VICE-PRESIDENT Inonge Wina yesterday told Parliament that family members at her Nalolo home in Western Province were attacked by known people.

Mrs Wina said her house in the village is not guarded by the police nor by the royal establishment security.

“My house is near the kuta and the palace of the Litunga Lamboela, so it is easy for them to see what happens in that yard,” she said.

Mrs Wina said the attack on her relatives by suspected United Party for National Development (UPND) cadres was true and she cannot cook up a story.

“What I have done is to calm PF members who feel that they can revenge. There is no need to take any revenge on anyone. Some of the people who were involved are known, some of them were not known,” she said.

She said it is time for politicians to condemn violence, especially by political cadres, saying she feels very sad to see young men and women incarcerated because of violence emanating from politics.

She said it is the leaders that incite young people to engage in violence.

And, meanwhile, Ms Wina is dismayed that girl children are being forced into marriage and some die at child birth.

Speaking during the Vice-President’s question time in Parliament yesterday, Mrs Wina said forcing girls in marriage puts their lives at risk

She said men who marry young girls violate their right to choice and other basic human rights.

Mrs Wina condemned traditional practices that put girls’ lives at risk, saying that it is unfortunate that some people have come to embrace the retrogressive culture at the expense of children’s welfare.

“Early marriages that Zambia is experiencing currently are costing the country a lot because girls are dying at childbirth,” said Mrs Wina.

The Vice-President condemned men who are perpetrating early marriages for sending minors to the grave early.

She, however, assured that Government is working with co-operating partners to address early marriages with the seriousness the matter deserves by attempting to criminalise the offence.

Meanwhile, Mrs Wina has dismissed assertions by opposition members of Parliament that the electronic voucher system has failed.

She said the Minister of Agriculture, Given Lubinda, will issue a ministerial statement in the House about the e-voucher at an appropriate time so that parliamentarians can have facts and stop speculating.

And Government has warned that it will not condone overzealousness in police officers.

Deputy Minister of Home affairs Gerry Chanda (PF) told Parliament yesterday that police officers who exceed their authority do not have Government’s support.
Colonel Chanda was responding to a question by Chadiza (MMD) MP Allan Mbewe who wanted to find out why politicians are arrested on Fridays denied bail and access to their lawyers.

Col Chanda said Government was in the process of introducing a new police training curriculum that will help police uphold human rights and portray a good image of the Zambia Police Service.

Some youths of Kabushi Township in Ndola have charged that failure by politicians to deliver on their campaign promises has led to growing levels of voter apathy in recent elections.

The youths interviewed have since urged politicians vying for public office in the 2016 elections to ensure that they deliver development and not only concentrate on enriching themselves.

They were speaking yesterday when Kabushi constituency aspiring Member of Parliament Bowman Lusambo conducted a voter registration mobilisation exercise in the area which saw hundreds of young people register as first time voters.

The youths were drawn from various wards in the constituency and were ferried to registration centres by the Bowman Lusambo 2016 campaign team.

‘What is missing are leaders that will remain loyal to the people. In Kabushi, we have had MP’s who have abandoned us the moment they stepped into Parliament, this is why we need a change in 2016,’ Rhoda Mulenga said.

She added, ‘Some of us have never felt the need to register to vote because we don’t see the value in voting because our plight never changes. We are however impressed by what Bowman (Lusambo) is doing so far and we are encouraged to vote this time around.’

Another youth identified as Peter Phiri commended Mr Lusambo for the projects he has initiated and implemented since declaring his intentions to stand as are MP.

‘With Bowman, we have seen action and this is why we are calling him Man of Action because everything he has promised, he has delivered. He has sunk boreholes, he had cleared garbage and the drainage system in Kabushi, he has organised a football tournament and he is rehabilitating markets in Kabushi, that is serious action,’ Phiri said.

He said Mr Lusambo has demonstrated that he is running for Kabushi because he wants to provide servant leadership for the people.

‘He is using his own resources to develop Kabushi and he is working with everyone across party lines which is commendable. We know that once we give him a mandate to represent us in parliament, he will do even more,’ he said.

President Edgar Lungu has implored officers in the defence and security wings to desist from corrupt practices.

Speaking when he officiated at the graduation ceremony of the 18th Command staff course in Lusaka today, President Lungu urged the officers to be vigilant and see themselves as part of the solution to the challenge of corruption.

He says his Government has put a high premium on the fight against corruption and fraud.

President Lungu says unless the fight against corruption and fraud is won, all of government’s development efforts will be thwarted.

He states that it is therefore the duty of every responsible citizen to join in the fight against corruption.

The Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces says he is encouraged to see that the staff college has found space to interact with the Anti Corruption Commission and Drug Enforcement Commission to make officers aware of corruption and fraud.

And President Lungu has assured men and women in uniform of government’s desire to continue improving conditions of service and upgrading the quality of life of all ranks and cantonments.

He says government will continue with the housing project to alleviate accommodation challenges and will endeavor to attend to all other infrastructure requirements.

President Lungu adds that government will ensure that steps towards the construction of the new staff college are pursued vigorously to make it a reality.

Patriotic Front Central Committee member Frank Bwalya has dismissed claims by the opposition UPND that the ruling party is losing grip of its strongholds under President Edgar Lungu’s leadership.

