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The Opposition Forum for Democracy and Development FDD has accused the ruling Patriotic Front PF of embezzling resources meant for payment of students’ allowances at the two public universities as well as for farmers.
FDD spokesperson Antonio Mwanza said government is failing to pay students and farmers because the PF has misapplied, misappropriated and embezzled the money that was budgeted for these payments.
“The Patriotic Front has misapplied, misappropriated and embezzled the money that was budgeted for the payment of students’ allowances at both CBU and UNZA and for farmers hence their failure to pay students and farmers their dues.
The PF has been running a Bamba Zonke reckless type of Government with no clear monetary and fiscal policy hence their failure to stick to approved budget lines leading to deficits and non payment of dues and debts.”
The opposition leader also charged that due to failure to stick to its own budget government has been forced to plead with local banks for resources to pay the farmers who supplied maize to the FRA and are still waiting for their money.
“Right now this government is busy pleading with local banks to borrow them money to pay farmers since the money that was allocated for the payment of farmers in 2013/14 National Budget has been squandered.
“As FDD we demand for the immediate payment of all the students and farmers whose payments are due.”
Mr. Mwanza further called on relevant institutions to investigate where the money meant for farmers has been taken.
“We urge the offices of the Auditor General and the ACC to move in and investigate how money meant for students and farmers was squandered.”
This contained in a statement released to the media by the FDD spokesperson in Lusaka today.
File:Alliance for Better Zambia president Father Frank Bwalya blows a whistle against the government’s refusal to release the Zambian draft constitution
Alliance for a Better Zambia President Father Frank Bwalya said events of last last week have shown that acting President Guy Scott has no influence in the ruling party.
Featuring on the Voice of America’s Straight Talk Africa programme Fr Bwalya said the Patriotic Front was struggling with succession as the party was not institutionalized but depended on the efforts of the late President Michael Sata.
“His (Dr Scott’s) influence within the party has now been shown to be almost nothing,” he said.
[pullquote]“This is more or less like a personal to holder party and the owner of the political party who formed it and controlled it has left.”[/pullquote]
“And since this is a struggle on who takes over control of the party, candidacy of the party and since in Africa it is difficult to unseat a government in this manner there is this belief that once I am nominated as a candidate for the ruling party then it is given I am eventually going to become Republican President.”
He added: “So you can see that it has now been exposed that his influence may not have been as much as some of us may have previously thought. And it complicates matters that he himself cannot stand. He is on record himself saying that the first born of the late President Sata was disqualified by a provision in the constitution that was tailored specifically to block former President Kenneth Kaunda from standing after he was removed in 1991 when multi party democracy was introduced.”
“However this time around the threat on peace and stability is not coming from the public but from within the ruling party, that is where the threat is coming from, which is something very different,” he said.
“Therefore this seems to be attracting more attention of the Zambian people than the funeral itself. Zambians are more thinking about these power struggles within the ruling party that in fact the peace is at stake.”
He said the PF was anchored on President Sata leaving the structure disintegrated at a time when they were expected to unite.
“In the case of PF, this was the party that was formed mainly by an individual, the one who has died,” he said.
“He controlled the party, the party turned out to have a structure that was more authoritarian. Other people who were part of that collegial responsibility don’t seem to have the same influence. The structures and processes are not fully developed so this is not an institution.
“This is more or less like a personal to holder party and the owner of the political party who formed it and controlled it has left.”
Things in the PF blew up when acting President Guy Scott fired Secretary General Edgar Lungu last week Monday but the party hierarchy rose up in arms forcing Scott to rescind his decision less than 24 hours later.
File:British High Commissioner James Thornton takes photographs at the official opening of Parliament.
The British government has reiterated its willingness to fund the country’s forth coming presidential elections.
Speaking to Journalists in Lusaka today British High Commissioner to Zambia James Thornton said his country is ready to offer funding to the Zambian Government on the forth coming Presidential Elections if called upon for assistance by the Zambian government.
Mr. Thornton explained that Britain would want to see a smooth transition of power something he said Zambia has proved to be possible in past elections.
Mr. Thornton said his country appreciates Zambia’s democratic process and the peace that the country is known for and hence his country feels indebted to support the electoral process.
