Vice President George Kunda has urged MMD members in Western Province to ignore recent developments in the Patriotic Front-United Party for National Development (PF-UPND) pact and concentrate on strengthening the ruling party.

Mr Kunda said this yesterday when he addressed scores of MMD supporters and Mongu residents who welcomed him at the airport.

The Vice-President is in Mongu to grace this year’s Kufuluhela traditional ceremony for the Litunga of Western Province.

He is also in the area to drum up support for MMD candidate in the August 5 Luena parliamentary by-election, Mwangala Maopu.

“Those who read newspapers, you must have heard an in-depth analysis of what is going on in the pact. There are certain developments in the pact which are of interest to the nation.

“But President Banda who has sent me here has given us instructions that we should not be bothered or concerned with what is happening in the pact. What is happening in the pact is very interesting and it is like you’re reading a novel,” Mr Kunda said.

The Vice-President said instead of paying attention to the emerging cracks in the pact, the MMD should concentrate on strengthening and mobilising the ruling party because it believes in order, peace and tranquility.

Mr Kunda said the MMD considers Western Province as its stronghold.

He said the PF and UPND are using political rejects to sell the pact in the province.

Mr Kunda said the UPND is using its vice-president for political affairs Francis Simenda who failed when he served as Mongu Central member of Parliament (MP) from 2001 to 2006.

“Because he (Mr Simenda) failed, you rejected him here in Mongu. And yet this is the man Mr Hakainde Hichilema is using to sell the pact in Western Province,” Mr Kunda said.

He said the PF is also doing the same by using the reject to sell the pact in Western Province.
[pullquote]“Those who read newspapers, you must have heard an in-depth analysis of what is going on in the pact. There are certain developments in the pact which are of interest to the nation.

“But President Banda who has sent me here has given us instructions that we should not be bothered or concerned with what is happening in the pact. What is happening in the pact is very interesting and it is like you’re reading a novel,” Mr Kunda said.[/pullquote]

Mr Kunda called on people of Western Province to be united because the area has produced formidable leaders who are currently serving both in the ruling party and Government.

He cited Mulobezi MP Michael Mabenga who is also Deputy Minister of Lands and in charge of the MMD countrywide.

Mr Kunda said other formidable leaders the province has produced are Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane, Minister of Communications and Transport Geoffrey Lungwangwa and Speaker of the National Assembly Amusaa Mwanamwambwa.

“We also have Minister of Community Development and Social Services Michael Kaingu who is doing a fantastic job when it comes to empowering women and this is the leadership which Western Province has produced for Zambia and we treasure all these MPs and ministers,” he said.

Mr Kunda said the advantage of having such leaders is that the province will receive a fair share of national resources to provide accelerated development.
He said Government will continue implementing development projects in all parts of the country.

“We shall build schools, hospitals, roads and we shall explore for oil and minerals,” he said.

Mr Kunda said this is the kind of leadership Government is providing and asked the people in the province why they should accommodate rejects.

He said Mr Hichilema is under siege in Southern Province because people there have rejected him and he wants to export that confusion to Western Province.
“Don’t allow that kind of a situation. As for Milupi, I won’t say much because I am going in the field and explain his weaknesses. We know what he is made of.

We have been with him in Parliament and for those who want to know more about him, I have a detailed dossier on Milupi,” he said.

Earlier, Western Province Minister Sikwibele Mwapela said the people of Western Province are solidly behind the MMD Government and President Banda.

Mr Mwapela said this is because people can see development projects like construction of major roads, district hospitals, the Farmer Input Support Programme, the Food Security Pack and empowerment programmes provided by the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission and the Ministry of Community Development and Social Services.

Mr Mwapela said the MMD has already done ground work in Luena where it is conducting a peaceful campaign without any name-calling.

He said the PF-UPND pact has not made any impact in Luena constituency.
[ Zambia Daily Mail ]

Mtendere residents in Lusaka have complained that prostitution at UNIP’S trading area is alarming and has since called on the Lusaka City Council to move in and restore sanity immediately.

Speaking to ZANIS in Lusaka today, group spokesperson Lameck Phiri said bar owners in the area are now using bars as brothels and described the situation as alarming.

Mr. Phiri said the area committee reported the matter to the council but the council has failed to take action.

He said some bar owners are pretending to be selling alcohol when in the actual sense were using the rooms as brothels during the night.

He said as an elderly person, he was so much concerned about the development which is putting young people at risk.

Another resident Siamusa Wadoda urged government should move in to control the situation saying the place become a hub of bandits at night who are terrorizing people.

And when contacted for a comment, Lusaka City Council Public Relations Manager Chanda Makanta refereed the queries to Assistant Public Relations Officer Henry Kapata who could not be reached by press time as the phone went unanswered.

