A Book Review Title: Adventures In Zambian Politics – A story in Black and White Author: Guy LindsayScott

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A Book Review
Title: Adventures In Zambian Politics – A story in Black and White
Author: Guy Scott
Number of Pages: 251
Publisher: Lynne Reiner Publishers Inc
Price: ZMK450 (Hard Cover)
Year: 2019

It is probably the first book that discloses the sickness of Zambia’s fifth President Michael Chilufya Sata and the political shenanigans that took place behind closed doors. Guy Scott, a putative close friend of Sata, takes the reader inside the presidential bedroom where he found Sata very sick and bedridden and yet the nation, including himself as Vice President, was not told.

“I plonked myself down in Micheal’s darkened bedroom and tried to tell him the truth,” writes Scott without holding back the details.

“As soon as it was clear that I wanted to discuss his condition, he was livid and demanded to know what my sources were,” Scott writes, adding that Sata had stopped attending meetings and other state functions due to sickness.

The former Veep goes on to touch the controversial topic of succession which he said started long before Sata died. He talked of how Justice Minister and PF Secretary General Wynter Kabimba was fired on “fraudulent” emails that linked him to a plot to oust Sata due to sickness. And then Scott himself was implicated in another lie that he was celebrating Sata’s sickness.

“He (Sata) told me that my enemies had reported that I had been celebrating with others, drinking champagne in anticipation of his death,” he writes, adding that servants were even sent by Sata to look for empty champagne bottles in the bins to prove the allegations.
“Two empty bottles of champagne were duly produced,” he said.

Guy Scott then discloses that while Sata was very sick, he had planned to replace him with Hon. Emmanuel Chenda – then Local Government Minister and Sata ally.

“A few days after his scrap with me in his bedroom, he arrived somewhat unexpectedly at a meeting at State House,” Scott remembers as he described the looks of Sata that day.
“His face was discolored around his mouth and his walk was a mixture of stagger and slide. We stared at him as if he was a stranger; worse still, he stared at us in the same way”.

He said Sata turned directly to him and told him he was going to fire him and appoint Emmanuel Chenda to his position. Guy went further and writes:
“There was an immediate ruckus, with his announcement disturbing greatly the people who had been anticipating Micheal’s demise…”
Scott is not naming the people but he would rather refer to “them”.

He said the plan to appoint Chenda was thwarted when the “people” whom he did not name realized that Chenda would be difficult to control as Vice President and possible successor.

“They really didn’t want Emmanuel Chenda, as his grip may have been too much more tenacious. There was a sudden outbreak of fake cries that ‘we want Guy’ designed to torpedo Chenda, Oh bullshitters! “ Scott writes.

By the way, this succession scene can also be re-played to 2008 when President Levy Mwanawasa died and some “people” tried to peddle similar sentiments that Vice President Rupiah Banda was about to be sacked and replaced by Finance Minister Ngandu Magande if the President had returned from hospital.

The “Muzungu” has published copy of Sata’s Death Certificate in his book, which he claim is readily available in the UK for a fee. He said he only knew of Sata death around 1:00 AM when his aide de camp (ADC) woke him up. He had “carelessly” left his mobile phone on silent when security knocked to disturb his sleep.
“The President is dead, Your Excellency,” his ADC is quoted to have told him.
“I became acting President when I was fast asleep, I found out about it perhaps thirty minutes later,” Scott discloses.

And then enter the drama with Attorney General giving him a call to alert him that he was now acting President by virtue of the Constitution of Zambia and that the process was going to be unseemly.
“Perhaps even deserving to be called a coup, but right now it’s all very unclear,” Scott quoted AG in his book as having said.

On President Edgar Lungu being picked as successor, Scott narrative is somewhat not clear but gives this position.
“I had heard talk of a scheme to get him (Sata) to appoint Edgar Lungu as the PF Presidential candidate, who was by then the minister of defence as well as holding several other posts. He was seen as an Easterner with strong Bemba links (hence amenable to the two largest tribal voting blocks) but weak enough to need some independent input for unknown others to control.”

Indeed, Adventures In Zambian Politics – A story of Black and White. It is worthy reading especially for those interested in Zambian politics. The book also takes you back to the colonial days and on how Scott and his family found themselves here!