President Hakainde Hichilema has reaffirmed his stance against supporting what he terms “negative and unnatural sexual practices” in Zambia, emphasizing that the country will continue to uphold its identity as a Christian nation. Speaking at the 60th anniversary celebration of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia (EFZ) yesterday, President Hichilema underscored that homosexuality is in direct opposition to both African culture and Christian values.
“Our country, Zambia, shall remain a Christian country. This country will not support negative and unnatural sexual practices, that’s it,” President Hichilema declared. “We must not be shy to say what we believe in. We are Africans, we don’t support those things. We are Christians, we don’t support those things. I thought I should say it right there. We must not tire of doing the right thing. Let’s focus our resources on tackling sensible issues.”
The President also recounted a recent encounter with a foreign dignitary, during which he made it clear that Zambia would not compromise on its values. “One day, I will whisper to somebody what I did to a dignitary who visited me. I said to that dignitary, ‘If you say these things outside where we are addressing a press conference, I will differ with you publicly. We don’t agree with those things you want to talk about out there.’ But we remain friends. If we agree on seven out of ten things, are we not good friends? But we also respect the three things we have differences on in a professional and mature way,” he shared.
Beyond his firm stance on social issues, President Hichilema urged the Church to collaborate with the government in addressing rising rates of divorce and the misuse of social media, both of which he described as increasingly problematic. “We need to tackle certain things in our country. Too many divorces in our country. Let us hold our families together. Let’s keep our children well. Gender-Based Violence is becoming a cancer. Let’s tackle excessive abuse of social media where they will write things about the clergy. The negative stories spread even more than the factual stories,” he said.
In recognition of EFZ’s 60th anniversary, President Hichilema donated 21 heifers and one bull to help the organization establish a herd and support their efforts in starting a ranching business. “We are giving EFZ 21 female cattle and one bull. Please, they are not for consumption, they are for breeding. So I do believe you will find a home for them. We will deliver them for you and monitor these after five years… Happy 60th anniversary,” the President concluded.