INFORMATION and Broadcasting Services Minister Ronnie Shikapwasha has said the MMD is willing to iron out the differences that exist between the party and former Defence minister George Mpombo.

And Mr Mpombo said he was ready to cooperate with the party provided the leaders decided to go for the convention in accordance with the party constitution.

Lieutenant General Shikapwasha said the MMD did not have any problems with Mr Mpombo and advised him to instead support the party to enable it to become stronger in its effort to improve the well being of the people.

He said the attacks by the former minister on the party were not fair because they would never contribute to the well being of the party but would instead work against it.

“The MMD does not have any problems with Mr Mpombo and is very willing to sit with him and talk things through and see the way forward because he is a member of the party who has to be heard,” he said.

General Shikapwasha said working together would not only make the party better but would also help it to serve the people better.

He, however, said Enoch Kavindele had no right to attack the MMD with regard to the decisions it made on how to run the country because he was neither a member of the party nor the Government.

He said Mr Kavindele ceased to be a member of the party the moment he decided to contest the 2OO6 elections when he stood as an independent parliamentary candidate.

He said Mr Mpombo on the other hand was a bonafide member of the MMD who was entitled to his opinion on how the party and Government should be run, adding that the party would always listen to what its members had to say.

“The MMD is a democratic party which allows its members to voice out their opinions and it has allowed Mr Mpombo to do so without any reservations,” he said.

The MMD wanted to discuss the differences that had emerged with Mr Mpombo in order to see how best it would lead the nation.

When contacted for a comment, Mr Mpombo said the party had to be run according to its constitution, which demanded that it should go to the convention every after five years to elect its leaders.

“Reconciliation is possible if the party is run according to its constitution. It should not be run according to people’s postures,” he said.

[Times of Zambia]

Former MMD Western Province Women’s Secretary in the dissolved provincial executive committee, Namatama Mupo says former MMD provincial chairman Simasiku Namakando has been unwell even before his reconciliatory meeting with President Rupiah Banda at State House.

Mrs. Mupo told ZANIS in a telephone interview today, that it is not true that Mr. Namakando only got sick after a reconciliatory meeting with President Banda at State House last Sunday.

She was reacting to media reports and suggestions by some people that the former Western Province MMD Chairman Simasiku Namakando could have been poisoned at State House during a meeting with President Banda.

Mrs. Mupo, who was also part of the delegation from Western Province to State House, said assertions that Mr. Namakando only got sick after a meeting at State House were false and malicious.

She disclosed that two weeks ago, she had traveled with Mr. Namakando to Lukulu district for the funeral of his late aunt but could not get to the funeral house because he was unwell.

Mrs. Mupo said Mr. Namakando instead decided to get back to Mongu where he got some medical treatment.

“Two weeks ago I traveled with him to Lukulu for the funeral of his mother’s young sister but he didn’t reach the funeral house because he got sick. He complained of Malaria all the way.

“We decided to come back to Mongu where he got some treatment but I think this was not adequate,” said Mrs. Mupo.

She said even when a decision to travel to Lusaka was made, Mr. Namakando was still not well complaining of fatigue and fever.

Mrs. Mupo said even on the day of the meeting at State House, Mr. Namakando came late because he was still not feeling well.

“On Sunday, I went to State House earlier than him. When I saw that time was running out I called him and he asked me to meet him at the gate at State House. He actually came late and told us that he was not well,” she said.

“So I do not see any reason as to why someone should say he was poisoned or whatever. The fact is that he was sick prior to our meeting at State House. Let me also put it on record that we all ate the same food, from the same buffet including those from Lusaka,” she added.

Mrs. Mupo said if the food was poisoned as suggested by some people, everyone who ate it would have been sick but that this was not the case.

She said the distance between Lusaka and Mongu could have contributed to Mr. Namakando’s condition.

Mrs. Mupo, however, said she had been to see Mr. Namakando this morning and that he is now able to talk and walk without the help of anyone.

“As a matter of fact, I went to see him this morning and I can confirm that he is now able to talk and walk without the aid of anyone. I have briefed him about what has been said following his illness and he has actually assured that he would issue a comprehensive statement on the matter,” said Mrs. Mupo.

“All he needs now is just enough rest. He told me he has been put on quinine. I challenge those that are saying he is in a critical condition to get a camera and show the whole nation what the man’s real condition is,” she added.

