By Patrick Mucheleka UPND Deputy Secretary General
We have once again seen video footage of Mr. Edgar Lungu’s agents preaching tribalism in the ongoing bye-election campaigns in Lukashya, Northern Province, and Mwansabombwe in Luapula Province.
What is troubling us is that these tribalists are preaching messages of hatred even to the young people in these areas that attend their meetings. This is abusive to young minds and therefore completely unacceptable.
We have no doubt these PF campaigners have the blessings of Mr. Lungu himself because they have been doing the same things over and over and yet they are not being reprimanded.
The UPND candidates contesting in these areas do not hail from Southern Province but are local citizens coming from these same constituencies.
Our citizens across the country face some economic challenges and they need messages of hope in dealing with the current economic crisis, not divisive messages full of ethnic venom.
People from across the country want to hear messages around agriculture, job creation, mining, tourism, and other sectors as opposed to messages of hatred that the PF are preaching which can burn the country like what has happened in other parts of the world.
PF’s desperation must not be allowed to poison the minds of Zambians, especially of our younger people. They must stop setting citizens against citizens in order to win votes so that they remain in power to steal more money from public coffers. Zambians cannot be fooled anymore, they know who is corrupt and who is a thief. The tribal talk will not put food on their table or buy medicine in the hospitals or indeed pay their children’s school fees. What they want is peace and genuine development.
In Southern province tongas don’t vote for a non tonga or a non tonga party, no matter how you use sulimilar words to yours. In southern province its only upnd & hh privatization thief. They even boo lungu when he passes through
The pot calls the kettle black
But even all appointments we hear in government ministries are from two tribes, just audit all the appointments from Edgar so that you may prove that my post is without malice. Tribal in all actions
You forgot to mention that PF is advising people not to vote for a party led by a Sejani acclaimed leader with a record of “Ghoshi dishonesty”. The candidates are of the same tribe!! Your tribalism song is obviously out of tune!!!
Yes, they’re preaching tribalism because the UPND legal team is just not good enough. There’s probably too much groupthink and not a single devil’s advocate in their ranks.
Politicians will always preach tribalism whenever it suits them, and speak against it when it works against them.
So, let’s stop the pretence, when we know exactly how these politicians. We can hold as many meetings, debates, symposia, name them, tribalism is part of our culture – it’s not going anywhere. KK tried to fight it, but it’s ever getting worse.
Its not. I am Nsenga. I grew up in Chamboli in Kitwe with one very prominent Lozi guy. I never knew he was Lozi. In our township football team there were three Tongas I never knew they were Tonga. We all spoke Bemba and had about four guys from Luapula. In our adult age we do meet and that’s when we realise how blessed we were because now we are being taught to identify who is from which tribe. The lesson is that your upbringing will tribalise you or untribalise you. We CB guys rarely see tribe in anyone and it is reflected in our voting patterns. We are the future of Zambia. The rest are doomed to extinction
Derek my man! Your Sejani leader even bars his elected officials to attend government events,let alone accepting ministerial appointments!!. Do you think Michelo Hansungule would accept a cabinet post in a non-Sejani government?
Lungu is the most tribalistic , corrupt , violent wannabe dictator Zambia , we pray , will ever have……
His PF thugs run all public spaces , extorting money from citizens , they are at the forefront of fanning tribal divisions.
Ever since lungu became president all economic indicators have worsened……
Permanent unemployment grows naturally under lungu.
All the while we have PF rats like Antonio Mwanza AKA Zambian Citizen pointing at buildings built with borrowed money lungu is even failing to pay back
watched the video of that pf cadre preaching tribal hate, not only was he preaching to the elderly but he was also intoxicating little kids with his NAZI style hate, 90% of those who were in attendance were little kids. to top it up he referred to those from the south as abaku chalo chimbi, in short he called his felow zambians foreigners from another country, i the coart of arms says ONE ZAMBIA, ONE NATION.
When u see such desperation just kno someone is just hanging by the thread. He is damn scared
Upnd are the most childish cowards on the political scene. These guys will never win or contest an election without crying foul. I just don’t understand them. Acting like infants. Learn to lose with integrity. GaIu zilibe muchila imwe
But when a galu has no muchila it becomes a better watchdog so what are you saying?
Lavu M Zulu, please brush up on the history of nation-building from Europe to Africa and Asua if u’re the curious type. U can read FROM THIRD WORLD TO FIRST – THE SINGAPORE STORY and learn something about hw a serious statesman tackled it after it had led to the partitioning of wht was the former British colony of Malaya into today’s Malaysia and Singapore. They were once one country in case u don’t know it.
Lavu M Zulu, please brush up on the history of nation-building from Europe to Africa if u’re the curious type. U can read FROM THIRD WORLD TO FIRST – THE SINGAPORE STORY and learn something about hw a serious statesman tackled it after it had led to the partitioning of wht was the former British colony of Malaya into today’s Malaysia and Singapore. They were once one country in case u don’t know it.
So were India and Pakistan
Politics have extremely moved from issue and policy based to simply rhetoric under the PF. The truth is we currently have very few politician who can discuss and disseminate information to the electorate on the basis of issues concerning them. Today all we here is the usual blaming each other, PF did that or UPND did that. Members in that party want to steal or are stealing and are corrupt. When will ever learn to discuss real issues that are affecting the people and offer some solutions to win over the electorate? Our politicians have completely derailed and seem completely lost. It is not a secret that any tribal grouping favours their fellow dew to many factors, the best we can do ignore the tribal rhetoric and preach what we intend to do for the people to improve their livelihood…
Unfortunately, we have been hearing the PF say the UPND in Southern Province tell their people to vote for a party represented by their very own so we shall also do the same in our strongholds. PF believes it is just responding to the tribal talk in UPND when it goes to campaign in Southern Province. UPND would do well not to entertain tribal talk even in Southern Province.
