From Village Chicken to a Bicycle Ride: Two Zambians Share a Meal with Hichilema

32 ViewsFrom a long walk across Mwinilunga to a bicycle journey from Lusangazi, two ordinary Zambians found themselves sitting at the table with President Hakainde Hichilema. Maggie Sapatu is said to have walked all the way from Mwinilunga carrying village chicken, while Jeremiah Tembo says he cycled from Lusangazi to attend President Hichilema’s inauguration in […]

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From a long walk across Mwinilunga to a bicycle journey from Lusangazi, two ordinary Zambians found themselves sitting at the table with President Hakainde Hichilema.

Maggie Sapatu is said to have walked all the way from Mwinilunga carrying village chicken, while Jeremiah Tembo  says he cycled from Lusangazi to attend President Hichilema’s inauguration in Lusaka on September 1.

Days after the inauguration, the two were received by the President, who shared a meal with them.

Hichilema shared the moment on his social media pages, describing it as a reminder that every citizen has something important to contribute to Zambia.

“We serve 21 million Zambians and every citizen brings something important to the table,” the President said.

He said Sapatu’s journey from Mwinilunga and Tembo’s bicycle ride from Lusangazi represented more than simply travelling to Lusaka.

“Maggie Sapatu walked all the way from Mwinilunga to bring us village chicken and Jeremiah Tembo cycled from Lusangazi to attend our inauguration. Today we sat and ate together, as fellow citizens,” Hichilema said.

The simple meal offered a striking contrast to the pomp and ceremony of the inauguration, where thousands of people gathered at Heroes Stadium to witness Hichilema begin his second term.

For Sapatu and Tembo, however, the journey ended not only with witnessing the inauguration but with a personal encounter with the man they had travelled hundreds of kilometres to see.

Hichilema concluded the post with a message of optimism:

“The best is yet to come.”

The photographs of the President sitting and eating with the two citizens have since captured the more personal side of the post-election period — a moment where the distance between State House and ordinary citizens appeared, at least briefly, to disappear.