He noted that if called upon to offer financial support to the Electoral Commission of Zambia, Britain will gladly assist.Meanwhile, the UK Envoy to Zambia has urged the ruling Patriotic Front to resolve their internal wrangles.
He said resolution of the leadership conflicts is not only good for the party but for the nation at large.
Dr Guy Scott Acting President of Zambia 12-11-2014
Acting President Guy Scott has said that he is disturbed that the petition is going round in parliament signed by 60 MP to endorse Mr. Edgar Lungu as the party’s PF Presidential candidate.
Dr Scott said that the endorsement of Mr. Lungu by the petitioners is against the party constitution.
He said that the adoption of the candidate must be done in line with the constitution which call for a convention to elect a Presidential candidate.
Dr Scot said that it was sad that some central Committee members want to select a candidate without going through a general conference.
He noted that there are a range of people who may wish to seek election adding that a democratic process will enable a larger number of party members to scrutinize the candidates.
He said this will also help unite the members around the candidate who gets majority support .
Dr Sott said the party cannot endorse decision through intimidation and disorder.
He said any attempt to short-cut this process or exclude the rank and file will create anarchy.
Dr Scott has since given instructions to start preparations for a general conference at Mulungushi Rock of Authority scheduled on or before 29 November.
Meanwhile, Central Province Patriotic Front (PF) Youths have refuted the statement aired on ZNBC news yesterday from the expelled provincial Youth chairman Jeliat Mutembwa that it was adopting Wynter Kabimba as the presidential candidate for the fourth coming presidential by-elections.
PF Acting Provincial Youth chairman Joseph Nkole Mutamba said the youths in the region will adopt Edgar Lungu as the presidential candidate.
Mr Mutamba said this is because Mr Lungu was the person that the late president Michael Sata left the instruments of power with.
ZANIS reports that Mr Mutemba said this in a statement released in Kabwe today.
He said the former Youth chairman Mr Mutembwa was suspended from the party for the alleged theft of money meant for the purchase of a party vehicle a year ago adding that he was still answering to the charge and could therefore not be the spokesperson for the party in the Central province.
The Acting chairperson said PF in the province was saddened to learn that Mr Mutembwa went to the media purporting to be a provincial spokesperson for the youths and other party members claiming that they had adopted Wynter Kabimba as the sole candidate to stand on PF presidential ticket.
‘Me as acting chairman and my fellow youths, we are saying No to this allegation, Not at one time did we sit together as the provincial executive or rather the youth to adopt Kabimba’, said Mr Mutamba.
He further said that Mr Kabimba as at now was no longer a figure in the national executive because he was removed by the person who appointed him as PF Secretary General, the late president Michael Chilufya Sata, and that he was again removed by the same president from his Ministerial position.
He claimed that Mr Kabimba never even attended the funeral for President Sata which implied that he never loved both the president and his party but marely wanted to bring confusion among party members.
‘Kabimba is only a cadre like any other member in the party without any portfolio, we are relying upon Edgar Lungu as the presidential candidate of PF, as Youths, we stand and say no to Kabimba adoption, and this man, this man, we are even reporting the matter to police to have him arrested for the false statements and allegations he is making to the media’, Mr Mutamba explained.
The PF Youths in the province were reacting to the statement aired on ZNBC alleging that PF dignitaries and youths in the Central province were adopting Wynter Kabimba as their sole candidate for the presidential by-election.
The Patriotic Front (PF ) in Lukulu district has refuted claims that the whole western province has endorsed Matero Member of parliament and Commerce deputy minister Miles Sampa as its preferred party presidential candidate.
PF district Publicity Secretary Palata Kandelei told ZANIS in Lukulu in an interview today that the district was not consulted before the provincial executive committee made the announcement.
Mr. Kandelei said that the district was however ready to support Party Secretary General Edgar Lungu who the late President Michael Sata left to act in his absence before he died in London on October 28.
Mr Kandelei noted that in the short time that Mr Lungu has been Secretary General the party membership has grown country wide adding that he has shown good leadership qualities which the late President saw in him as well.
Mr. Kandelei who was accompanied by Constituency Secretary Donald Kwaleyela however said that the district party officials will support whoever will be chosen by the PF central committee.
