Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia has passed on today, aged 97.
His family confirmed the death. Kaunda is said to have suffered from pneumonia and was admitted to a hospital on Monday in Lusaka.
“I am sad to inform (members) we have lost Mzee. Let’s pray for him,” Kaunda’s son Kambarage wrote on the late President’s Facebook page.
Kenneth Kaunda was the first president of Zambia. He was a key notable figure in the fight for independence in Zambia and Africa.
Kaunda is the last of the great generation of Africa’s independent leaders who fought for a free and modern Africa.
Indeed, it is a day of great sorry for Africans and a day of remembrance of Africa’s great independence generation led by the likes of Kwame Nkrumah, Julius Nyerere, Sekou Toure, Patrice Lumumba, Modibo Keita, Ahmed Ben Bella, Jomo Kenyatta, Nnamdi Azikiwe amongst others.
Kaunda was Zambian President from 1964 when the country won its independence from Britain until 1991. Kaunda is also noted to have fought against Apartheid in South Africa.
He was also instrumental in backing the liberation movement in Zimbabwe.
The authorities declared three weeks of mourning.
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Renate is a lawyer, publicist, and writer. She believes that education and information is the key to developing and shaping Africa. In her free time, she paints beautiful art pieces on canvas. Renate believes that life is a perception, and you live it the way you perceive it.
