Bishop Kalikawe Lwakalinda Bagonza, PhD:
“You are forcing me to say how we got here instead of how we get out of here?!”
I have said many times that it is not important to ask how we got here, but rather to ask how we get out of here.
However, a respected senior figure “forced” me to explain how we got here.
Out of respect, I now say this:
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For many years we have had peace without justice — and there were no protests.
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For many years elections have been disputed — and there were no protests.
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For many years candidates have been disqualified, votes stolen — and there were no protests.
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For many years candidates have been abducted, election officers hiding under tables — and there were no protests.
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For many years corruption has flourished, reports of the Controller and Auditor General ignored, electoral bribery and use of tear gas common — yet there were no protests.
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For many years the Diaspora has existed, supporting both the opposition and CCM — and still no protests.
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For many years opposition leaders have divided themselves, sold victories, even staged their own kidnappings — still no protests.
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For many years opposition leaders have defected to CCM, and false treason charges have been fabricated — yet there were no protests.
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For many years opposition leaders have been arrested, denied justice, imprisoned, and fined — still we saw no protests.
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For many years the Electoral Commission has been appointed by the president, counted votes, or invented results — still no protests occurred.
SO, WHAT HAPPENED THAT PROTESTS FINALLY ERUPTED?
a) Abductions, torture, and brutal killings became rampant, while those responsible remained silent.
b) The issue was brought before Parliament — but the Speaker dismissed it. Had it been accepted, the kidnappings would have stopped. The blood of the innocent cries against the previous Parliament.
c) Cases were taken to court (Habeas Corpus), but were thrown out. And when a court finally ruled in favor of victims, the police defied the ruling. Judges, beware — innocent blood is dangerous.
d) Some religious leaders raised their voices, only to be beaten with iron bars and have their churches closed. Those who remained silent — God will not remain silent for them. Remember: speech is free; the mouth pays no tax.
e) Diplomats were threatened for listening to opposition voices and activists. As I know, the Geneva Convention makes “the king’s dog the king of all dogs.”
f) Brave and independent CCM members warned and advised — but were ignored, threatened, or disqualified from candidacy.
Finally, critics were told to wait until Jesus returns!
Beloved, every human being has a certain threshold of endurance. That endurance is sustained by hope — the hope that tomorrow will be better than today. But that hope disappeared when every avenue to justice was closed. All branches of power united to attack the people’s freedom and rights with impunity.
A poor person stripped of justice and freedom becomes very dangerous. I plead with you — let us reflect on ourselves. Do not just blame the youth or call them “thugs.” A serious economic crisis is approaching. Let us look to the nation before our political parties. We are running late.
I commend all who have begun to see the truth: something is fundamentally wrong. It will not be solved by arrests, imprisonment, deploying more soldiers in the streets, banning political parties, or blaming neighboring nations. The Electoral Commission has lost credibility and integrity. We have shed too much blood for no reason.
If those responsible refuse to listen, then they should expand our prisons — because without repentance and change, today’s jailers will be tomorrow’s prisoners.
Let this truth not destroy our friendships, nor turn shame into anger.
Who is the terrorist — the one who abducts, or the one who is abducted?
These are my thoughts.
You have yours.
The killers have theirs.
The dead have none.
We have wronged them.
Shimba Theological Institute
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