The district publicity secretary has since called on PF party leaders and members in the province not to be divided but give total support to the central committee’s decision of whoever will be chosen as the presidential candidate.
Recently, the Western province PF Provincial Chairman Kenneth Namutulo was reported in the media saying that the party in the province would support Miles Samba to be the next party President.
Former Justice Minister Sebastian Zulu has advised the ruling PF to adopt late President Michael Sata’s widow, Christine as the party’s presidential candidate in the upcoming presidential by election.
Mr Zulu who served as the first Justice Minister in the PF administration observed that Dr Kaseba would make a good republican President.He said the PF leadership should view Dr Kaseba as a comprise candidate who will help unite the party.
In an interview in Lusaka, Mr Zulu said Dr Kaseba understands fully the vision of her late husband for Zambia and can help execute it.He noted that the divisions in the PF are too deep and only Dr Kaseba can help bridge the differences.
“There is a big problem in the PF. Everybody wants to succeed, I have my own views on who should succeed because they can’t agree on one candidate,” Mr Zulu said.
He added, “I don’t see the PF leaders agreeing. So why not settle on the First Lady, let her finish the two years. I would rather her. Let’s have a lady President, a woman President, Dr Kaseba is internationally known, she is a medical doctor and she was actually working before going to State House.”
Opposition Forum for Democracy and Development President Edith Nawakwi has called for fair media coverage for all contestants in the run up to the forth coming presidential by-election.
And the FDD Leader says her party is ready to contest the elections and that it will not join any alliances as it has tried that before and proved that alliances do not work in Zambia.
Speaking to Journalist in Lusaka today the FDD leader called on the media in the country to ensure that they are free and fair in the way they report on political parties both as individual political parties as well as collectively so as to have an informed would be voter.
“I expect you to inform the public about all of us. I hope that our colleagues in the media will be free and fair, I hope that your editors will be free and fair and project us individually and collectively as people who are capable of running tthe affairs of this republic, Ms. Nawakwi said.
In that projection of us” Ms. Nawakwi continued, I expect that the reportage will be fair and that all of us will get the time that we need to project ourselves to the would be voters. I hope that no one will be denied an opportunity to sale themselves.”
And the FDD leader said the party will not go in any alliance as it has proved that alliances do not work adding that unless other political parties are willing to support her party, the FDD is ready to go it alone.
“As party will have tested that (alliance) before we found out that it doesn’t work, we have tried to support other people thinking that there are bridges to a better life and those bridges collapsed.”
She added that the FDD is a mature party with enough experience to run the affairs of the country.
The country will go for a presidential election in less than 80 days to elect another president after the demise of republican president Michael Sata who was buried 11th November 2016.
And PEOPLE’s Party (PP) president Mike Mulongoti has said his political party is not ready to contest the presidential by-elections slated for January 2015.
Mr Mulongoti said his opposition party was not ready for next year’s presidential by-election but would go alone in the 2016 general elections.
He said the party would keep its little resources so as to be used in the 2016 general elections.
“As I am talking now they are only 18 months remaining before the general elections in 2016 and why wasting our little resources for presidential by-election. We shall float a presidential candidate in 2016,”he said.
Mr Mulongoti who is former Information Minister in MMD regime said his party would support the candidate who will be floated in by Alliance for Better Zambia (ABZ), Zambians for Empowerment and Development, All Peoples Congress Party (APC) and MMD today in Lusaka.
He said the four political parties have formed an alliance adding that they would support one candidate.
PARLIAMENT yesterday eulogised the late republican President Michael Sata as a gallant man who persevered and dedicated his life for the benefit of the Zambian people.
The House also praised former first lady Christine Kaseba for the demonstration of love and devotion to her husband in his illness and mourning him genuinely in his death.
Moving the motion for the House to put on record its profound regret at the untimely death of Mr Sata, acting leader of Government business Yamfwa Mukanga said the late head of state was a resilient politician who continued to fight for the Zambian people.
Mr Mukanga, who is also Transport and Communications minister, said Mr Sata was also a strong supporter of the parliamentary reforms which could not have been successful without him.
