A Reality Check for Hon. Sunday Chanda: Power Is Not Retained by Illusion
By the Independent Correspondent – January 4, 2026
Kanchibiya Member of Parliament Sunday Chanda appears to be living in a political illusion—one where President Hakainde Hichilema is supposedly on course to retain power in this year’s general elections. That illusion ignores both Zambia’s recent political history and the lived reality of citizens across the country.
Hon. Chanda would do well to remember that political tides can turn abruptly. A president who once faced angry youths throwing stones at him—symbolic of public frustration—can just as quickly find himself on the receiving end of “political stones” cast through the ballot box. Power in a democracy is never guaranteed; it is leased by the people and reclaimed the moment leadership fails them.
It is therefore naïve, if not disingenuous, for Hon. Chanda to suggest that all is well simply because some MPs allegedly pocketed USD 150,000 to support the passage of a bill that was overwhelmingly rejected by civil society, the Church, and the general citizenry. That money did not buy national consensus. It did not buy happiness. And it certainly did not buy legitimacy.
Hon. Chanda is, by his own conduct and public utterances, an ardent supporter of the UPND. That alone makes him the wrong person to offer objective or cogent political advice. Every time he opens his mouth, he finds reason to praise the UPND—even as his own constituents are forced to share fertiliser and seed, even as farmers who supplied maize to the Food Reserve Agency remain unpaid. In his logic, Zambians are so foolish that they would willingly return a government that has failed on virtually every promise it made to the electorate.
The truth on the ground tells a different story. Zambians today are more divided than ever, not by accident, but because those in leadership have chosen to echo divisive rhetoric and encourage regionalism. The cost of food has soared to levels never witnessed in this country’s history. Families are struggling to survive, while government officials issue excuses and self-congratulatory statements.
At the same time, strategic national assets have been sold off to foreign interests—often in deals where high-profile individuals have clear vested interests. To assume that citizens are blind to these transactions is to grossly underestimate the intelligence and awareness of the Zambian people. Silence must not be mistaken for satisfaction. It is, rather, the calm before a political storm.
Zambians are far smarter than Hon. Chanda gives them credit for. Their silence is not submission; it is brewing anger. And that anger will be expressed peacefully but decisively at the ballot box. The “credible political indicators” Hon. Chanda claims to see—indicators seemingly measured in USD 150,000 tranches—will evaporate with the dissolution of Parliament. Come August 13, President Hichilema and those who enabled his failures will be held accountable for the lies, the broken promises, and the growing hardship imposed on the nation. The fall will be loud, clear, and entirely democratic.
Let Hon. Chanda also be reminded that the role of the Opposition has always been to campaign, to provide checks and balances, and to speak for the voiceless. That role has been systematically frustrated by his UPND colleagues through the misuse of the police and other state institutions. The sustained attacks on the Catholic Church—an institution that stood firmly with the UPND during its time in opposition—have only deepened public disillusionment and will carry consequences at the polls.
This year’s elections are not about propaganda, money, or intimidation. They are about integrity, honesty, and a genuine love for country. They are about the desire to unite Zambia, not divide it. Sadly for Hon. Chanda and the UPND, these are precisely the attributes that are glaringly absent in the incumbent leadership.