Father Bwalya says it is also not true that the ruling party’s popularity died with late party and republican President Michael Sata.

He has told Qfm News that his 35 days party mobilization tour of PF strongholds that include Luapula, Muchinga, Northern and Copperbelt provinces has revealed that President Lungu still has the same following late President Sata had.

Father Bwalya says people in the PF strongholds still believe in the development vision of the late President Sata which President Lungu has continued pursuing.

He says there cannot be any justification to claims that the PF’s popularity has waned in its strongholds.

Father Bwalya says the opposition UPND is therefore misleading itself by using people’s complaints over the current economic situation as reason to believe that the PF has lost grip in its strongholds.

Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) Copperbelt Province Information and Publicity Secretary Mr Peter Phiri has challenged MMD Lunte Member of parliament Mr Felix Mutati to come clean and clarify recent media reports suggesting that Mr Mutati was asking MMD President Dr Nevers Sekwila Mumba to step down.

Commenting on the recent Radio Phoenix interview the Lunte lawmaker had earlier in the week in which he was quoted as saying that he is ready to run for the MMD Presidency and that there was confusion in the MMD, Mr Phiri said that Mr Mutati should publicly apologize to MMD members for playing a very big role in the destabilization of the party by supporting and vigorously campaigning for the United Party for National Development (UPND) president Hakainde Hichilema in the January 2015 Presidential elections.

Mr Phiri said that Mr Mutati was welcome to work with the MMD in the spirit of unity and reconciliation but must be sincere in his efforts and should be seen to be supporting the party. He said if Mr Mutati was quoted out of context in his interview, he should silence his critics by not only publicly setting the record straight, but by showing his support for the party by traveling with his president Dr Mumba all over the country and campaigning for the party during by-elections.

“Where was Mutati during MMD’s darkest hour? Where was Mutati when then Registrar of Societies, Clement Andeleki slapped a K400 million bill on the party with 7 days in which to pay? Where was Mutati when NAPSA sent bailiffs to the Party offices for a K279 million rent debt or when ZNBC, Times of Zambia and Daily Mail came with bills totaling over K500 million? Where was Mr Mutati when the party was lumbered with a K900 million legal bill?” asked Mr Phiri.

Mr Phiri has further challenged Mr Mutati to make a public statement to the MMD structures and the entire membership countrywide on what personal efforts he has made to strengthen and rebuild the party since it lost power in 2011.

“Mr Mutati was forgiven after appearing before the MMD Disciplinary Committee this year and should be grateful that he was not permanently expelled from MMD. We are now hearing disturbing reports that he is having dark corner meetings in the Copperbelt, in Eastern, Northern and other provinces. We are told that he is now trying to sell himself as the only one who can save MMD. We challenge him to publicly refuse if this is not true and set the record straight,” said Mr Phiri.

THE Grand Coalition will not give up until Government gives the people of Zambia a people-driven Constitution, says coalition chairperson Father Leonard Chiti.

Fr Chiti said the ruling Patriotic Front are a selfish party and were not in support of the new Constitution because they were not comfortable with some clauses included in it.

He was reacting to the passage in Parliament of the Constitution of Zambia and the Constitution (Amendment) Bills 2015 second reading which the Government managed to pull through the National Assembly with a comfortable majority despite a spirited counter-offensive by the opposition United Party for National Development.

In the first vote on the Constitution of Zambia Bill, 106 MPs voted in favour, 36 against and four abstained. On the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 109 MPs voted for the Bill to go for the second reading while 35, mainly from UPND, voted against and two abstained.

Fr Chiti said PF was scared of the 50 +1 clause because they knew they could not get such votes with the way people have been hit by the poor economy.

“PF should know that the Grand Coalition will not stop until we force the PF Government to give the people of Zambia a people-driven Constitution; they should know we are aware that the ruling party is not comfortable with some clauses of which the 50+1 is their biggest fear.

Fr Chiti said he would not disclose their next move but the PF should know that they have shifted their strategy to something that would be unveiled soon.

He said the MPs that voted in favour of the two Bills acted selfishly and did not consider the need and desires of the Zambian people. He added that MPs voted to satisfy their personal gains and those of the PF without considering the national interest.

He said it was disappointing for the MMD to have joined forces with the ruling party and vote favour of the bill and that it was only the UPND that considered the Zambian people.

“I will not disclose what the grand coalition will do next, but the PF and the Zambian people should know we are not letting the Zambian people suffer because of a selfish party, we have moved our strategy and it will yet be unveiled. It is very disappointing that the MMD also voted in favour of the bill when they know it was only for PF selfish gains” he said.

He said the PF will soon reach a dead end as they will lose next year’s election terribly. He added that the government should know that people have been affected badly by the economy and would not give the ruling party another chance.

He said the PF should not think they have any strongholds as citizens country wide had lost interest in them.

He said he had spoken to ordinary from Lusaka and Kitwe, who had expressed disappointment in the government vowing to vote for change.

“The Pf and it’s government should know they are heading nowhere, I spoke to ordinary people on the Copperbelt and Lusaka and they assured me PF will not have their vote, people are hit badly by the bad economy and for this the ruling party should worry for themselves” he said.