The late leader contributed to economic growth , infrastructure development, and promoted the rights of women and girls. The Foreign direct investment had also increased.
Contributing to the motion, Mazabuka central UPND MP Gary Nkombo condemned what he termed ‘shenanigans’ and the scramble for success by the ruling PF at the height of sorrow when the body of Mr Sata was lying in state at Mulungushi Conference Centre.
It was sad that Mr Sata never saw the full realisation of his potential and Zambia was in genuine grief for the PF to start jostling for power.
He called for the hastened enactment of the constitution to address challenges that had been affecting Zambia for too long. The Constitution would also address the public order act.
Mwandi MMD MP Michael Kaingu condemned what he referred to as ‘tribal hegemony’ and the jostling of power that characterised the funeral of Mr Sata.
He commended Dr Kaseba for proving that a good wife could elongate her husband’s life and urged the women of Zambia to learn from her.
Dr Kaingu was however censured by Speaker Patrick Matibini when he said PF ended up making á fool’of themselves in the organisation of the President’s funeral because the ruling party did not consult the MMD which had experience in handling the loss of a President.
Dr Matibini took Dr Kaingu to task over those remarks until he apologised. Dr Kaingu re-echoed the need for a new Constitution in Zambia before the existing one causes more serious problems to Zambia.
Kalomo central UPND MP Request Muntanga said Mr Sata had rare qualities which the PF would find hard to emulate and urged the ruling party members not to do wrong things as they tried to emulate the fallen leader.
Zambia should learn from its past experiences on how to manage a state funeral having lost two sitting Presidents.
PF should not jostle power and urged Presidential hopefuls to avoid using money to ascend to leadership.
Mafinga MMD MP Catherine Namugala regretted the passing of Mr Sata and commended Dr Kaseba for doing the best for her late husband and genuinely mourning him.
She called for openness on issues regarding illness of a head of state. Ms Namugala, who maintained that she was not racist, said there was need to allow an indigenous Zambian to run the affairs of the country in the run up to the presidential elections 50 years after independence.
Lubansenshi Independent MP Patrick Mucheleka described Mr Sata as a gallant son of Zambia who persevered for the benefit of the country. He called for the addressing of access to information bill and the Public Order Act.
Winding up debate, Finance minister Alexander Chikwanda thanked everyone for mourning with the Government and the first lady and first family on the death of Mr Sata.
He called for unity and integrity in the country even as the global economy was experiencing shocks. The PF has not yet endorsed a presidential candidate and in the meantime had a moral obligation to support Dr Scott in the run up to the presidential election.
Senior Chief Mukuni of Kazungula District in Southern Province (left), his wife Victoria (middle) and Zambia’s First Republican President Kenneth Kaunda’s daughter, Cheswa Kaunda Silwizya (right) during the official opening of the Hotel in Livingstone
SENIOR Chief Mukuni of the Toka-leya People of Kazungula District in Southern Province has opposed the calls to commercialise Victoria Falls as a way of attracting more tourists to the site.
He said there was need to maintain Victoria Falls in the natural form so that visitors get the real taste of the natural wonder of the world.
In an interview in Livingstone, Senior Chief Mukuni noted that tourists around the world were interested in viewing Victoria Falls in its natural form as opposed to viewing an imitation of the Falls.
“In my opinion, we should keep the Falls as natural as possible and not commercialise it.
In any case the Falls is already commercialised because you can get internet in the nearby hotels.
There is nothing wrong in having moonlight to visit Victoria Falls in the night and still keep it as natural as possible,” he said.
Last month, Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) Chief Executive Karikoga Kaseke said in an interview in Harare that Zambia and Zimbabwe should commercialise the Victoria Falls destination like the case for Niagara Falls in United States of America (USA) to attract more tourists across the globe.
Niagara Falls, which is smaller compared to Victoria Falls, attracts about US$ 30 billion earnings yearly while both sides of the Victoria Falls in Zambia and Zimbabwe only attracts an income of less than US$ 500, 000 annually.
Mr Kaseke said there was need to commercialise Victoria Falls by electrifying the premises, putting up modern infrastructure and ensuring that water flows were reasonable throughout the year.
