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Hakainde Hichilema: The Zambian ‘Farmer’ Who Became President

May 22, 2024

Hakainde Hichilema: The Zambian ‘Farmer’ Who Became President

Hakainde Hichilema is a focused politician. Driven by his unwavering desire to see Zambia realize its full potential by harnessing its valuable resources, people and natural resources, to improve the quality of life for all its citizens.

Anchored on his respect for equality of all citizens, rule of law and the democratic rights for every citizen to unconditional association and free speech. He has continued to exhibit leadership and political maturity as the president of Zambia.

As Zambian president, his fight is to uplift the standards of living for all Zambians. A Zambia that guarantees present and future economic well-being for all its people– east, south, north and west.

A truly free Zambia, where every Zambian is motivated to participate and contribute to the fulfillment of its economic agenda free of fear of persecution or harassment. A truly free Zambia in every sense– economically politically, socially and religious beliefs.

Hakainde Hichilema Biography

Hakainde Hichilema (born 4 June 1962) is a Zambian businessman, farmer, and politician who is the seventh and current president of Zambia since 24 August 2021.

After having contested five previous elections in 2006, 2008, 2011, 2015 and 2016, he won the 2021 presidential election with 59.02% of the vote.

He has led the United Party for National Development since 2006 following the death of the party founder Anderson Mazoka.

Prior to his election, Hichilema was a major opponent of Edgar Lungu, the president of Zambia from 2015 to 2021. On 11 April 2017, Hichilema was arrested and charged with treason, a move that was seen as an illegitimate act by Lungu to silence a political rival.

The arrest and charge were widely condemned, with protests held in Zambia and abroad, demanding Hichilema’s release and condemning the increasing authoritarianism of Lungu’s regime. Hichilema was released from prison on 16 August 2017, and the charge of treason was dropped.

Early life and career

Hichilema was born in a village in Monze District in present-day Zambia. He spent his formative years in Southern province of Zambia, where he attended local primary schools and pursued high school education at Kalomo Secondary School.

Upon completion of high school education, he was admitted in the School of Humanities and Social Science at the University of Zambia where he graduated with a BA in Economics and Business Administration in 1986.

He thereafter pursued an MBA in Finance and Business Strategy at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom.

HH had an illustrious career as a business and management expert that culminated in his rising to the position of Chief Executive Officer of Coopers and Lybrand (C&L) at the age of 26 years and later he become CEO for Grant Thornton (GT) for 12 years.

Both C&L and GT are leading international professional services firms providing corporate finance, accounting, auditing, corporate recovery, management consultancy and tax advisory services to several reputable clients.

These firms are member organizations of C&L International and GT International respectively which operate in more than 130 countries worldwide.

Boards

Hakainde Hichilema has been and remains one of the leading lights in business with wide experience in Zambia, Southern Africa, United Kingdom and other countries at operational and executive management levels.

He has chaired several international conferences among them the Zambia Investment Opportunities Conference organized by the Financial Times of the United Kingdom held in London in May 1996 and a similar one was held in Lusaka, Zambia in 1997.

Hichilema is a member of the Institute of Directors for Zambia. He has served/serves on numerous boards of corporate entities including:

Chairman of the Board of Directors – Barclays Bank Zambia Plc.
Chairman of the Board of Directors – Sun International (Z) Ltd
First Chairman of the Board of Directors, Africa Trade Insurance (ATI) a multilateral Pan African organization based in Kenya.
Chairman – Greenbelt Fertilizers Limited
Chairman – Media Trust Fund
Chairman – Export Development Programme II
Director – Zambia Investment Limited
Director – Seedco Zambia Limited
Director – African Life Financial Services
Director – Zambezi Nickel (Bermuda) Limited
Director – Westlake Investment Ltd. (Mauritius)
Board Member – Zambia Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ZACCI)
Member – Zambia Business Forum
Board member – Coopers & Lybrand’s Africa Governing Board
Board member – Coopers & Lybrand’s International’s Governance Committee
Non-executive director – Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines (Smelterco) Limited

Personal life

Hichilema is married to Mutinta and has three children. He is a baptized member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and on 12 December 2020, he and his wife got invested as Master Guides in Lusaka. Hichilema is a millionaire and the second-largest cattle rancher in Zambia.

