SATIRE writer and singer Pilato, says Zambians must not be afraid to speak out when they see things go wrong in the PF government.
The controversial singer has released a song titled A Lungu Anabwela, a parody of Nashil Pichen Kazembe’s 1970s hit A Phiri Anabwela.
Featuring the voice of Michael Sata, the lyrics of A Lungu anabwela depict the predicament of a politician called Lungu, who emerges from Chawama compound with a suitcase full of Jameson whisky and ascends to power following the death of a leader.
While maintaining the original music arrangement of Kazembe’s song, Pilato, whose real names are Chama Fimba, narrates how Lungu failed to develop Chawama.
“A Lungu anaganiza sono nizayenda kuti, kateka wa PF, anamwalila kudala, a Lungu anaganiza sono nizabweza uti, RB na Dora ninabweza nikudala mama..,” reads part of the song.
The song, which also questions President Edgar Lungu’s decision to retain MMD leaders whom the Zambian people voted out of power, has received a lot of attention and has drawn comments from individuals on social platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook.
In an interview, Pilato said he was inspired to compose the song to express his disappointment with wrong things going on in the country.
“It’s more like a story of how things can change. Recall we voted for the PF because we didn’t like the management of Rupiah Banda and the MMD. But we now see that Rupiah Banda and the MMD are slowly taking over,” Pilato said.
“The truth is that most Zambians are very intelligent people. Maybe they love the country but they don’t care enough. Zambians would rather sit and watch things go wrong, and say ‘oh’, and write a few comments on Facebook. But you need to get to a level where people need to stand up for what’s right.”
Pilato also said if Zambians do not speak out, it will cost the country.
“I feel I get moved when I see anything wrong and it’s done by our leaders and nobody says anything. It’s getting bad; people need to speak up. We need to speak out when things are going wrong. People should get to a point and realise this is the only country we have. It’s gonna cost us a lot,” he said.
“I want to be an artiste now and in the future. I want to be the one that speaks for myself and the one that speaks for those that can’t speak.”
The Copperbelt-based singer said he is not afraid of being pursued by police because he knows he is speaking the truth.
“If you are saying the truth, you have nothing to fear. As long as you are not being malicious and just telling lies about people, you have nothing to fear. There is no room for fear, you can’t be that fearful. There is nothing as brave as truth. I don’t think there is any reason to be scared of anything.”
Pilato further said he has received a lot of threats from people in the government and individuals from the ruling party.
“They’ve always been after me; I don’t know how fast they will be on this one. I don’t even think there is need for that on this one. I have had calls and threats from the party in power. I don’t think that will change the way I look at things. I have had calls from people in government; I still receive calls and threats. People are sacred to speak; it’s not good enough,” said Pilato.