ZANIS

A 29 year old man of Mansa today appeared in Mansa Magistrate court to answer a charge of registering as a voter more than once and obtaining two voters’ cards.

Before Magistrate Class Two, Penstone Chiluba, was Douglas Steven Okonya Musakanya, charged with the case of obtaining two voters’ registration cards, contrary to Regulation 60 (b) of the Electoral Registration of voters Amendment regulations of 2001 of the Laws of Zambia.

When Magistrate Chiluba read the case to Musankaya, the accused pleaded guilty to the offence.

Facts before the court were that, on unknown day between 1 January 2005, and 1 July 2010, Musakanya, being a person qualified to register as a voter, willfully and unlawfully did register twice.

The court heard that on July 1, 2010, Musakanya went to Mansa Council offices where he said he wanted to have his lost voters’ card replaced.

When Musankanya’s national registration card was presented to the registration officer, and later passed through the detecting machine, it was discovered that the accused had registered twice as a voter, and had in his possession, two voters’ cards numbered 3495679 and 3050961 respectively.

It was at that point when the Assistant Registration Officer reported the case to the police who were at the scene.

And in admitting the charge, Musakanya said he had registered twice as a voter in two different places, namely Mansa, and Lukwesa in Mwense District.

Magistrate Chiluba adjourned the case and set July 26, 2010, as the day for continued judgment.

ZANIS

By Elias Munshya wa Munshya

When some of our people expressed serious reservations about the so called UPND-PF Pact, they were met with severe intellectual attacks. Both Sata and Hichilema, decided to promote an idea of the Pact that they both were not fully committed to. They both were singing a song that they were not truly committed to. The Pact was going to work, not because the people of Zambia wanted it to work. The only people that were going to make it work are two: Hichilema and Sata. And it is the two that have made the Pact to fail. Sata and Hichilema were both naïve. They thought that somehow, the main issue in the Pact was going to resolve itself. They encouraged everyone around them to unite and convalescence around an ideal of a Pact, and yet they were the two gentlemen that never united in the first place. This so called Pact was a failure right from the start. It would be unnecessary to belabour the reasons why it would not work, but for the sake of argument we must revisit these reasons so that we may learn from them and hopefully posterity will judge our activities.

The first reason why the Pact was doomed to fail from the very beginning is a fundamental issue to do with our constitutional republican system. Zambia’s republican system impedes the subsistence of a coalition government. This is because; the President or the Executive is not elected by parliament but directly by the people through universal suffrage. As such, in our system a parliamentary coalition just cannot exist. Coalitions only work in parliamentary systems like the UK, Israel, Canada, or South Africa. In these systems the President or the Prime Minister is not popularly or directly elected by the people, but rather is chosen from parliament, or from the party with the most seats. It is the leader of the party that has the most seats in parliament that heads the State or the government. If no party has taken the most seats, the parties then can jostle with each other and form coalitions so that they can form a parliamentary majority to form a government. Contrasted with the Zambian situation, the leader of the Zambian government and Head of State is not elected from among the MPs, but through direct universal suffrage. As such, parliamentary seats are irrelevant to the presidential question in Zambia. It does not matter how many seats the president’s party has won in parliament, all that matters in forming the next government is whether a particular candidate has won the presidential election. It is after he wins the presidential election that he can now choose his Cabinet from among the MPs. And he can choose any MPs from any political party to form his cabinet. In Zambia, the President is the Executive, he is the government. This fact was stated very clearly by President Mwanawasa when he fired Nevers Mumba. Levy told Mumba bluntly, “I am the Government.” The UPND/PF Pact framed themselves on the basis of a coalition. A coalition that is alien to the Zambian political system—it was indeed a deceased idea before it even started.

Second, to build on the item above, a clear definition of who was being earmarked to become the president was an essential question that the Pact needed to answer right from the start. But in their wisdom, both Sata and Hichilema somehow thought this issue will resolve itself. We all knew that the Pact would only succeed to the extent that both Sata and Hichilema make it work. Additionally, before even defining the perimeters of their relationship these two leaders started presenting themselves for candidacy to stand on the Pact’s ticket. Nothing is more concerning to me, than for intelligent people to make decisions based not on fact but on illusions. HH when coming back from his overseas trip, thought that Zambia was as mature as the USA or UK, by claiming, right at the airport, that he should be considered for Pact’s presidency on account of his age. His political illusions led to yet another even more concerning delusion—the fact that the Pact’s presidential election is a free and fair matter that anyone can openly campaign for. Sata at least did not react immediately to HH’s insinuations, instead he waited until now to tell off Hichilema, in the words of the song, “age aint nothing but a number”.