Hakainde Hichilema has been active in the business community and has a strong high level private and public sector network locally and internationally. Over years he has participated in community work such as building clinics, schools, livestock dip tanks, dams, boreholes and founding a cultural fund that finances the revival of cultural ceremonies in Zambia.

Hakainde retired in 2006 to pursue community service initiatives and within a short period of retiring from the corporate world. He entered active politics as a member of the opposition United Party for National Development (UPND). A liberal political party whose formation he supported as a technocrat.

Following the death of the UPND founding President Anderson Kambela Mazoka, he was elected as the party’s new President. Within 50 days of becoming President of the UPND, he was elected as the flag bearer of the United Democratic Alliance, an alliance of three opposition political parties. Since entering politics Hakainde Hichilema has been arrested more than a dozen times.

He has since participated in five elections each time increasing his tally of votes. In the 2016 elections, he narrowly lost the Presidency to Edgar Chagwa Lungu who won the disputed elections by about 13,000 votes to garner the 50 plus one threshold.

Community services

Hakainde Hichilema is a community man who was born in a village, along the way learning so many things locally and internationally which Zambia is benefitting from. He’s passionate about community work and has supported many community projects including dip tanks, clinics, schools, boreholes, and dams over the years.

He helped found a cultural fund aimed at financing the revival of cultural ceremonies in Zambia. Among the ceremonies supported by the fund include:

Kulamba Kubwalo of the Soli people in Central Zambia
Likumbi Lyamize of the Luvale people in North Western Zambia
Kusefya Pa Ng’wena of the Bemba People in Northern Zambia
Kuomboka of the Lozi people in Western Zambia
Lwiindi in Southern Zambia
Nc’wala of the Ngoni people in Eastern Zambia
Shimunenga among many others

Hakainde Hichilema is an employer of Zambians in urban areas through companies and rural communities through his farming activities. He clearly understands rural and urban poverty and has contributed in someway in alleviating poverty.

Hakainde Hichilema Net Worth

Hakainde Hichilema is the seventh and the current president of Zambia. He became rich before securing his current political seat. Hakainde is Zambia’s second-largest cattle rancher who served as the chief executive officer of both Coopers and Lybrand Zambia and Grant Thornton Zambia. He is the richest man in Zambia, with a staggering net worth of about $389 million.

Political Career

Hichilema is a member of the ruling United Party for National Development, a liberal political party. Following the death of Anderson Mazoka in 2006, he was elected as the party’s new President. He also served as the leader of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), an alliance of three opposition political parties.

In the 2006 election, Hichilema was the candidate of the UDA and ran against incumbent president Levy Mwanawasa of the Movement for Multiparty Democracy and Patriotic Front candidate Michael Sata.

He received the endorsement of former President Kenneth Kaunda. The election was held on 28 September 2006 and Hichilema took third place with about 25% of the vote.

Hichilema ran as the UPND candidate in the 2008 election, which was called following the death of President Levy Mwanawasa. He came 3rd with 19.7% of the vote.

In June 2009, Hichilema’s party, the UPND, formed a pact with Michael Sata’s Patriotic Front (PF) to contest the 2011 election together. However, indecision on the pact candidate, deep mistrust, and accusations of tribalism from both sides resulted in the collapse of the pact in March 2011.

He was one of the two main candidates in the January 2015 presidential election, which he lost by a narrow margin of 27,757 votes (1.66%) against the ruling party’s candidate, Edgar Lungu. Hichilema denounced the election as a sham and urged his supporters to remain calm. He again faced Lungu as the main opposition candidate in the August 2016 presidential election, and was again narrowly defeated.

