Government has dismissed as false, assertions that Patriotic Front-PF Kasama Central Member of Parliament Geoffrey Mwamba funded some road projects in his constituency.

Mr Mwamba popularly known as ‘GBM’ has been challenged to state which roads he has funded.

Works and Supply Minister Gabriel Namulambe says it is wrong for politicians to mislead the public in order to gain cheap political capital out of Government funded road projects.

The Minister was speaking at a media briefing at his office Monday morning.

He said road projects in Kasama and Northern Province in general started way back in 2006, before Mr. Mwamba assumed duties of a parliamentarian.

Mr. Namulambe disclosed that Government has rehabilitated nine point four kilometres of township roads in Kasama, at a cost of over six point three billion Kwacha.

And Mr. Namulambe has disclosed that materials for the construction of the 1.3 Trillion Kwacha Mongu-Kalabo road have arrived in the country.

He says major works on the road will start in the first week of August.

And the Minister says Government is sourcing for funds to reduce the timeframe of works on the Chipata-Mfuwe Road project from four to two years.

[ZNBC]

Former Patriotic Front national youth secretary Erick Chanda has called on PF youths to give the party full support during the on-going adoption process.

Mr. Chanda tells QFM news that youths should remain calm and continue making meaningful contribution towards the growth of the party irrespective of the outcome of the adoption process.

He says he has received reports that youths in Munali constituency are planning to defect to other political parties following reports that the party’s top leadership intends to adopt Professor Nkandu Luo for the Munali parliamentary seat.

Mr Chanda adds that youths need to support all the candidates that will be adopted for parliamentary seats to ensure that the party has an outright victory in this year’s tripartite elections.

QFM

THE Patriotic Front (PF) in Isoka district in Northern Province have rejected a Caritas Mpika employee the party has imposed on Isoka West Constituency as parliamentary candidate in this year’s tripartite elections.

And PF applicants in Isoka district have petitioned their president, Michael Sata, and the national secretariat over irregularities in the adoption of candidates in Northern Province.

The party’s district and constituency committees in Isoka district have rejected the adoption of Malozo Sichone, an employee of Caritas Mpika, to contest as parliamentary candidate for Isoka West.

The party members, who asked not to be named for fear of victimisation, said in an interview yesterday the PF risks losing parliamentary elections in Isoka, Nakonde and Muchinga if the party national leadership does not intervene to ensure that preferred candidates are adopted.

The PF sources said the manner in which the provincial executive committee in Northern Province is imposing candidates on people will result in the MMD scooping all the seats in the area.

One of the sources, who spoke on behalf of other officials, said a meeting was called last week to resolve the differences, but district officials from Isoka were not given time to speak.

“Imagine, PEC has imposed Malozo Sichone, an employee of Caritas Mpika, on the people of Isoka district, and people here are very upset because district officials were not given chance during a meeting to resolve the adoption problems. They were just told to shut up by the provincial leaders,” the source said.

He said Mr Sichone is not a factor in Isoka district, and his adoption will make the MMD retain the seat.

The source wondered why the provincial leadership brought in an independent observer from Caritas Mpika during interviews when his colleague was among the aspiring candidates to be interviewed.

“There is so much interference, and many preferred candidates will not be adopted because candidates are just being imposed on people,” the source said.

He said the dictatorial tendencies emerging from some provincial executive committee members are a clear testimony of how undemocratic the PF has become.

The source said party members in the province are “very upset” at the manner in which the adoptions are being handled because dedicated party members have been abandoned at the expense of new members who are just being imposed on people.

He said in Nakonde district party members have also rejected adopted candidate Abel Sichula, adding that people in the area wanted a Colonel Siame, and not the Caritas Mpika worker the party has imposed on them.

Recently, another Caritas official resigned from the Catholic Church’s organ to apply to the PF for adoption in Mongu,Western Province.

Efforts to get a comment from PF general secretary Wynter Kabimba proved futile as calls to his mobile phone number went unanswered by press time.

[Zambia Daily Mail]

THE MMD has reaffirmed its commitment to the fight against corruption and assured the nation that it will continue to strengthen law enforcement agencies in line with its manifesto.

And the ruling party says it consulted widely on the adoption of parliamentary candidates to represent the people in all the constituencies.

Ms Siliya said in Lusaka yesterday on Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) MMD in Focus programme the MMD government has worked hard to fight corruption in the country, and that it is only those who are corrupt who have been fighting President Banda.

“Those who wanted certain things and were denied because it was not right are the ones who are fighting President Banda and Government,” Ms Siliya said.

She said the MMD has been championing the fight against corruption as can be seen from the various cases it has brought to the law enforcement agencies such as the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

Ms Siliya said the MMD has improved the separation of powers by strengthening the Judiciary and making the Executive more efficient in the delivery of services to the people.

Ms Siliya said the party has brought substance to this year’s tripartite elections by adopting credible people to represent communities as parliamentarians.

And speaking at the same forum MMD Mandevu aspiring candidate Canicius Banda said it was Government which unearthed scams in various ministries such as the Ministry of Health.

[pullquote]”It was Government, and not the opposition, that unearthed the embezzlement of K47 billion at the Ministry of Health,” Dr Banda said.[/pullquote]

Dr Banda said it was Government, and not anyone from the opposition, who unearthed the misappropriation of funds in the ministry.

“It was Government, and not the opposition, that unearthed the embezzlement of K47 billion at the Ministry of Health,” Dr Banda said.

And Ms Siliya has said the MMD government has responded positively to the people’s calls for development by implementing various projects across the country.

She said the MMD consulted widely on the adoption of candidates to represent the people in all the constituencies.

Ms Siliya said the adoption process was transparent, and that only those who were endorsed by the grassroots were adopted.

“We have delivered substance to the constituencies in the calibre of the candidates that have been adopted,” she said.

Ms Siliya said her party has adopted people with the capacity to deliver to Zambians because it does not want to fail them.

She said the MMD has lined up development programmes, which require focused people for implementation.

And MMD Lusaka Central aspiring candidate Muhabi Lungu said the party has delivered on its promise to bring development to Zambians.

The New Generation Party (NGP) has not welcomed the adoption of patriotic front rebel members of parliament by the ruling MMD to contest four seats in Lusaka.

Speaking during a briefing at the party secretariat in Lusaka today, NGP president Humphrey Siulapwa called on MMD Kabwata parliamentary candidate Peter Machungwa to retire from active politics.

Mr. Siulapwa said Dr. Machungwa has been serving as parliamentarian for a long time now and that it is time to leave politics for the young people.

He says his party will not campaign for the four PF rebel members of parliament adding that they have to step aside.

Mr. Siulapwa adds that it is prudent for the four PF rebel MPs adopted to contest Lusaka seats on the MMD ticket to retire as his party will not support any of them.

QFM

Political Activist Dante Saunders has advised political stakeholders not to make an issue out of this year’s tripartite elections.

Mr. Saunders says the Republican President is privileged by the Republican Constitution to set and announce the date for elections.

He has since urged politicians in the country to concentrate on selling their manifestos to the voters as opposed to debating the election date.

The political activist adds that President Rupiah Banda should not be demonized on the election date as the Constitution mandates him to set the date.

Mr. Saunders further says what politicians should debate about are the unfair reforms that govern the country’s electoral process.

QFM