ZAMBIA: New President Takes Charge

Zambia’s first elected Catholic president told members of his parish he will base his rule on the Ten Commandments. President Michael Sata, 57, elected September 20, also commended the Catholic Church for the role it played in ensuring that the nation held peaceful elections.

Sata, a member of St Ignatius Parish in central Lusaka, told fellow parishioners September 25 his government will embrace the fight against corruption because the Seventh Commandment states, “Thou shall not steal.”

He said his government will prosecute anyone who steals despite his or her socio-economic status or party affiliation. The new president said he would ensure equal distribution of wealth among all Zambians, saying he would not want to see a situation where his children have three meals a day while others had none. He emphasized the need for people across the country to love one another and embrace reconciliation.

Investments in the mining industry must benefit the people, not corporations  Mr Sata said.

In his first interview with a representative of a foreign country after an election victory that also feeds the hopes of the church in Zambia, President Sata told the Chinese ambassador Zhou Yuxiao:”Your investments should bring benefits to the people of Zambia, not the Chinese.”

China is one of the largest investors in the copper mines of Zambia, Africa’s leading producer of copper, but is rather unpopular for exploiting local workers, something that the new president has always denounced. 

Last week’s election Sata ended twenty years of hegemony of the Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) of outgoing President Rupiah Banda. The outcome of the vote was largely driven by the discontent of young Zambians, who still remains poor and unemployed despite the 7% per annum economic growth based on copper exports.