In April 2017, he was arrested on suspicion of treason and charged with attempting to overthrow the government. He was in prison for four months before being given a nolle prosequi.

Arrest and Treason Charge

Hichilema was arrested on 11 April 2017. On the night of 11 April 2017 the Zambian Police broke into Hichilema’s compound to arrest the country’s main opposition leader. Ordered by President Edgar Lungu’s government and charged with treason after he was accused of endangering the president’s life after his motorcade allegedly refused to give way to the one transporting Lungu.

A case many viewed as a minor traffic offence and not one that could amount to treason. Hichilema strongly denied the charge, which carries a maximum sentence of death penalty.

The police used excessive force to enter Hichilema’s residence damaging his home and property, beat up all his workers, stole money, jewellery, as well as underwear, shoes, speakers, blankets, carpets and food from the kitchen and defecated on Hichilema’s bed.

Teargas canisters were thrown inside Hichilema’s home gassing Hichilema, his asthmatic wife, and his children, who collapsed several times due to inhaling the gas.

Time in jail

Hichilema said in an interview on HARDtalk that during his time in prison he was held in solitary confinement for eight days without food, water, light, or visitation, was tortured by having his penis pepper sprayed, and accused President Lungu of having tried to kill him.

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The arrest was the subject of the episode of Al Jazeera’s The Stream TV program titled Is Zambia’s Democracy in Danger?, which aired on 30 May 2017. Zambia’s first president Kenneth Kaunda was turned away by prison officials when he visited Hichilema in Prison.

Mmusi Maimane, leader of the Democratic Alliance (South Africa) was also turned away by Zambia Police when he came to Zambia to attend Hichilema’s court appearance. He was not allowed to disembark from the plane, had his phone confiscated, and was roughed up.

This prompted South Africa’s Foreign Ministry to summon Zambia’s Ambassador to South Africa Emmanuel Mwamba to explain the actions of the Zambian regime.

Former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo visited Hichilema in prison. Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Baroness Patricia Scotland visited Hichilema in prison twice.

State of emergency

While Hichilema was in jail, President Lungu imposed a state of emergency, a move critics saw as an effort to tighten his grip on power.

Condemnation and protests

Hichilema’s arrest was widely condemned. The United States, the European Union and the European Parliament denounced the arrest. The Africa Liberal Network condemned the arrest as an attempt by President Lungu to silence dissent and opposition.

The Catholic bishops strongly condemned the arrest and said Zambia had become a dictatorship under President Edgar Lungu. Julius Malema, the leader of South Africa’s EFF party, accused Zambia’s president Edgar Lungu of apartheid style repression for detaining Hichilema on treason charges and called president Lungu a “coward”.

Mmusi Maimane, the leader of South Africa’s DA party, who was denied entry into Zambia to visit Hichilema in Jail (stopped from exiting the plane at Lusaka’s Kenneth Kaunda International Airport) strongly denounced the trumped up charges against Hichilema.

Protests broke out in Zambia, South Africa and the United Kingdom[40] demanding the release of Hichilema and condemning Edgar Lungu’s authoritarian rule and deteriorating human rights in Zambia.

Release from prison

Celebrations took place throughout Zambia when Hichilema was released from prison on 16 August 2017 and scores of people lined up the roads of Lusaka to have a glimpse of Hichilema as his motorcade left prison.

Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, congratulated the Zambian authorities for dropping the treason charges against Hichilema and releasing him from prison.

Thanksgiving prayers were held to celebrate Hichilema’s release from jail at the Cathedral of Holy Cross in Lusaka on 29 August 2017. Hichilema was present at the event which drew large crowds and was aired live on television.

The event was originally scheduled to take place the previous week on 24 August but was blocked by heavily armed state police who sealed off the venue.

Hichilema became more popular after his release and was awarded the Africa Freedom Award in Johannesburg, South Africa. He was invited to speak at Chatham House in London and was also invited to speak in South Africa by Democratic Alliance Members of Parliament.

