Socialist Party leader Fred M’membe has urged Zambians to judge opposition politicians by what they did while holding public office, warning that voters risk repeating past outcomes if they overlook how power was used the last time around.
Speaking on the Kenny T Podcast, M’membe framed his message as a call for careful, individual assessment of opposition figures, particularly those associated with the Patriotic Front. He said the public already knows the track records of many actors now operating in opposition politics and should not treat parties as a single unit when making political choices.
“Let’s assess the opposition elements, or else you get back to the same thing,” M’membe said.
M’membe said voters should interrogate each individual’s time in office, focusing on the responsibilities they held and how they exercised authority. He urged citizens to look beyond present-day messaging and instead consider performance, conduct, and accountability during periods of power.
“Look at each individual. What did they do with the offices they had?” he asked.
He pointed to the handling of public resources and government contracts as key lines of inquiry, saying citizens should ask what contracts leaders obtained, how those opportunities were used, and whether their actions met the standards expected of public office holders. He broadened the test further, stressing behaviour and leadership character, asking whether those who once wielded authority demonstrated conduct that justifies renewed confidence today.
M’membe also questioned shifting public attitudes, asking why certain figures were opposed or removed in the first place if they are now being presented as credible options. He argued that reversing earlier judgments without reflection places responsibility on the electorate, not the politicians being reconsidered.
He closed with a warning that without careful scrutiny, voters may repeat the same cycle, returning to familiar problems through familiar choices.
“So all what I’m saying is, let’s assess this situation carefully or be running in circles,” he said, warning that voters risk “jumping from a frying pan into fire and back into a frying pan again.”
Asked during the same podcast why he founded the Socialist Party, M’membe said the decision was shaped by what he described as the character of existing political options at the time. He said he saw individuals he characterised as corrupt or driven by tender-based interests seeking to lead society, a situation he believed risked repeating failed political cycles. He explained that the Socialist Party was formed as a left-wing political organisation intended to offer an alternative path, adding that although some people advised against using the name “Socialist Party,” he and his colleagues chose to keep it to remain open about their ideological position. M’membe said the model of socialism he advocates should not be confused with the systems that collapsed in Eastern Europe, noting that Zambia’s political context is different.
Credit/Source: Fred M’membe interview on the Kenny T Podcast
And you think what you did at the Post was right. We know your argument that you had appealed at some tribunal, but is it not a fact, that you were on an agreed payment plan because you defaulted the way PF defaulted. People were insulted left, right and center by that newspaper, and you want to come out holy now
Guess who took advantage of a dying president by stopping to pay taxes? #The Post!
Yeah, there must also be “careful evaluation of PF era media performance”.
Some journalists were lying to us that they were reporting factually-yet they were politicking using their media platform. Now they lead invisible people’s pacts.
Mundubile fever now manifesting in some people
People are less than 1000 and are calling themselves people’s pact. It is your democratic right, but from what I know, psychological warfare or psychological names dont work in this business.
Iwe James strict definition of “people” More than one person. So this people’s pact stands, legally and dramatically. kikikikikiki!
What does work is promises and lies coupled with cpmplicated statistics
Good article .. Voters must think twice. Davies Mwila has encouraged the opposition to work hard to win the August elections in order to free imprisoned colleagues. Disregarding their criminality. LAW is LAW
As if there is law and order now. The court says this is unlawful and you go ahead to enact, and you start embarrassing yourselves by dancing in parliament
Let us also scrutinize the track record of those who once got close to power. recall how they floated themselves as kingmakers, never mind ensuring their former employees landed positions either in foreign service, key judicial institutions, as PS and in once case as director finance at the abused power distribution company, how tax was not paid and how the agreement became a paper exercise….yes let us scrutinize the past even as they come to us like the prodigal son….
Mmembe is a headless chicken. He doesn’t know which direction he is running to. Sick man
Headless chickens are never alive
Fred M’membe supported the PF serpent to the max and when it did bite us all with toxic venom he disowns his huge role in those toxic wounds?
Iwe Bwana don’t come to lectures us now with all the blood in your hands.Integrity and accountability also matters.