reality show (and pay for that privilege), why do they find t impossible to stand in the queue for one hour to choose a leader whose decisions will impact their lives and that of generations to come? Why was it so convenient and easy for them to mouth “Sorosoke” and go gather for days, seeking an unconstitutional and potentially violent overthrow of the government but they would prefer to spend the day watching football or Big Brother rather than go out to mobilise for or even vote for the leader they want. Yet the decibels of their chants are the loudest on cyberspace when complaining about bad governments.
Maybe it is time Nigerian youths looked towards Zambia for the real definition of Sorosoke!