A book about Hichilema’s time in a prison called Hakainde Hichilema’s Prison Diary. It was released on 29 September 2017 by journalist Fredrick Misebezi. Hichilema endorsed the book and urged the public to read it.

Police warning and caution in 2020

On 23 December 2020, Hichilema received a warning and caution at the Zambian Police Headquarters in Lusaka for an alleged offence of “conspiracy to defraud contrary to section 313 of the Penal Code, Cap 87 of the Laws of Zambia”, relating to the purchase of a property in 2004.

As Hichilema arrived for questioning, police clashed with UPND supporters. In an attempt to disperse the crowd, police reportedly shot dead a State Prosecutor and a UPND supporter.

Presidency

Hichilema ran for President for the sixth time in the election held on 12 August 2021. The electoral commission chairman Esau Chulu declared that he had won the election in the early hours of 16 August.

Following his victory, Hichilema declared his wish to appoint qualified Zambians into his administration. Among his appointments were those of Sylvia Masebo, Situmbeko Musokotwane, and Jito Kayumba, among others.

What Hakainde Hichilema brought into Zambian politics

Focus on a new vision for Zambia and promote love in the country
Strong, humble and knowledge based leadership
Quality leadership with a difference
Focus on service to the nation and not benefit to self (Servant leadership)
Ensure racial harmony in society
Promote unity, embracing all regions and tribal groupings as the nation belongs to all
Clean politics that are issue based, not personality and insult based
Promote professionalism, integrity and ethical conduct in public office
Improve the working conditions in the public service including those of our men and women in uniform so as to improve service delivery to the public
Economic development and prosperity for all
Promote peace and constitutionalism – give Zambians the constitution speedily
Facilitate the enactment of a new electoral law acceptable to all Zambians
Promote freedom of the press through enactment of appropriate laws
A leadership that promotes gender equity and effective participation of differently-abled, women and the youth in public affairs
Focus on key economic sectors such as agriculture, tourism, mining, manufacturing, energy services
Promote employment creation and entrepreneurship
Fight poverty; promote economic business and investment growth to support social sectors
Taking a building block approach to running the country carrying on with the good aspects of previous Governments and only change those that are wrong
Improve sanitation and facilities in public markets so that marketers can operate in safe and decent conditions
Change with continuity and not continuity with change
Moving away from politics of anger, vindictiveness and revenge
De-politicize the public service and strengthen public institutions to deal with among other things, the fight against corruption
Drive the decentralization agenda effectively
Vigorously fight HIV/AIDS
Give our country a fresh and better start
Speedy payment of retirement benefits to retirees to enable them start a new life
Work to end endemic strikes in the nation
Will take advise from past leaders, professionals, churches, traditional rulers, women and youth

Awards

Africa Freedom Award – Hichilema was conferred with the Africa Freedom Award. By the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom on 27 October 2017 at an event held in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Controversies

In December 2014, he denied being a Freemason and labeled people accusing him as malicious. He also sued Bishop Edward Chomba of the Eastern Orthodox Church for defamation after the former called him a Satanist and a Freemason.

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Hichilema was named in the Panama Papers. With the leak stating that he was the director of Bermuda-based company AfNat Resources Ltd from March to August 2006. The company engaged in nickel exploration in Zambia and other African countries.

According to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The company was listed on London’s alternative investment market until 2010 when it was purchased by Canadian mining company Axmin for about $14 million.

Frequently Asked Questions

How old is Hakainde Hichilema?

Hakainde Hichilema (born 4 June 1962) is a Zambian politician and businessman. Hichilema is the President of Zambia. He has been the President of the United Party for National Development since 2006. He ran for president six times, winning in 2021.

How much is Hakainde Hichilema worth?

Who is Hakainde Hichilema?

Hakainde Hichilema (born 4 June 1962) is a Zambian businessman, farmer, and politician who is the seventh and current president of Zambia since 24 August 2021.

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