The majority of Zambians, including Christians living in low income urban communities, believe it is not possible for them to actually influence or even redirect their government’s policies. Many believe that, like their vote, their voices don’t really count. One reason why corruption is so rife during election campaigns is because people know that their voice will not count after the election; therefore, they might just as well sell their vote to the highest bidder for instant gratification.
Hence, winning elections in Zambia has very little to do with issues that one articulates but has everything to do with how much money and goods one offers to voters during the election campaign. For example, 
the Fifth National Plan (FNDP) is the vehicle that Zambia is using to progress toward a middle-income nation. The government should be telling us how it is implementing the FNDP to move the majority of our people out of extreme poverty and how it is reducing child mortality. The opposition political parties should be articulating how they will use the FNDP to transform our nation into an HIV and AIDS free nation, how it will eradicate malaria, how it will work to provide a free education for all, and how it will provide water and sanitation to the marginalized people. Those contesting the Milanzi and the Mufumbwe bye-election should be highlighting their strategy for ensuring environmental sustainability and for creating jobs for our college and university students.
What Zambia needs is a new generation of leaders with a proven track record of genuine help towards the people. We are not doing enough to identify people with a record of standing up for social justice! There are many people serving the local communities who possess a heart of compassion and a voice of justice. We have men and women who possess a discontent about the high level of poverty and HIV and AIDS and are faithfully addressing these issues. Zambians, especially those in rural and urban poor communities, need help identifying such people whose mission is to restore the value base in communities where fifteen year old boys are fathering children with fifteen year old girls. Zambians need help identifying men and women who will pass legislation in Parliament which seeks to free poor people from economic dependency on government programs. We need a Parliament whose mission is to pass legislation that will empower communities by their own efforts to free themselves from malaria infection and other preventable diseases and ensure that they have a role in improving the quality of education offered within their community. Zambians are tired of politicians who are only interested in helping themselves to the gratuities at the end of their term.
We know of no other institution than the church that can do the work of equipping churches and communities to identify the workers who understand the community’s problems and how they can respond. Acts Chapter 6 gives us a powerful principle in how to deal with a community problem. When the problem of vulnerable families started increasing in the community, the church leaders made a proposal that the people look for spiritual and mature men. Through this proposal the needs of vulnerable families were met. The Bible says, “So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests become obedient in faith” (6:7) WOW! Church it can be done. Are you equipping leaders for community transformation? The result is church growth.
Lawrence Temfwe
