A YOUNG rancher has positioned himself to challenge Jack Mwiimbu’s 25 years unbroken record as Monze Central Constinuency member of parliament.
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Victor Cheelo, is a 31-year-old economist and PhD candidate who believes it’s time for Zambian youths to take charge of their future.
After August, 12, 2026 he could probably be among the list of Zambia’s youngest Members of Parliament.
For 25 years, Monze Central Constituency has known only one MP by the name of Jack Mwiimbu, a veteran lawyer and one of the country’s longest serving parliamentarians who also happens to be Home Affairs Minister.
“I’m not here to fight Jack,” Cheelo said in an interview.
“I’m here to protect his legacy and take it forward. I wouldn’t say that I’m the best to unseat Mwiimbu. I’m looking at things that haven’t been done. The old man has served and his legacy needs to be protected.”
Born and raised in Monze as the fourth child in a family of eleven, Cheelo, a young cattle rancher, armed with degrees, grit and a plan for change is preparing to challenge that dominance and he might just win.
“I come from a humble background. I’m the fourth born in a family of 11. When I say I come from a humble background, I mean I was born in a family that wasn’t poor nor rich. We were able to afford a meal and my father managed to take us to school. That foundation shaped me,” shared Cheelo.
After completing his secondary education at Monze Boarding School in 2011, he left Zambia in search of knowledge, enrolling at Bugema University in Uganda.
There, he studied economics and served as student union president, an experience that taught him leadership.
Returning home in 2017, Cheelo completed a Master of Science in Project Management at ZICAS and is now pursuing a PhD, people may just adjust to call him Doc by 2027.
Despite years away from home, his bond with Monze remained unshaken.
“Why Monze Central? Because I’m strongly attached to Monze. There’s no place I feel more comfortable than being in Monze,” he shared.
“I have to give back to the community that raised me. To the people that saw potential in me. To the churches that prayed for me, collectively, as a family.”
He added: “We have to give back where we come from. Where we started off really matters. I can’t jump and say ‘Lusaka.’ Yes, we can do it but Monze defines me. I can’t run away from it. My DNA is Monze Central.”
Cheelo’s plan for Monze is bold and ambitious as he wants to turn his constituency which is rich in cattle, into an Agro Industrial Hub.
“When I look at Monze Central, it’s endowed. If you look at the statistics of beef itself, why don’t we have companies that will be processing beef?” he questioned.
“A little value addition [is needed] so that we tap into the untapped market. These are the things I want to bring to the table. We want to bring development in a different dimension, development that will see a farmer understand the value of farming and cattle ranchers to see the value of cattle rearing at their doorstep.”
He shared that polony can be made in Monze, sausages can be done in Monze.
“Monze is at the centre, why should we have beef pass Kafue and come into Lusaka unprocessed?” Cheelo wondered.
He believes pragmatic, youthful leadership can unlock manufacturing potential, create jobs, and build value chains in farming, ranching and small businesses.
Beyond politics, Cheelo wears several hats. He’s a board member at Pinnacle Petroleum and at a Chinese-Zambian firm.
He also supports youth boxing tournaments in Monze with his business partners, creating platforms for young athletes from across Zambia.
He recently donated a vehicle to help ferry the sick and bereaved in his community.
A father to one, a baby girl named Gracia, he says his free time is sacred as he often spends it at his farm, teaching his daughter to feed animals.
“If you can’t manage your home, how can you lead a nation?” he asked
He enjoys golf, chess, the gym and reads everything from the Bible to business books and in all this, service is his true north for him.
“I have been ridiculed, betrayed, even written off. But I don’t fight back. I forgive. Leadership is service,” Cheelo stated.
But he’s also clear eyed about politics.
He believes that once elected, he will transform the Monze Central Constituency into an agriculture hub that will contribute positively to National Foods Security and job creation.
Cheelo insists that as an area member of parliament for Monze Central, he will eat and live with his people.
“Some people think I’m crazy to leave Lusaka. But I want to live with the people I serve. I have to live with my people. Here where we are, we came to look for opportunities, better ways to survive. So we are going back to live with our people. Of course because legislative meetings are in Lusaka, there will be a part of me that will be here and another in Lusaka.”
“I have to eat what my people eat. My leadership is collective leadership, engagement leadership, that is what we shall do. Teachers, headmen, chiefs, will have to tell us what they want, they will lead,” explained Cheelo.
Victor Cheelo is a UPND member who yearns to run on the ruling party’s ticket come 2026.
As Monze heads into an election year, it may just find itself at the intersection of history and hope.
By Catherine Pule
Kalemba, June 26, 2025
