Lambo in Lusaka

I had to take a double take cruising down the road the other day. For a moment, I thought I was back in Orange County. A sleek, white, Lamborghini was pulling out of a gated household onto the streets of Lusaka. Yep, that's right, a Lambo. So many thoughts and feelings overwhelmed me that I nearly fell over.

1) Why would you want to drive a Lamborghini in Lusaka? There are probably only 3 roads in the entire city that are safe to drive - the rest are ridden with enormous potholes, in complete disrepair, or have yet to be paved. There are also ginormous speed bumps on the few roads that are paved. In fact, there is one just outside of the gate the Lambo pulled out of - it COULDN'T have driven the other way down the street! I bet the owner even hires a security guard to take with them and watch the car while they are getting milk at the store.

2) The blatant disregard for the surrounding poverty makes me want to hurl. Import duties on cars in Zambia nearly double the cost paid compared to the actual worth. That's right, double the cost of that Lambo - you are talking big bucks. That is, unless there are other, hidden, deals at work... Can you imagine visiting the big city from a village - with hardly enough to feed yourself and your family, struggling to survive, and seeing this slick car that only exists in the movies and Orange County? Surely, its driven by some 'important' politician or businessman showing their 'importance' with the value of their car. Why are they busy showing their 'importance' rather than using it for some more wholesome, helpful purpose?

Prompted by the Lambo siting, I have paid more attention to the cars on the streets of Luska. I have noticed more and more exotic cars: Mercedes, BMWs, Hummers. Is this actually a sign of a growing middle class exercising their newly found purchasing power? Hmm, I think not. I think its a sign of other, more pernicious methods of obtaining wealth. Bummer.

Zambits

Despite the best laid plans to leave Lusaka at 7am sharp Monday morning for a rural site visit in Luangwa, the laws of Zambian physics prevail. Being 'on time' here is relative. Locals refer to now as within the next hour or two. Now now is within the next 15 minutes. A flurry of emails and phone calls are made to ensure our departure promptly at 7am. We leave the office by 7:08, only to find a large screw implanted in our tire within five minutes of departing. One look at the spare causes us to turn around to get an entirely new tire. We leave Lusaka 90 minutes later. Sounds about right.

We depart the clinic after a long days' work. Our of nowhere, a hysterical squawking shreaks from the back of the vehicle. Is the guy in back joking around? Nope, its the village chicken he bought and put in a cardboard box in back complaining about the bumpiness of the road.

A pickup truck flags down our Land Cruiser. I've been spotted, the lone Mzungu in the car. The driver rolls down the window and invites me to dinner. He and his wife are thrilled to share a meal with a fellow American after a bit of time in the bush. Dinner with the Texan couple is lovely: hamburgers, fried potatoes, and homemade vanilla ice cream.

Stranded. The only gas station in the rural town of Luangwa has run out of petrol. All the local utilities and enterprising individuals in town who store their own fuel for such occasions are tapped dry. The NGO I've come with sends a vehicle with spare fuel from Lusaka, five hours away. That car breaks down 3 hours into its journey. The NGO sends another car to fix the broken down car for the first car to continue on its mission to provide us with fuel.

Time to read the local paper. A sample of today's headlines from the 'Post':

"Mututwa asks govt to tell him what wrong he did" - A 92 year old accused of treason 'thanked the government for releasing him without explaining to him what wrong he committed.'

"Failures shouldn't seek re-election" - A pastoral coordinator complains at the lack of attendance of government officials at a church celebration.

"Rupiah's govt wants Mumba out of ECZ" - The President is trying to remove a justice from the Electoral Commission and replace her with someone more favorable to his government ahead of the upcoming elections.

"Use of live ammunition is unacceptable" - condemnation of the Zambian police force's use of live ammunition on citizens.

"Four to hang for murder" - four of six accused of murder are sentenced to death by hanging. They murdered someone from stealing $10.

"Electoral Code still source of mistrust" - 'the code in its current state is a source of conflict, mistrust and an erosion of public confidence in the electoral process.'

"Copperbelt cops hold man over human trafficking"

"Govt to employ over 200,000 teachers in next 10 years" - to fill the current shortfall. 80,000 teachers are currently employed in all of Zambia.

"Zambians housing deficit in billions of dollars"

"Obama faces budget battle after speech"

"Cholera causing more deaths, experts urge vaccination"