During the launch of the manifesto for the Movement for Economic Emancipation (MEE) in Lusaka over the weekend, the party’s president Given Chansa made remarkable comments about how Zambia’s development is dependent on the knowledge of all, and not a few professions.
Below are the few striking points from his speech:
He says we cannot just rely on the knowledge of laws, we need all these other disciplines.
At Independence in 1964, we had only 3 Black Lawyers, 1 Black Engineer, 3 Black Doctors and in total less than 100 Black University graduates.
We had only 884 men with only 77 women holding Secondary School qualifications complimented by about 4, 000 holding Junior Secondary School (Form II) certification.
We had only a few thousands junior teachers, clerks, policemen and semi-skilled workers with only Primary School Education to complete our entire national human resource to run the nation.
The whole point of free education was to build the national local expertise so we can run the affairs of our new independent nation competently.
Why do we have to continue running the country like the only educated people we have are lawyers, economists and politicians?
Where are other disciplines? We have been led by Lawyers, economists and political scientists for a very long time now.
Where has that taken us? Why not try others?