Old Politics in New Robes
Zambia has seen this script before. The names shift, the banners change, and the slogans evolve, but the underlying pattern remains stubbornly the same.
What is currently being presented as a fresh political force is, upon closer inspection, a familiar assembly of veteran actors attempting yet another return to the national stage. 
The recent decision by the so-called Council of Elders to transform itself into a political party has confirmed suspicions that had lingered from the moment the grouping first emerged.
The body that claimed to stand above partisan politics has now openly entered the political arena, unveiling Kapembwa Simbao as its presidential candidate under the banner of the Zambia Alliance for the 4th Republic ahead of the August 13 elections.
This dramatic shift strips away the moral cloak that the council initially wrapped around itself. When it first appeared, the organisation projected the image of a neutral platform composed of experienced national figures ready to guide the country through dialogue and reflection.
Instead of a non-partisan body providing counsel to the nation, what has emerged is a political structure populated largely by familiar personalities whose political journeys stretch back decades.
The appointment of Muhabi Lungu as Secretary General and the election of Lusaka lawyer Sakwiba Sikota as chairperson after defeating Bishop Trevor Mwamba illustrate the character of the alliance that has taken shape.
Other names, such as Brian Mushimba, have also surfaced within the formation while economist and businessman Yusuf Dodia has been positioned as Simbao’s running mate.
Taken together, the list reads less like the birth of a new political generation and more like a reunion of established political figures searching for renewed relevance.
Supporters of the alliance have emphasised the internal voting process that produced Simbao as candidate. The contest reportedly required two rounds of voting after no aspirant achieved the fifty plus one threshold in the initial ballot. Eventually, Simbao secured victory with 65 percent of the vote in a runoff.
But, the mechanics of the selection process are not the central issue. The deeper question concerns the original purpose of the Council of Elders itself.
What was introduced to the public as a national moral forum has now revealed itself as a political vehicle with a clear objective of challenging the government led by Hakainde Hichilema.
The personalities associated with the project further reinforce the sense of political déjà vu. Figures such as Akashambatwa Mbikusita Lewanika and Mbita Chitala have long histories within Zambia’s political transformations dating back to the early 1990s when the one party system under Kenneth Kaunda was dismantled and replaced with multiparty democracy through the Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD).
That historic transition opened the political space, but it also produced a political elite whose legacy became entangled in controversy, factional battles, and accusations of corruption that later spilt into the era of the Patriotic Front (PF).
Seen against that background, the emergence of the Zambia Alliance for the 4th Republic does not appear to represent a decisive break from the past.
Rather, it reflects a continuing cycle in which familiar political networks reorganise themselves under new platforms whenever the opportunity arises.
Ultimately, the decisive judgment will come from the electorate. Zambians have witnessed numerous political experiments over the past three decades.
They have seen alliances formed in the name of reform only to collapse under the weight of internal rivalries and personal ambitions.
For any new political project to gain genuine traction, it must offer more than a coalition of well-known veterans united primarily by their opposition to the sitting administration. It must present credible ideas, new leadership energy, and a compelling national vision.
Without those elements, the latest alliance risks becoming another reminder that in Zambian politics, old structures can be repackaged, but voters are increasingly capable of recognising recycled politics when they see it.
