The Editor Zambia
The latest crisis at the University of Zambia (UNZA) has exposed more than just broken water and sewer infrastructure.
It has laid bare a leadership failure that has steadily pushed the country’s premier institution of higher learning into uncertainty, disruption, and declining public confidence. 
At a time when Zambia needs a strong and globally competitive university, UNZA has instead become synonymous with delayed academic calendars, deteriorating infrastructure, and administrative instability.
The indefinite postponement of the 2025/2026 mid-year examinations following a burst water pipe during rehabilitation works is the latest chapter in a troubling pattern.
Students who had prepared to return to campus were abruptly told to remain at home because management could not guarantee basic water and sanitation services.
While no responsible institution would risk the health of its students, the unavoidable question is: How did UNZA reach this point?
Prof. Mundia Muuya himself has described the situation as a crisis and that admission is welcome. But, acknowledging a crisis is not the same as taking responsibility for it because leadership is ultimately judged by outcomes, not explanations.
The current state of UNZA raises uncomfortable questions about planning, maintenance, and institutional oversight.
Rehabilitation works do not happen in isolation. Proper risk assessments, contingency planning, and routine maintenance should prevent a university from grinding to a halt because of infrastructure failures.
If maintenance systems had functioned effectively over the past several years, would the institution now find itself paralysed?
These are legitimate questions that deserve answers.
The criticism levelled by the University of Zambia Lecturers and Researchers’ Union (UNZALARU), which has repeatedly called for Prof. Muuya’s removal cannot simply be dismissed as labour unrest. The union has accused management of failing to address workers’ welfare, unpaid terminal benefits, and broader governance challenges.
When the concerns of employees are now compounded by operational failures affecting thousands of students, the picture becomes increasingly difficult to defend.
Perhaps the greatest casualty is student confidence.
President Hakainde Hichilema continues to enjoy considerable goodwill among many students across Zambia’s tertiary institutions because of his administration’s expanded investment in higher education, including increased access through student loans and scholarships.
That goodwill, however, can quickly erode when students repeatedly experience institutional dysfunction at the country’s flagship university.
To many students, the government is represented not by policy speeches but by the daily reality they experience on campus.
When semesters are delayed, examinations postponed and learning constantly interrupted, frustration naturally shifts from university management to the government itself. That is a political risk the Ministry of Higher Education cannot afford to ignore.
The challenges are not unique to UNZA. Across several public universities, complaints continue to emerge about delayed teaching, inconsistent academic calendars, and declining standards.
Lecturers often take weeks before serious teaching begins, leaving students struggling to complete syllabuses within compressed academic periods. These concerns point to deeper systemic weaknesses requiring urgent intervention.
However, UNZA carries a unique responsibility. As Zambia’s oldest and most prestigious university, it sets the standard for the rest of the higher education sector. When UNZA stumbles, confidence in the entire public university system suffers.
Leadership also requires knowing when personal sacrifice serves the greater good. Prof. Muuya may not be personally responsible for every historical challenge facing UNZA, but he is accountable for the institution during his tenure.
In any well-functioning organisation, sustained operational failure ultimately demands leadership accountability.
Resignation should not be viewed as punishment but as an opportunity for renewal. Fresh leadership could restore confidence among students, lecturers, cooperating partners, and the wider public while allowing a comprehensive review of governance, infrastructure management, and academic planning.
The Ministry of Higher Education should equally undertake an independent assessment of university management across the country.
Zambia cannot build a knowledge-driven economy while its premier institutions struggle with basic administration and infrastructure.
UNZA has produced presidents, judges, business leaders, scientists, and professionals who have shaped Zambia’s development for decades. It deserves leadership capable of matching that proud legacy.
The current crisis should become a turning point rather than another footnote in UNZA’s long catalogue of disruptions.
Accountability must begin at the top. For the sake of the university, its students, and the country’s higher education system, Prof. Mundia Muya should seriously consider stepping aside to allow a fresh start.