He said Victoria Falls, which is not open to the public in the night, could not attract more tourists in its current state because it was a seasonal activity and it lacked modern infrastructure.
Mr Kaseke said Niagara Falls had been commercialised and it was attracting US$ 30 billion earnings annually compared to less than US$ 500, 000 earnings recorded at the Victoria Falls for Zimbabwe and Zambia.
“By any measure, Victoria Falls is far much bigger than Niagara Falls. But look, we have tried to make Victoria Falls remain as natural as possible.
This is good for other purposes but what it means is that we have not fully commercialised the Falls. We need to electrify Victoria Falls and start running it on 24 hours basis instead of closing the premises in the night,” he said.
Mr Kaseke said Victoria Falls had potential to raise more revenue from tourists if the area had electricity, steady water flows, restaurants,accommodation facilities and other modern amenities like the case at Niagara Falls.
“We don’t need the Falls to remain a natural world heritage site as stipulated by United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
We need to go the Niagara Falls way and make money for our people and our economies. We can gain a lot of benefits if we commercialise it,” Mr Kaseke said.
He asked Zambia and Zimbabwe to forgo the US$ 25, 000 which UNESCO gave them per year to maintain the Falls as a natural heritage site.
Defence and Justice minister Edgar Lungu at Parliament for the Interdenominational Thanks giving requiem church service of President Sata on November 10,2014 -Picture by THOMAS NSAMA
The Patriotic Front (PF) in Chinsali District of Muchinga Province has endorsed Edgar Lungu as PF candidate in the fourth coming presidential by-election.
The PF members who took to the streets of Chinsali town this morning singing songs of solidarity and chanting slogans in favour of Mr Lungu said they will rally behind the party Secretary General as a person to take over from President Michael Sata who was put to rest yesterday at Embassy Park.
PF Chinsali District Chairperson Janet Mulonga said the PF in the district want Mr. Lungu to stand for presidency in the by-election scheduled for next year.
Ms Mulonga said the late head of state left the blessings and power in the hands of Mr Lungu because of the trust he had in him.
She has since appealed to the National Executive Committee (NEC) to follow what the party members want by selecting Mr Lungu as the suitable candidate to stand on the PF ticket.
And PF Chinsali Central Constituency Chairperson Richard Chanda said the party in the district wants Mr. Lungu to continue from where the President left him and prove to the people of Zambia that indeed President Sata was not wrong to appoint him to act as president on several occasions.
Mr Chanda has since urged the PF leadership at national level to be united and ensure that the person they will select will not fail but keep up the good works that President Sata has left behind.
The Southern African Centre for Constructive Resolution of Disputes (SACCORD), has praised acting President Guy Scott for assuring the nation that they will get the President they want following the death of late President Michael Sata.
The Centre has also commended Dr Scott for categorically stating the role he will play during the transition period to ensure that peace and prosperity continues to flourish in the country.
SACCORD Executive Director Boniface Cheembe said Zambians are only interested in peace and that Dr. Scott’s pronouncements are therefore welcome.
Mr. Cheembe told ZANIS in an interview with ZANIS in Lusaka today that the focus of Zambians should be to continue the development legacy left behind by the late President.
He said Zambia cannot continue on the path of prosperity if peace and security is not maintained in the nation.
Mr. Cheembe has since called on all Zambians to support Dr. Scott during the transition period for him to be able to execute his mandate and responsibilities in an effective and efficient manner.
The SACCORD Executive Director also implored the Acting President to continue to consult several stakeholders as he continues to lead the country during the transition period.
And Mr. Cheembe commended the defence forces and other organisations for the work they did during the mourning period that ensured that late President Sata was given a befitting and dignified send off.
He also praised opposition political parties and members of the public for the high levels of maturity exhibited during the mourning period.
Mr. Cheembe counselled all the political parties that will be participating in the forthcoming Presidential by elections to now focus and engage in politics of ideas for people to be able to make informed decisions.
He said political parties should observe all the electoral rules and work with stakeholders like the Police, the Electoral Commission of Zambia and Civil Society Organisations for the elections to be non-eventful.
He said during campaigns and elections, the police need to uphold high levels of professionalism in the discharge of their mandate especially in the enforcement of the Public Order Act.
