Reuters reports that South Africa’s foreign ministry said it summoned Zambia’s ambassador on Thursday after its vice president was quoted telling a British newspaper that South Africans were arrogant and “I hate” them.

Relations between Zambia and South Africa are normally cordial. But Vice President Guy Scott’s comments reflected the reality that many of South Africa’s neighbours feel they live in the shadow of its dominant economy, which makes up about two thirds of the GDP for southern Africa.

Scott told the Guardian newspaper: “The South Africans are very backward in terms of historical development.

“I hate South Africans … They really think they’re the bees’ knees and actually they’ve been the cause of so much trouble in this part of the world.”

He also likened President Jacob Zuma to FW de Klerk, leader of the apartheid government that ended in 1994.

South Africa, seeking a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, has been throwing its weight around the continent, with three overseas military deployments and a successful campaign to place a South African as the leader of the African Union.

Zambia and South Africa, two of Africa’s stronger democracies, have been working to make sure elections planned this year in Zimbabwe are held peacefully after a disputed 2008 poll caused a flood of refugees.

“South Africa has taken note of the negative remarks on South Africa attributed to Mr Guy Scott, the Vice President of the Republic of Zambia,” foreign ministry spokesman Clayson Monyela said in a statement.

The spokesman said the ambassador had been summoned “… to seek an explanation behind the remarks and what it means in the context of our bilateral relations.”

Zambia’s High Commission in Pretoria said in a statement the two countries “enjoy very warm relations” and are “long standing partners in the liberation struggles.” It did not mention the summoning of its envoy.

Scott is one of Zambia’s more popular politicians. He became vice president after Michael Sata, nicknamed “King Cobra” for his sharp tongue, was elected president in 2011.

“I dislike South Africa for the same reason that Latin Americans dislike the United States. It’s just too big and too unsubtle,” he said.

Zambia was the main overseas base from the 1970s for the African National Congress, which now rules South Africa, when it was a liberation movement trying to oust the white-minority government.

[Reuters]

NAREP leader Mr. Elias Chipimo has been arrested and formally charged for unlawful assembly in Kitwe.

Mr. Chipimo was on the Copperbelt to meet the party’s provincial and district officials.

He was in the company of the Vice President Charles Maboshe, National Chairman Joseph Mushalika and staff from the NAREP Secretariat in Lusaka.

Mr. Chipimo and other officials are being held at Kitwe Central Police.

Police in full riot gear descended upon a guest house where Mr. Chipimo was holding a strategic planning workshop for the Copperbelt Province executives.

In an interview from the police station, Mr. Mushalika said a police officer had approached Mr. Chipimo just when the meeting was about to start and requested for a permit before the meeting could proceed.

“We explained to the officer that we did not need a permit to hold an indoor meeting and the officer left and 30 minutes later we were informed that we had been surrounded by officers in riot gear,” Mr. Mushalika said.

“As we are speaking, the officers are taking a statement from Mr. Chipimo.”

Youths from the ruling PF held a street demonstration in Lusaka against Catholic Priest Fr. Frank Bwalya for allegedly insulting Michael Sata.

Youths led by their provincial leadership have since challenged the outspoken clergyman to come out in the open and state his true political ambitions.

Fr. Bwalya has fallen out grace with the PF government after he criticized its style of governance following his resignation as ZESCO Board Chairman.

But PF Lusaka Province Vice Youth Chairman Daniel Kalembe Fr. Bwalya should come out and organise a rally in Lusaka to prove his popularity.

“This man is deceiving himself that he is popular. The truth is that Fr. Bwalya’s red card campaign was only successful because it rode on the PF’s popularity during campaigns for the 2011 general elections,” Mr. Kalembe said.
[pullquote]“As youths we helped organise the red card campaign, we used our structures and today he wants to turn around and insult our President.”[/pullquote]

“As youths we helped organise the red card campaign, we used our structures and today he wants to turn around and insult our President.”

“Those crowds he saw were PF crowds,” he stated.

And PF Lusaka Province Youth Information and Publicity Secretary Stanley Chiumya vowed that youths in the party will not sit and watch Fr. Bwalya insult the party leadership.

“We are watching him and will follow him up wherever he sleeps,” warned Mr. Chiumya.

“This disgraced Priest should call for a public rally here in Lusaka and see how many people will turn up.”

During a live interview on Sunday on Muvi TV’s Assignment Programme, Fr. Bwalya said he could govern better than President Sata whom he accused of running the country without involving his colleagues.

President Michael Sata has said the opposition leaders, Nevers Mumba for MMD and Hakainde Hichilema for UPND shunned today’s Labour Day celebrations because of they are ashamed of the lies they have been peddling that the Head of State is not in good health.

President Sata, who graced the Labour Day celebrations wondered what kind of leaders, Dr Mumba and Mr Hichilema were, who wished others dead.

“Today Nevers Mumba and Hakainde Hichilema are all not here because they are ashamed they have been preaching that President Sata is dying. Does a dying person look like me? There are many people who can take up the leadership in the PF from me. They have tried witchcraft but I am still here. What type of leaders are they who wish death for others” President Sata said.

President Sata challenged the two opposition leaders to show good leadership by attending national events and understand the challenges the workers were facing instead of avoiding them.

“Ask them that, what type of leaders are they who wish others to die? If they want to be leaders they must come here and understand your difficulties. Tell them that if they want to be your leaders, they must come here and celebrate with you and understand what you are going through,” he said.

Mr Sata said he was concerned with the hatred exhibited by the two leaders to the extent of peddling lies about his health adding that even if he died, he would still be with God who was responsible over his life just like anyone else.

He said that Dr Mumba and Mr Hichilema should not be worried because PF had capable leaders who would take up the leadership of the party in an event that he died.