The lies that divide Zambians need to be studied seriously and then tackled appropriately. Ordinary that would be the function of the school system. But the syllabus in the school system is leaving many people unable to know wht it is to be a citizen which is a new identity above the old one of membership of a tribe.
These are the issue based campains
Antion mwanza AKA Zambian citizen
was boasting about yesterday…..
@Nemwine, download, copy and paste kids will never know that there was a country called Yugoslavia and Czechslovakia for the later it was a simple velvet revolution that led to its dissolution, for the first one i was in grade 7 and was one keen news listening brat, boy it was kafwafwa,
The Observer, strictly speaking u’re not an observer. U’re participating in the debate. U also need to refresh on the history of nation-building as recommended above. It will do u a world of good. If we fail to tackle tribalism, we will either hv to break up Zambia one day. Some think federalism would help. It’s a simplistic silution and therefore no solution either because the federal government needs to function also. Just look at Nigeria if u think federalism is a cure for tribalism.
@Nemwine
I am indeed an observer trying to explain why the PF is carrying out the tribal campaign it is claimed to be carrying out. The Pf says this is exactly what UPND does in Southern Province. And my advice to UPND is not just to condemn this but not to do it when they are campaigning in Southern Province. PF says it wants people in its stronghold to vote the way Southerners do in Southern Province because nobody else belonging to another party other than UPND is voted for the way perceived Southerners are voted for. As an observer, I believe UPND should not just condemn the wrongdoing in the PF camp. It should do the same with wrongdoing in its own camp. It is the only way it will be seen to be serious in fighting tribalism.
I don’t know why you are being downvoted you are speaking so much sense. For me both PF and UPND don’t seem to see the fire they are stoking. A ruling party doesn’t have to imitate the wrong actions of an opposition party. If UPND are doing what is wrong you don’t react by saying we will do the same thing. That is the time to show leadership and if you have thinkers in your party that is the time they should sit down and come up with solutions that take your nation forward and in the process your party progresses.
Ati bana Johny umwana wenu natoba amawindow pa mwesu. Naifwe twaisa mukumitobela amawindow. Does that make sense?
Is it not upnd that said only a Tonga can rule it ? If they say upnd is not tribal following such an abhorrent statement then why has hh who is Tonga being allowed to stand over 4 times at the expense of others in the party,?
ZAMBIANS HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN HOW HH WAS CHOSEN TO BE THE UPND LEADER.
HIS MAIN QUALIFICATION WAS THAT HE HAD TO BE TONGA.
SO, WHO IS TRIBALISTIC HERE.
PLEASE SHUT UP, MUCHELEKA
ZAMBIANS HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN HOW HH WAS CHOSEN TO BE THE UPND LEADER.
HIS MAIN QUALIFICATION WAS THAT HE HAD TO BE TONGA.
SO, WHO IS TRIBALISTIC HERE.
PLEASE SHUT UP, MUCHELEKA!!
ZAMBIANS ARE NOT STUPID
THEY REMEMBER VERY WELL THAT WHEN HH WAS CHOSEN TO BE THE CULT LEADER OF UPND THE MAIN QULAIFICATION WAS THAT HE HAD TO BE TONGA
SO, WHO ARE THE ARCH TRIBALISTS?
PLEASE SHUT UP MUCHELEKA
Mucheleka you seem to be coming from Mars, please come down to earth. Have you ever heard of a statement that ”
only a Tonga can lead UPND? By the way Tonga is one of the many Zambian tribes. The tribe is situated in the Southern province of Zambia. If chickens, goats and cows were allowed to vote in Southern province they would all vote for HH because, all voting human beings in Southern province vote for HH a Tonga candidate. If this is not tribalism then I do not know what it is. Ask HH, he has won some wards in far flung areas as Mpulungu in the northern province but you cannot say the same for any non-Tonga political party competing in the Southern province having won a single ward. The only hope though is that some people in the Southern province have began to have a different…
May I remind the bloggers, The MP for Livingstone is Matthews Jere! When did a Jere become a Tonga?
Just because you are tribalistic does not change who the Tongas are. They are accomodating ,friendly with financial discipline which you call akaso.
By the way, in Choma ,the Tongas speak Nyanja and Bemba, In Livingstone ,they speak Lozi.
Jere stood on the Tonga lead UPND and was voted for. Had stood on another party’s ticket he wouldn’t have made it. Recently the same Jere stood against a Tonga fellows UPND for the vice provincial chairperson, he lost by a wide margin. So what does this mean if it is not tribalism
Livingstone has a cosmopolitan population with Lozi Bemba Tonga and Chinyanja speakers. Now and then it doesn’t follow Tonga policy
When The President appoints someone from UPND, he is fired by HH. what do you expect?
Very sickening watching the way PF are preaching and scaring ignorant bembas that a tonga is going to do something bad to them. The ignorant villagers believe them, not knowing that all this is all beans made to decieve them into voting for them to steal some more until there is nothing else to steal. Northen province is still very much village like despite 90 percent of our politician hailing from there. A tribemate is nothing but that and definetly not a meal ticket to a better life. Look at us we depend on others for donations and not tribemates.
iyo ni beans, kashimba chimbwili was right. They would rather vote for their kind than Jesus. After all the have their small god, why would they waste their time praying to God who isn’t their kind.