Each day that goes by, the cost of living in Zambia keeps getting hard such that basic needs such as shelter, food and clothing prices keep going up. The once beautiful peaceful country is now filled with bloodshed. Most people earn between k1500-2500 a month and this salary has to be divided between food, clothing and housing. Furthermore, there are also school fees involved, electricity as well as water bills. People have now opted to use charcoal for cooking because electricity is expensive, however, this causes deforestation.
The cost of renting a decent house costs about k1500-2500 which is someone’s salary. Furthermore, there are also medical bills involved because most government hospitals do not have the required equipment as well as personnel to conduct Gastric Bypass surgery on obese patients for instance. The patients are forced to see medical attention in other countries such as India and South Africa and such surgeries require huge sums of money, not only for hospital expenses but also traveling expenses as well as accommodation, transport, to and from the airport to the hospital.
However, in the midst of all these economic problems, most people seem to overlook the hardships they encounter and find themselves fighting each other over who belongs to which party and who supports the opposition. The, news yesterday broadcasted the death of a United Party for National Development member who was shot for attending a UPND rally. The woman lost her life and the most loss that will be felt comes from the bereaving family because once the elections end, she will only be remembered as a person that lost her life due to political violence. Why can’t people see that political violence does not only hurt but also destroys peace and unity. We are one Zambia one nation and it is in times like this that people unite in order to choose a president that will help alleviate poverty, hunger, health problems and bring development. Whether PF or UPND, no one has the right to victimize the other and force him/she to vote for a president they do not believe in.
We fight each other for belonging to different political parties but at the end of the day, the people we fight for go back to their comfortable places while we continue staying in poverty. It is time to condemn political violence and stop the bloodshed of innocent people.
The Curator 