AS the echoes of President Hakainde Hichilema’s New Year address continue to reverberate across the nation, one message stands out with unmistakable clarity: responsibility.
His appeal was not a perfunctory reminder delivered out of tradition, but a profound civic and moral call to action. It is a call that demands more than passive listening; it requires active engagement from every citizen. At the dawn of 2026, an election year that will test both our unity and our discipline, the President’s words carry the weight of national destiny.
The festive season, so often marked by joy and togetherness, has tragically become synonymous with preventable loss. Statistics from Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) are a grim annual refrain, reminding us that reckless driving, drunkenness, and disregard for traffic laws continue to claim lives.
Each number in those reports is not merely a statistic. It is a shattered family, a diminished community, and a national potential cut short. When President Hichilema urges responsibility, he is asking us to see beyond the steering wheel or the bottle. He is asking us to value the collective journey we are on as Zambians.
Recklessness on the road is not a private act, but a betrayal of the unity and peace that the President champions. It fractures families and, by extension, fractures the nation. Protecting one another’s lives through sober, attentive, and lawful conduct is the foundational layer of being ‘One Zambia, One Nation’.
We cannot speak of unity while ignoring the individual choices that tear us apart. No life should be lost in the pursuit of celebration. To drink and drive, to speed recklessly, or to ignore road safety is to squander not only one’s own life but also the collective effort of national recovery.
This is where the President’s biblical analogy from Exodus resonates deeply. He invoked the image of God’s people marching through the desert, “with tired feet, heavy hearts”, yet moving forward towards a promised land. That imagery mirrors our current national experience. Zambia’s journey has indeed been tough.
Yet, as the President rightly catalogued, progress is visible: restored free education, a stabilised currency, a resurgent mining sector, and a landmark agricultural harvest. These are not political boasts; they are evidence of a nation that is, as he stated, “no longer stuck”, but “moving ahead with purpose”.
Believing in this process is not about blind faith in Government. It is about recognising our own stake in these national victories and understanding their fragility. The President’s twin themes are one: our shared responsibility ensures our shared progress.
The discipline to drive safely during the festivities is the same discipline that will see us engage in peaceful political discourse. The belief he speaks of is the belief that individual actions contribute to national destiny.
Squandering lives on the road would be to squander the effort of national recovery, just as political violence would be to abandon the path to the promised land.
As we enter 2026, let us internalise President Hichilema’s message. Let us celebrate with joyful hearts but sober minds, protecting the lives that are Zambia’s greatest resource.
Let us debate with fervent passion but unwavering respect, protecting the peace that is our most precious foundation. The journey is long, and the destination of a prosperous, equitable Zambia for all is indeed worth it.
Responsibility is not a burden; it is the truest form of patriotism. By being responsible citizens on the road, at the ballot box, and in our communities, we lift the banner of peace and prove that – through collective actions – the best is truly still ahead of us.
Festive joy must not come at cost of life
AS the echoes of President Hakainde Hichilema’s New Year address continue to reverberate across the nation, one message stands out with unmistakable clarity: responsibility.
His appeal was not a perfunctory reminder delivered out of tradition, but a profound civic and moral call to action. It is a call that demands more than passive listening; it requires active engagement from every citizen. At the dawn of 2026, an election year that will test both our unity and our discipline, the President’s words carry the weight of national destiny.
The festive season, so often marked by joy and togetherness, has tragically become synonymous with preventable loss. Statistics from Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) are a grim annual refrain, reminding us that reckless driving, drunkenness, and disregard for traffic laws continue to claim lives.
Each number in those reports is not merely a statistic. It is a shattered family, a diminished community, and a national potential cut short. When President Hichilema urges responsibility, he is asking us to see beyond the steering wheel or the bottle. He is asking us to value the collective journey we are on as Zambians.
Recklessness on the road is not a private act, but a betrayal of the unity and peace that the President champions. It fractures families and, by extension, fractures the nation. Protecting one another’s lives through sober, attentive, and lawful conduct is the foundational layer of being ‘One Zambia, One Nation’.
We cannot speak of unity while ignoring the individual choices that tear us apart. No life should be lost in the pursuit of celebration. To drink and drive, to speed recklessly, or to ignore road safety is to squander not only one’s own life but also the collective effort of national recovery.
This is where the President’s biblical analogy from Exodus resonates deeply. He invoked the image of God’s people marching through the desert, “with tired feet, heavy hearts”, yet moving forward towards a promised land. That imagery mirrors our current national experience. Zambia’s journey has indeed been tough.
Yet, as the President rightly catalogued, progress is visible: restored free education, a stabilised currency, a resurgent mining sector, and a landmark agricultural harvest. These are not political boasts; they are evidence of a nation that is, as he stated, “no longer stuck”, but “moving ahead with purpose”.
Believing in this process is not about blind faith in Government. It is about recognising our own stake in these national victories and understanding their fragility. The President’s twin themes are one: our shared responsibility ensures our shared progress.
The discipline to drive safely during the festivities is the same discipline that will see us engage in peaceful political discourse. The belief he speaks of is the belief that individual actions contribute to national destiny.
Squandering lives on the road would be to squander the effort of national recovery, just as political violence would be to abandon the path to the promised land.
As we enter 2026, let us internalise President Hichilema’s message. Let us celebrate with joyful hearts but sober minds, protecting the lives that are Zambia’s greatest resource.
Let us debate with fervent passion but unwavering respect, protecting the peace that is our most precious foundation. The journey is long, and the destination of a prosperous, equitable Zambia for all is indeed worth it.
Responsibility is not a burden; it is the truest form of patriotism. By being responsible citizens on the road, at the ballot box, and in our communities, we lift the banner of peace and prove that – through collective actions – the best is truly still ahead of us.