The Editor Zambia
Lamentations by Opposition Democratic Union president Ackim Njovu that the 2026 general elections campaign period is “boring”, due to the silence on the ground is an indication of conceding defeat even before poll day.
Political players should not mistake a peaceful environment for boring, but the absence of akawawawa, ulalya eeyi, and machetes in town should be treated as a new era in the Zambian political landscape. 
The opposition has a big challenge to present a compelling alternative vision to a leader who has successfully transformed the country through visible, realistic, and measurable outcomes.
Instead of producing competing economic blueprints, alternative growth targets, or competing development frameworks, the opposition is preoccupied with divisive rhetoric.
Political discourse built around propaganda, slander, humiliation, and fear-mongering, sometimes exploiting ethnic anxieties that Zambia has historically worked hard to avoid.
In short, Njovu has conceded defeat and advising his colleagues in the opposition that going to campaign is share waste of time and resources.
Clearly, in this campaign period, a politician without a clearer alternative policy direction will not have it easy to campaign. Political players should compete on ideologies and not who can unleash more insults and pangas.
When political commentators said President Hakainde Hichilema has raised the bar very high and no one among the opposition can reach his height, this is exactly what they meant.
The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) announced the campaign period for the August 13, 2026 general elections will run from May 23 to August 12. Why should competing opposition blame the ruling party for failing to craft sound messages?
Instead of lamenting on radio stations in Lusaka that the campaign is boring, and lacks money, the opposition should get to the ground and start campaigning.
The bar has been raised very high, and President Hichilema has set the torn. His message is clear 10-10-5-3-3-1-1 formula in the next five years.
Production matrix,
10 million tonnes of maize
10 000 megawatts of power generation
5 million tourist arrivals,
3 million tonnes of copper
3 million tonnes of soya beans and
1 million tonnes of wheat by 2030,
The economic ecosystem attached to these goals will have cascading effects on other sectors, creating over 2 million jobs and opportunities for more in the value chain.
This is a very clear and straightforward message.
There can be no election hype as long as the opposition remains without clear alternative policies to what is being implemented by President Hichilema and the UPND government
The current crop of political opposition leaders lacks convincing messages for alternative policy change that can convince and influence voters.
Zambia has political opposition leadership that lacks credible alternative visions. Their criticism is divisive and focuses on personal attacks rather than policy solutions.
President Hichilema has set the bar high, and hence, he is gaining the respect of Zambians and the international community.
It is, therefore, for the opposition political leadership to find someone who can match President Hichilema’s high- quality leadership standards.
Analysing what is happening in opposition politics, there is no alternative to the current republican leadership except for a few propagating regionalism at the expense of national unity.
Most of the current opposition leadership has displayed unimaginable hatred against President Hichilema.
Insinuations that the political campaign environment is boring is neither here nor there. Politicians should instead come out to explain their plans.
People were accustomed to violent behaviour, disrupting business due to fights and noise during the election campaign.
When there is order, campaigns are peaceful and quiet because they are issue based, and on economy, justice, and equal opportunities for all.
Five years ago, the neighborhoods could be full of noise with drunk youths everywhere fighting and horseplaying showering each other in unpalatable, with their preferred political candidates only showing up to buy them more alcohol which meant more confusion, less objectiveness and more violence for those with opposing opinions and views.
