EMMANUEL MWAMBA’S CLAIM THAT PRESIDENT HAKAINDE HICHILEMA’S PHOTO WITH SERVICE CHIEFS WAS TAKEN IN 2023 IS LAUGHABLEBy Shalala Oliver Sepiso This morning, Emmanuel Mwamba attempted to ridicule one of the official photographs released of President Hakainde Hichilema taking a salute from the service chiefs before he flew out to Abu Dhabi last night as being […]

EMMANUEL MWAMBA’S CLAIM THAT PRESIDENT HAKAINDE HICHILEMA’S PHOTO WITH SERVICE CHIEFS WAS TAKEN IN 2023 IS LAUGHABLE
By Shalala Oliver Sepiso

This morning, Emmanuel Mwamba attempted to ridicule one of the official photographs released of President Hakainde Hichilema taking a salute from the service chiefs before he flew out to Abu Dhabi last night as being an old photo.

This is part of the oppositions propaganda to attempt to paint a picture that the president did not leave Zambia through the normal procedures and in his use hale and hearty state.

They want to claim that his visit is shrouded in mystery and the mystique.

Emmanuel Mwamba claims that the photograph of President Hakainde Hichilema being saluted by service chiefs before departure from Kenneth Kaunda International Airport was actually taken on 31st January 2023 on his return from the SADC Extraordinary Organ Troika Summit in Windhoek, Namibia.

This claim falls off due to the following reasons:

1. The photograph shows the police chief who is lined up as Graphel Musamba. Graphel Musamba was not the Police Chief in January 2023 when Mwamba claims this phone was taken. He became the Inspector General of Police on 14th April 2023.

2. The photograph shows Zambia Correctional Service (ZCS) Chief Frederick Chilukutu in military fatigues. The Zambia Corrections introduced its new military-style operational combat uniforms and senior officer attire in mid-March 2026, with further rollout and public discussions surrounding the transition continuing into June 2026. This means that this uniform was not there in January 2023.

3. The photographs show the current Zambia Air Force (ZAF) Commander Lieutenant General Oscar Nyoni saluting the president. He was appointed by President Hakainde Hichilema on 20th December 2023. If this photograph was taken on 31st January 2023, it would have shown Lieutenant General Colin Barry as the Commander of the ZAF.

4. Other pictures taken same time as this attached picture shows the Zambia Army Commander as Lieutenant General Geoffrey Choongo Zyeele. The current Zambia Army Commander, Lieutenant General Geoffrey Choongo Zyeele, was appointed on 12th September 2024. The Zambia Army Commander in January 2023 was Lieutenant General Sitali Dennis Alibuzwi. If this photo and others were taken in January 2023 as Emmanuel Mwamba claims, they would show then Zambia Army Commander Alibuzwi.

5. The Zambia Airforce camouflage used by ZAF commander Nyoni was recently introduced.

6. The clothes worn by President Hakainde Hichilema in this photograph at the airport as the same ones as when he was arriving in Abu Dhabi, consistently showing the photos were taken on the same journey.

7. Lastly, the first photograph below shows President Hakainde Hichilema walking from an apron towards the plane (not shown). We know as there is no plane in the background. Had this been a photo from President HH arriving from Namibia in January 2023 as Emmanuel Mwamba claims, he was be moving from the plane to the apron and the plane would be in the background.