Frederick Chiluba
| Frederick Chiluba | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 2nd President of Zambia | |
|
In office November 2, 1991 – January 2, 2002 |
|
| Deputy | Levy Mwanawasa |
| Preceded by | Kenneth Kaunda |
| Succeeded by | Levy Mwanawasa |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
April 30, 1943 Kitwe, Northern Rhodesia |
| Died | June 18, 2011 (aged 68) Lusaka, Zambia |
| Nationality | Zambian |
| Political party | MMD |
| Spouse(s) | Vera Tembo (?–2000) Regina Mwanza (2002–2011) |
| Children | 9 |
| Profession | Trade Union official |
| Religion | Pentecostal |
Frederick Jacob Titus Chiluba (April 30, 1943 – June 18, 2011) was a Zambian politician who was the second President of Zambia from 1991 to 2002. Chiluba, a trade union leader, won the country's multi-party presidential election in 1991 as the candidate of the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD), defeating long-time President Kenneth Kaunda. He was re-elected in 1996. As he was unable to run for a third term in 2001, former Vice President Levy Mwanawasa instead ran as the MMD candidate and succeeded him. After leaving office, Chiluba was the subject of a long investigation and trial regarding alleged corruption; he was eventually acquitted in 2009.
He was born to Jacob Titus Chiluba Nkonde and Diana Kaimba and grew up in Kitwe, Zambia. Chiluba has married twice. Frederick Chiluba did his secondary school of education at Kawambwa Secondary School in Kawambwa, where he was expelled in the second year for political activities. He became a bus conductor, and later a politician due to his charismatic personality. He worked as city councilor before becoming an accounts assistant at Atlas Copco, and rose in his rankings, in Ndola where he joined the National Union of Building.
Frederick Chiluba and his second wife, former First Lady of Zambia Vera Tembo, with whom he has nine children, divorced in 2000 after thirty-three years of marriage. Tembo has gone on to pursue a political career of her own, becoming MMD Chairperson for Women's Affairs, being elected to the Zambian Parliament, and becoming deputy Minister of the Environment in 2006. On May 6, 2002, Chiluba married his third wife, Regina Mwanza, the former chairperson of women's affairs for the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD), in Lusaka.
Chiluba's personal appearance and dapper dress as well as his short stature (Chiluba stood just 1.5 m (5 ft) tall) was taken notice of both by his supporters and opponents throughout his career. In connection to European corruption allegations against him in the late 2000s, it was revealed that a Swiss shop had produced over 100 pairs of size 6 shoes for him with two inch heels, many monogrammed. His careful appearance and taste for fine suits became a trademark, and was noted during his corruption trial. In a particularly harsh example, Zambian Post writer Roy Clarke ran a recurring column which lampooned the President during his time in office as "a vain, cross-dressing, high-heel wearing, adulterous, dwarf thief". Political opponents make reference to these charges and traits in their criticisms of Chiluba's rule. Candidate Michael Sata, for instance, has played on this popular stereotype of Chiluba, charging that "Chiluba's thinking is as tall as he is... We are not going to steal money, we are not going to plunder, we are not going to buy suits, we are not going to buy shoes. We are not going to give girls houses..." President Kaunda famously referred to Chiluba as the "Four-foot Dwarf" during Chiluba's rise in opposition politics. Chiluba was acquitted of all corruption charges in August 2009. Mr Chiluba had also been described by the BBC as "a fervent born-again Christian..." whose "...private life was the subject of much gossip."
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