Don't Kubeba! (Shh..)

Don't Kubeba!  (Shh...)

Yesterday we packed our evacuation bags.  We were ready to flee Zambia at a moment's notice.

Our sweet, peace-loving Zambia threatened to erupt into full-blown violence,  if the opposition candidate didn't win.

We prepared for the worst as we waited for the electoral commission to release the final results.

Alex and Isaac asked me how I knew that the "bad guys weren't going to kill us."  I explained we'd be fine if we stayed home and avoided town.  So we planned a game night with friends and waited to hear the announcement scheduled for 6pm.

At 6 pm:  no results.  At 8 pm:  no results.  At 10 pm:  no results.  

Our friends went home and we headed to bed.  At 2 am I heard sirens, horns, and noisy crowds.  Either the world was going to hell, or there was a celebration in the streets.  Or both.

Mr. Michael Sata finally won the presidency and the city was ecstatic.  It still is.

The reason is simple:   Zambians felt like their voices were finally heard.

I have to hand it to Mr. Sata.  He had a brilliant strategy called: Don't Kubeba!  (Shh...)

He encouraged voters to pretend like they were supporting the incumbent president, but then secretly vote for Mr. Sata. This strategy resonated with the Zambian voters.  

Even my friend, draped in a Rupiah Banda chitenge (sarong) on election day confessed, "I voted for Sata.  Shhh!"  Then she grinned.  

So this morning, as President Sata was sworn into office, the city exploded, not in violence, but in jubilee.  Zambians tell me that they change has finally come to their country.

I rejoice with my neighbors.  I pray that President Sata will eliminate corruption, and bring prosperity to all Zambians.  

But as former President Banda said in his concession speech, "Enjoy the hour [of victory] but remember that a term of government is for years.  Remember that the next election will judge you also."

Let's Get Ready to RUMBLE! (Peacefully, please!)

If we got one-tenth of what was promised to us in these acceptance speeches there wouldn't be any inducement to go to heaven.  ~Will Rogers

Billboard in Lusaka

Election Day is T minus 8 days.  Lusaka is buzzing with anticipation.  

In one corner we have reigning champion President Rupiah Banda.   

In the other corner we have the challenger Mr. Michael Sata.  

There are a handful of other candidates--but like America's Ralph Nader and Ross Perot, they don't stand a chance against these heavyweights.


Dora Siliya,  spokesperson for Banda's party, recently warned villagers that a vote for Sata meant a vote for homosexuality (illegal in Zambia).  She urged the men in the audience to admire her soft bottom.  She also declared that Sata couldn't possibly have human parents.


Sata claims that the current administration will murder him and blame it on his poor health.

Now it is left up to the people to decide who will be the 5th president of Zambia.  

Election Ballots in Truck (Photo Katy Vosburg)

My friend Katy captured this shot:  election ballots being transferred in an open-bed truck.  Don't worry, the guy in the in the back is making sure none fall out.


Here is a close-up of those ballots. 

The Ballots (Photo: Katy Vosburg)

People on both sides are already alleging ballot fraud, and no one has voted yet.  Zambia makes American politics seem a bit bland, doesn't it?

Snapshots of Life

They're adorable when sleeping...

...and when laughing...

...and on the rope swing.

 NO BOYS ALLOWED Club

First Sprinkler!