On Mr. Kenneth Musangu, Mrs. Mupo said all she knew was that he was soaked when he went to visit his relations in Chilanga.

“On Mr. Musangu, who was also part of us at State House, what I know is that he was soaked by the rains when he went to Chilanga to visit some of his relatives. You know he has relatives there and that day was rainy,” she said.

On Sunday, former Western Province MMD chairman, Simasiku Namakando, in the company of other members of the dissolved provincial executive committee met President Rupiah Banda in a bid to reconcile and resolve some issues raised by the dissolved committee.

ZANIS

Three former Members of Parliament (MPs) in Eastern province have officially resigned from the former ruling party UNIP to join the opposition Patriotic Front.

The three are former Chipangali MP, Lucas Phiri, former Chama North MP, John Chibanga and former Malambo MP Imange Muzidya Phiri, who defected alongside former Chipata Mayor, Patrick Chirwa.

In a revelation to ZANIS in Chipata, the three said they decided to join the opposition PF because their former party was dead as it allegedly had no leadership.

The former Chipangali MP, Mr Phiri, said he needed to belong to a party that was thinking of taking the country forward and it was the reason why he decided to join PF.

Mr Phiri observed that he would be doing a disservice to the people of Chipangali constituency, the province and the country if he stuck to UNIP because he needed to be in a party that would help people come out of poverty.

He said he would have loved to join the ruling MMD but alleged that the party lacked leaders who were hard working.

And Mr Chibanga accused the MMD of having failed the people of Chama, especially in the improvement of the road network.

He said people were still crossing crocodile infested streams because of lack of bridges which government has allegedly failed to build.

Mr Chibanga also said the ruling MMD had no policy on agriculture, adding that, the reduction of bags of fertilizer in a packs meant that farmers would fail to produce as expected.

He said Zambian peasant farmers were living as commercial families because they helped a lot of people from their produce at both family and national level.

Mr Chibanga said it was pointless for the ruling party which is in government to start reducing the number of bags in a pack of fertilizer instead of increasing it considering the economic hardships farmers were going through.

And welcoming the defectors, Eastern Province PF chairperson, Solomon Mbuzi, said the PF, together with its sister party, United Party for National Development (UPND), was happy to receive them.

Mr Mbuzi said the four had made right choices because politics should not be about amassing wealth for personal glory like what was allegedly being seen in the ruling party but a service to the people.

[ZANIS]

The trial of The Post editor Chansa Kabwela is not a comedy but a tragedy. A comedy is meant to cause laughter, but from whatever angle I look at this story, I cannot find anything funny in it but only dismay and anxiety on one hand and pity and anger on another.

I am first of all dismayed and anxious when I consider that the constitutional office of the DPP can be so degraded due to personal preservation. I say this because that is the only way I can explain why a learned lawyer can pursue a malicious prosecution of a citizen purely on the personal opinion of a head of state.

The President is a layman at law. He has at least four people, the Vice President, also Justice Minister and SC, the Attorney General, the DPP and the Solicitor General, who can advise him on any point of law. More than that, the Constitution of Zambia, directs that no one should influence the DPP as to whether or not to prosecute. If this prosecution went ahead to please the President, it has.

Well, much has already been said about the demerits of the case. I turn now to pity and anger. I pity the man and wife in this story. ‘How sweet to hold a new born baby, and feel the pride and joy he gives’ (Bill Gaither), but this couple were denied this experience amidst the selfishness of some and savagery of others. I understand that the baby died.

What has the State done to prevent this from happening again? There is a case for negligence. The state owed a duty of care to this couple and the state failed to provide that care and injury resulted. I am angry that not a single lawyer has come to this family’s aid to seek compensation from the state. Res ipsa loquitur.

Scores of Zambians perish in hospitals, on roads and other places because of the negligence of the state directly or indirectly through its agents. There are no hazard warnings on roads that look like a moon face. There are no diagnostic facilities in state hospitals where patients are treated by trial and error! There is no Health and Safety legislation to write home about. Six people have drowned recently in public swimming baths and no one is held to account![quote]

Meanwhile, Mr Mangani is more concerned about ‘laws against pornography!’ Why should government legislate personal morality? The government should be more concerned about protecting the lives and livelihoods of the citizens. Urgent labour legislation is required to outlaw unfair remuneration. It is time there was ‘equal pay for equal work!’ That baby must be remembered as the child who put an end to mediocrity in Zambia. We owe it to him/her. It is time to hold someone accountable.

LT Blogger