Musa Mwenye
Across 2020, Zambia experienced no shortage of disappointments and setbacks. Yet there are some individuals whose courage and principles made them inspiring figures in the political landscape last year. In this article and the next, I list two sets of citizens of 2020: those who through their actions offered hope to Zambians and those who were huge disappointments. Today, I focus on those Zambians who inspired public trust. Next week, it will be the turn of the individuals and institutions who disappointed.
The heroes
Zambia suffers from a deficit of genuine, consistent heroes. Perhaps there are many unsung heroes whose quiet and diligent work in our own communities goes unnoticed. I apologise for overlooking them in this article. The people I discuss below are drawn from those in public life whose actions are reported in the mainstream media – those who try to contribute positively to our political life and are willing to risk the ire and repression of the authorities in defence of the public good or what is just, ethical and principled. The shortness of the list, which is not put in any order of importance, speaks for itself and points to the great absence of commendable figures in our public life who inspire.