Third, the Pact has failed because these two parties have radically different manifestos and philosophies. Sata is anti-Chinese investment, and has promised that he would grab ZAMTEL back from the Libyans when he assumes office. HH on the other hand is pro-business and pro-market enterprise. In fact, HH is more acquiescent to Chinese investment. On the constitution making process, HH’s party accepted to be part of the Constitutional Conference, whereas participation in the NCC was the reason why Sata fired 16 of his MPs. With such radical differences between the two, only time would tell whether they would go anywhere. Interestingly, there are several commonalities between the UPND and the MMD. Could this be the reason why a Pact between UPND and MMD is being floated as more realistic than the present one?

Fourth, the corporate structures of the two parties also were radically different. UPND has three vice-presidents and they are searching for a fourth, while PF only created the position of Vice-President for political expediency—to create room for former Secretary General Guy Scott. UPND at least has even had the decency to pretend to hold a party convention while, the PF has not even bothered to do so. Sata has repeatedly dismissed the idea of a party convention saying it is just a waste of time and resources. He would rather use the time and the money for campaigns instead of a convention. A man, who thinks like that, has the potential to cancel national elections so that he can have some more time to campaign.

Fifth, the regionalism and tribalism characteristic of both the UPND and the PF could not just make the Pact work. It is evident that the PF enjoys more support among Bemba speaking peoples, while the UPND enjoys wide spread support among Tonga speaking peoples. This regionalism between PF and UPND was very fatal. Parties with such tribal and regional encroachments cannot possibly work together. Sata has been accused several times by non-Bemba speaking peoples that he is a Bemba hegemonist. Most recently at a campaign rally in Mwinilunga a speaker accused Sata of having made some tribal remarks. As for HH his behaviour towards Saki and Lubinda is still fresh among many Zambians. In spite of efforts at making these two parties have a more national agenda, they have not made any real effort at changing their tribal perceptions.

Six, the Pact has fallen because the Pact in fact never existed at all. Zambians were taken for a ride. They were forced to believe a lie. Some within the two parties even met together, ate together, held conferences together, all in a bid to promote something that was just a fiction of their imagination. The Pact has failed, because a Pact never existed in the first place!

PATRIOTIC Front (PF) leader Michael Sata yesterday launched a scathing attack on pact partner, United Party for National Development (UPND) president Hakainde Hichilema for attempting to diminish his chances to run for the Republican presidency on account of his age.

But UPND spokesperson Charles Kakoma, who ducked questions on the attack and tried hard to downplay it, only said the pact would pick its presidential candidate after some electoral guidelines had been concluded.

In an unprecedented and shocking stance since the two parties agreed to work together last year, Mr Sata said he was by far the better candidate.

He said age was not a factor for the Republican presidency considering that some of the best presidents Africa had produced were much older than Mr Hichilema.

Mr Sata cited Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade, South Africa’s Jacob Zuma, and post-apartheid South African icon Nelson Mandela as some of the leaders who had performed beyond their age limitations.

He said this during a live radio programme on Hot FM, called the Hot Seat, where he explained that even in the absence of the ‘rebel’ Members of Parliament, PF still emerged as a stronger force than UPND.

Mr Hichilema had told supporters at Lusaka International Airport on arrival from the United States of America (US) in May that many developed and developing countries had shifted from the practice of voting for old leaders.

He cited the example of Tanzania, Russia, United Kingdom and the US, which he said had voted into office younger and intelligent leaders aged between 40 and 50 years.

But Mr Sata said he had never gone round the country to speak ill of Mr Hichilema and dismissed allegations that the PF was treating UPND as a small party in the pact formed last year in which it was agreed that they would field one candidate for the national presidency.

He said accusations that PF was treating the UPND as a junior party were inaccurate but insisted that PF was far much bigger than UPND.

He said Mr Hichilema did not show respect for him as a partner in the pact when he boasted that he was more suitable for the top post because of his younger age.

Mr Sata said PF was strong in Luena Constituency but it had decided to allow UPND to contest the seat on behalf of the pact as a way of showing respect to the UPND.

He, however, said the UPND leaders were holding meetings on the Copperbelt to attack the PF.
He said there had been statements from some UPND senior members welcoming the proposed pact with the MMD which was multiplying the confusion and reducing the credibility of the pact.

On the collapse of the agreement in Chadiza where both the PF and UPND had contested a ward by-election against the provisions of the agreement, Mr Sata said that had demonstrated the strength of PF in Eastern Province, an area that was widely viewed as a no-go area for PF.

And the UPND spokesperson could not give categorical answers to questions on Mr Sata’s attacks on his pact partner.

[Times of Zambia]