From Joseph Adero Ngala in Nairobi
THE CATHOLIC prelate of Zambia, Archbishop Emmanuel Malingo. has made a blistering attack on African political leaders for their "shameless greed."
In the presence of President Kenneth Kaunda, the Archbishop accussed the elite for the. social and economic decline of the African continent.
Speaking specifically about Zambia, he said that a few years ago the country had not been listed as poor: now the situation has changed dramatically with wealth being stolen from the nation to be amassed by a few. As "a result Zambia is now one of the poor countries," he said.
The Archbishop was speaking at a service marking the anniversary of independence for the country. He told a large audience that such occasions should be used for reflecting on the issues that affected the common man.
"More often than not. those who watch us and see more than we think are the ordinary citizen: patient. watching, seeing. tolerant citizens without titles and often with no job," he said.
Also in Lusaka, a Catholic priest has accused the Church for its "contribution" to the evils in society.
In a very strongly worded sermon delivered at St Ignatius church in the Zambian capital. Fr Ruch Mwansa said that the church was part and parcel of social injustice in the world because Church leaders and Christians practised the opposite of what they preached.
Fr Mwansa went on to say that if all Christians lived in accordance with the teachings of the Bible, the world would be different in the sense that the Bible teaches love as the cornerstone to peace.