MARGARET CHISANGA, Lusaka
A day after being declared President-elect of the republic of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema made two public interactions.
The second was a formal press conference he made shortly after his predecessor, Edgar Lungu, conceded defeat. During this address, the President-elect promised a better democracy.
However, his first public interaction, while informal, was arguably the most important because it involved the very people who had facilitated his success in this election: the youth, the people who call him ‘Bally’.
The youth, in full celebratory mood displayed by chant and song, had trekked in groups to his residence and camped outside, awaiting to catch a glimpse of the man they had just employed.
“Bally, Bally, Bally,” they chanted as he was ushered towards them by United Party for National Development  spokesperson Cornelius Mweetwa.
‘Bally’, a term used among the young to refer to a fatherly figure, or indeed one’s own father, was conferred on Mr Hichilema during a Twitter conversation he had with @Chitimbwazito, who was complaining about the effects of university closure on his livelihood.
Unable to understand the slang used in the expression, Mr Hichilema admitted his ignorance and sought counsel. By the end of the CLICK TO READ MORE