Maravi

Mtonga, lubinda ditch Saki for Sata

Mtonga, lubinda ditch Saki for Sata
By Bivan Saluseki
Thursday February 15, 2007 [02:00]

UNITED Liberal Party (ULP) vice-president Henry Mtonga and spokesperson Given Lubinda have resigned their positions in the party and opted to continue with Patriotic Front (PF) membership instead. Sources yesterday disclosed that Mtonga, Lubinda and Lukashya PF member of parliament Alfrida Mwamba abandoned Sakwiba Sikota's ULP in January and opted to work with Michael Sata's PF where they pledged to even work as ordinary members.

Mtonga refused to comment, referring queries to ULP president Sakwiba Sikota. When contacted yesterday, Sikota said he could not comment because there was a point of order raised in Parliament over Lubinda concerning his dual party membership. Sikota said he might prejudice what the Speaker might say and get cited. Lubinda also said a point of order had been raised by works and supply deputy minister Benny Tetamashimba recently and would therefore comment after the ruling by the Speaker. Mwamba, when contacted and asked if she had received her letter of acceptance of resignation from Sikota, also said she could not comment due to the point of order in Parliament.

But sources said the trio opted to work with PF because that was the party on which they were elected. “They handed over their positions to Saki in January. They wrote their resignation letters but up to now Sikota has not responded,” the sources said. According to sources, Mtonga and Lubinda were of the view that the opposition needed to unite against MMD. However, the duo felt that ULP was not working towards that.

The sources said Mtonga and Lubinda had problems working with some ULP members especially those from Western Province. According to sources, now that Mtonga and Lubinda were ‘full-time PF members’, they were free to participate in the forthcoming PF convention and vie for any position. The sources said PF was working towards accommodating Mtonga, Lubinda and Mwamba in their party structures.

Mtonga, Lubinda and Mwamba stood on PF ticket in last September’s general elections. Recently, another ULP vice-president, Robert Sichinga, resigned from the party to focus on his private life.

Labels: PF, SAKWIBA SIKOTA, SATA, ULP

posted by MrK @ 9:19 PM