Mwanawasa was a good man - Khama

LAWRENCE OOKEDITSE
Correspondent | Friday August 22, 2008 00:00

In their condolence messages, both Khama and Merafhe have described Mwanawasa in glowing terms, saying the late Zambian leader was a principled man even in the muddled waters of politics and was unwavering when he took a principled stand on issues, which made him a model head of state.

'He was a very nice man, as a person,' said Merafhe, who was Botswana's Minister of Foreign Affairs for much of Mwanawasa's presidency. 'There are very few principled Presidents, and Mwanawasa was one of (them).

President Khama characterised Mwanawasa as a great African statesman who had led his country with dedication and commitment. 'He was a good friend, and we will miss him very much,' Khama's message said.

Mwanawasa died in a Paris hospital on Tuesday this week after suffering a stroke while attending a special African Union summit on Zimbabwe in the Egyptian resort city of Sharma-el-Sheik last June.

He was taken ill when he was the Chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which he wanted to use to resolve the Zimbabwean crisis and shared Botswana's views not to recognise Robert Mugabe as a legitimate President of Zimbabwe after the latter unleashed a reign of terror on his opponents.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Phandu Skelemani, who replaced Merafhe only last April, will attend Mwanawasa's funeral on Monday.

The late President Mwanawasa was born in Mufulira in the then Northern Rhodesia on September 3,1948. He held a law degree from the University of Zambia and worked in private practice until he formed his own law firm, Mwanawasa & Company, in 1978.

He was appointed Vice President by then Zambian President, Frederick Chiluba, in 1991 but resigned in 1994, alleging corrupt practices in the government. Mwanawasa first suffered a stroke, described as a mild one, in 2006.
He was hospitalised at Percy Military Hospital in France where he died. He is survived by his wife Maureen and six children.