Jethro Mutti
Script error: No such module "String". | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Central Committee (MCC)UNIP | |
| In office 1973 – 1975 | |
| President | Kenneth Kaunda |
| Cabinet Minister for North Western province Zambia | |
| In office 1971 – 1973 | |
| Minister of State for Rural Development Zambia | |
| In office 1969 – 1971 | |
| Member of Parliament (Zambia) for Livingstone | |
| In office 1968 – 1971 | |
| Zambian Ambassador to Ethiopia | |
| In office 1967 – 1969 | |
| Parliamentary Secretary (Ministry of Information Services) | |
| In office 1964 – 1967 | |
| Member of Parliament (Zambia) for Mankoya now Kaoma | |
| In office 1964 – 1968 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jethro Mukenge Mutti 3 May 1934 Kaba Hill Mission, near Mankoya now Kaoma, Northern Rhodesia |
| Nationality | Zambian |
| Spouse(s) | Masiliso Mutti (m. 1964) |
Jethro Mukenge Mutti (3 May 1934 – 18 January 2013), was a Zambian politician who between the years 1964 to 1975 served as Member of Parliament, Ambassador, Minister and Member of the Central Committee under the ruling party UNIP led by Kenneth Kaunda. He died on 18 January 2013 after suffering from aspiration pneumonia following a series of mini strokes and poor health in the last few years of his life, linked to his tetraplegic condition.
Not in favour of the "one party democracy" policy adopted by UNIP, Jethro Mutti resigned from office in April 1975 to become a business man. In September 1975, he was involved in a vehicle accident which left him with severe spinal injuries. He was transferred from the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) in Lusaka and flown to Lodge Moor Hospital, Sheffield, UK for specialist treatment. After 6 months of treatment and rehabilitation at Lodge Moor hospital he returned to Zambia to live life as a tetraplegic.
Early life and education background
Jethro Mukenge Mutti was born in 1934 at Kaba Hill Mission located near Luampa in Barotseland a protectorate of Northern Rhodesia. He was educated at Luampa Mission Primary School, Mankoya Upper School and Kambule Secondary School located in Barotseland. After his secondary school education, he worked as a clerk for the Northern Rhodesia Public Works Department (PWD) from 1956 to 1960. Mutti first became active in politics in the late 1950s much to the displeasure of the colonial authorities who tried to have him removed from the area.
Independence struggle
In 1960, he resigned from his job at PWD to join UNIP as a full-time party organiser in Mongu, Barotseland (now Western Province, Zambia). Mutti persuaded Sikota Wina to travel to Kalabo, Senanga and Mwandi where they held rallies gaining further support for UNIP and persuading the locals to buy UNIP cards. Some of the areas Mutti and Sikota travelled to were impassable by car due to floods, they abandoned the car they used for travelling and proceeded on foot to reach their destinations. The Northern Rhodesia colonial ruling authorities who were hostile to UNIP organisers in Barotseland attempted to have him "deported" from Barotseland but he defied the order.
In August 1961, Mr Mutti was beaten up by colonial police officers at Lusaka Police Station for his involvement with the campaign for constitutional change to bring in a majority African government. He sustained a ruptured ear drum but no action was taken against the police officer who had injured Mutti. One of his colleagues reportedly suffered a fractured skull. Mr Mutti subsequently brought a personal civil suit against the police officer but he was acquitted. Mutti was then charged with perjury and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment.[1] He appealed and was released from prison after serving two weeks of the sentence.
He resumed work as an UNIP organiser in Mongu after the government ban against the party was lifted in 1962.
In January 1964, Northern Rhodesia saw its first majority black member parliament in the general elections; Mutti was elected MP for Mankoya (now Kaoma) representing UNIP. In May 1964 he was part of a delegation representing Zambia at the second Organisation of African Unity Summit in Cairo.
After independence
Mutti's first appointment to the newly formed Zambian government after independence on 24 October 1964, was as Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Information Postal Services, serving under Lewis Changufu who was minister. In 1967 he was appointed ambassador to Ethiopia. In 1968 he briefly returned to Zambia to stand for a parliamentary seat in Livingstone in the 1968 presidential and general elections which he subsequently won. The Livingstone seat had previously been held by Mainza Chona (UNIP) who in the 1964 general elections had won the seat by the election's lowest majority of 483. Fearful that the Livingstone seat would be lost to ANC,[2] UNIP asked Mutti to stand for the Livingstone seat instead while Chona was sent to Mutti’s former Kaoma constituency which Mutti had comfortably won in 1964. In 1969 he returned to Zambia from Ethiopia, to take up office as Minister of State for Rural Development.[3] In April 1969, during his parliamentary maiden speech Mr Mutti caused an uproar in parliament when he called on Zambian Ministers to give up their luxury
- ↑ Lua error in ...ribunto/includes/engines/LuaCommon/lualib/mwInit.lua at line 23: bad argument #1 to 'old_ipairs' (table expected, got nil).
- ↑ Lua error in ...ribunto/includes/engines/LuaCommon/lualib/mwInit.lua at line 23: bad argument #1 to 'old_ipairs' (table expected, got nil).
- ↑ Lua error in ...ribunto/includes/engines/LuaCommon/lualib/mwInit.lua at line 23: bad argument #1 to 'old_ipairs' (table expected, got nil).