Mr. Cheembe further appealed to political parties to desist from trying to use vulnerable groups such as the youths as conduits of violence during the election period.
Several marketeers in Kalulushi have called on government to uphold the late President Michael Sata’s empowerment programmes for traders the country.
The marketeers told ZANIS that government should allow them to continue trading on the streets in honour of the late Mr. Sata’s desire to empower them.
One of the street vendors Marian Musonda said the person that would take over as President of Zambia should not remove the street vendors as that was their only way of survival.
Mrs. Musonda, who sells fruits at Depot bus station in Kalulushi, told ZANIS in an interview yesterday that the late President had a heart for poor people.
Rose Mwila, another trader, said street vendors had no problem with the people around the area because they always kept the surroundings clean.
Mwila explained that traders pay the local authority for using the place and hoped that the person who would be President will continue with where the late President Sata left.
And a bus driver at Deport station, Emmanuel Bwalya, said he and his colleagues were mourning because President Sata was really a father of the nation.
Bwalya urged the Zambian people to elect a leader that would put the people’s interests first.
He said the late President made available good clinics, good roads and schools for the people.
He added that the clinics in Kalulushi were never short of drugs and health personnel.
Opposition All Peoples Congress Party (APC) president Nason Msoni has expressed disappointment at some alliance partners whom he termed “power hungry individuals.”
Speaking in an interview Mr. Msoni said it was saddening to note that some individuals went into the alliance half heartedly and have abandoned the alliance at the first chance of an election
Mr. Msoni observed that it is difficult for political alliances to work in an environment were there are what he termed power hungry individuals.
“Alliances do not work and I repeat political alliances do not work in environment where you have power hungry individuals because once an election pops up they abandon that which we thought they had believed in so we are disappointed with some of our colleagues who have decided to go it alone.
We wasted a lot of stationary and paper when in actual sense they were acting in bad faith so we question their loyalty and commitment to the alliance,” Mr. Msoni lamented.
The Opposition leader however, expressed happiness that some members were sincere and are still in the alliance.
He charged that an election is not reason enough to abandon the big idea of an alliance if one is not power hungry.
And when asked to name the party/parties which has abandoned the alliance Mr. Msoni named the Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) the party that has decided to contest the forth coming election as an individual party.
Some opposition political parties including MMD formed a political alliance which was spearheaded by opposition Alliance for Better Zambia (ABZ) President Father Frank Bwalya.
Other opposition parties in the alliance include UNIP, APC, People’s Party, ADD and ZED.
MMD die hard youth leader Bowman Lusambo captured during the gathering to demand for the release of the Zambian draft constitution.
Press statement for immediate release
WE WILL NEVER ACCEPT RB’S MONEY
Following our unequivocal statements against calls to have Former President Rupiah Banda return to active politics, we wish to alert the nation that those supporting this selfish plan have hatched a campaign to discredit me and the MMD Die Hard movement.
They are now spreading cheap and malicious propaganda using some online news sites aimed at tarnishing my good image and that of the MMD Die Hard machinery.
One of their blatant machinations is that Mr Banda has offered us K 500 million to silence us and weaken our resolve. This piece of cheap propaganda is being peddled in some dark corner meetings and is soon to be amplified by online news reports.
We wish to dismiss such reports and declare that we will never accept Mr Banda’s money. Our work is in the defence of the MMD constitution. We further wish to advise Mr Banda’s loyalists that the MMD Die Hard movement is not for hire. We protect causes that identify with the wellbeing of our dear party.
Mr Banda has never offered us any form of help since vacating State House. The only money we received from Mr Banda was in 2011 as we were part of his campaign team.
We wish to reiterate that our opposition to Mr Banda’s purported return to politics is premised on our fundamental belief that Zambia will do well to adopt a fresh approach to leadership. We firmly believe that the year of the Jubilee and the death of President Michael Sata should herald a new chapter in the country’s governance system.
We also know that the Jubilee we have prayed for will never deliver a promised land if we continue being shepherded by old and recycled leadership. Our stance will be shaken even by the highest bidder.
