I am a disappointed soldier—Lucius

Music icon Lucius Banda is under pressure by his fans to release a single to criticise government for the prevalent socio-economic woes, but the musician says he is disappointed and frustrated of serving an unappreciative people.

This follows after a fan wrote the musician a personal message which he posted on his Facebook page earlier this month.

The message asks Lucius, popularly known as Soldier for speaking on behalf of the poor and the voiceless, to release a hard-hitting song as he has done with previous regimes.

Reads the message: “Big man, we are begging you if it’s possible to do the same as you used to do in the past. You used to criticise governments led by Kamuzu [Banda], Atcheya [Bakili Muluzi] and Bingu [wa Mutharika] when things were going astray. Why not this time?

“Things are hard for us. Goods are expensive, about electricity I don’t have to say anything, and security is at its lowest. Things change for the better when you speak. We are hungry waiting for that single.”

The post, which attracted 581 likes, 966 comments and 24 shares, was received with mixed reactions.

But most of the comments supported the idea, urging Lucius to speak on their behalf as poor and voiceless individuals. They said such songs put government on its toes for the better.

“Soldier, you are the soldier for us the poor. Fight for us so that we should have food. We are tired with Peter [Mutharika] regime,” read one comment.

Lucius has been known as a voice of reason and he has lived up to that reputation, recording a song that is critical of government in each of his 18 albums since his debut Son of a Poor Man in 1993.

In an interview, Lucius revealed that he is a disappointed Soldier because he is not supported by the people he stands up for.

He said: “What are the people doing with what I have sung before? Have we not inspired them enough to stand up and act?

“In the past, the youth would act without looking at one’s party affiliation. And that’s why we had multi-party. But today, people are loyal to their parties even if they know that their leaders are wrong. It’s difficult to speak for such people,” he said.

He denied allegations that he has toned down in his approach to issues as a soldier for voiceless masses.

“I am a disappointed soldier. I am talking alone without the support from the people I defend,” he said. n