Our enemies and enemies of democracy have also launched attacks on our integrity and that of the MMD Die Hard movement by alleging that the student protest of Wednesday, November 13 2014 from Kalingalinga Total Filling Station to the MMD Secretariat against Mr Banda’s intentions were paid by us.
This is another figment of their imagination as the students never met any of the officials of the MMD Die Hard movement prior to the march past. If the students were indeed paid, then the MMD Die Hard movement was not the payer. The other distortion being spewed by our enemies is that the students were chased from the MMD Secretariat by Police and Secretariat staff, this is another fabrication with intentions to deceive the public.
As pictures would show, the students had a successful demonstration which was peaceful and incident free. They made their statement opposing Mr Banda loud and clear for all to see.
As the MMD youths, we will continue to defend the party’s constitution and rally behind Dr Nevers Sekwila Mumba as he prepares the party for the presidential by election.
Attacks on our personalities will not derail us but only go to encourage and strengthen our collective resolve to defeat ill intentions by a group of plunderers who are bent on destroying the party.
Zambia needs a breed of fresh and energetic leadership. We advise Mr Banda and those misleading him to take a back seat in Zambia’s politics and adopt the Madiba like role in national affairs. Mr Banda has everything to lose by returning to active politics and everything to gain by maintaining his retirement.
Issued by: Bowman Lusambo-MMD Die Hard National Youth Coordinator
14/11/14
Patriotic Front Secretary General Edgar Lungu has insisted that the scheduled Central Committee Meeting will proceed despite the instructions from the party Acting President Guy Scott.
In his letter dated 12th November 2014, written to the Acting President and copied to all members of the Central Committee, Mr. Lungu stated that there was no justification to cancel the scheduled meeting.
The Secretary General has also advised Dr. Scot to operate within the party constitution as his recent actions and directives have been made outside the party statutes.
He advised Dr. Scott’s to desist from making unilateral decisions and that his attempt to cancel a legally convened meeting was null and void.
”You should note that, your unilateral directives to cancel the legally constituted meeting are null and void as those directives are outside the Constitution. As a member of the Patriotic front, you are expected to operate within the provisions of the Constitution”. Lungu stated.
Mr. Lungu also stated that the party constitution mandates him to convene the meetings and that he is the secretary to the Central Committee, the National Council and the General Conference as provided for under Article 56 of the Party Constitution.
Mr. Lungu stated that the decision to call for a General Conference remains with the Central Committee and the body should be allowed to make those decisions.
‘
”Any decisions made ought to be subjected to the advice, counsel and ratification of the Central Committee. I therefore urge you to desist from operating outside the provisions of the Constitution, as the PF and Zambia have long established democratic credentials and practices”.
Below is the full letter by Mr. Lungu to Dr, Scott.
I refer to your internal Memorandum dated 12th November 2014.
I also refer to your purported notice of cancellation of the legally called meeting as issued by a Notice by the Secretary General dated 12th November 2014.
I have also noted that you have purported to appoint a Committee and attempted to set a date for the General Conference.
It should be noted that, the Secretary General is the Chief Administrative Officer of the party and is the one mandated by the Constitution to convene meetings.
The Secretary General is also the secretary to the Central Committee, National Council and General Conference as enshrined in Article 56 of the party constitution.
It is imperative that the Central Committee is convened immediately to resolve all outstanding issues including;
The position of Acting President as the Constitution reposes powers, in the absence of the President, in the Vice-President, the Secretary General and also the National Chairperson
Matters relating to the selection or election of the party president and presidential candidate.
You should note that, your unilateral directives to cancel the legally constituted meeting are null and void as those directives are outside the Constitution. As a member of the Patriotic front, you are expected to operate within the provisions of the Constitution.
Any decisions made ought to be subjected to advise, counsel and ratification of the Central Committee. I therefore urge you to desist from operating outside the provisions of the Constitution, as the PF and Zambia have long established democratic credentials and practices.
It should be noted under the current circumstances, the PF has neither the luxury of time nor the resources to engage in wasteful discourse, such as your letter demonstrates.
To this effect, the Central Committee Meeting shall proceed as scheduled and as announced. The venue and time will be communicated later.
Hon. Edgar Lungu MP
SECRETARY GENERAL
PATRIOTIC FRONT
