Maravi

No one will abuse Levy and Sata's relationship -Scott

No one will abuse Levy and Sata's relationship -Scott
By Chibaula Silwamba
Saturday May 31, 2008 [04:00]

PATRIOTIC Front (PF) vice-president Dr Guy Scott has said President Mwanawasa will fail to take advantage of his new relationship with Michael Sata to 'grab' the party's parliamentary and local government seats. And six candidates on Thursday successfully filed in their nominations for the Milanzi parliamentary by-election set for June 26.

In an interview at Kagoro Basic School after he accompanied PF parliamentary candidate for the Milanzi by-election Peter Phiri, on Thursday, Dr Scott said there was no one who would abuse the relationship between President Levy Mwanawasa and Sata.

"What is good for the goose is also good for the gander. If reconciliation between two people can help one, it can also help the other. We will also take advantage of the reconciliation. No one is going to abuse this relationship, we are all adults," Dr Scott said. "He can try, he is very welcome to try and take advantage and we shall enjoy seeing the looks on his face when he fails."

Dr Scott also said the PF had in the past messed up in Eastern Province because the constituencies were big for opposition political parties that did not have sufficient resources for campaigns.

"We are here for serious business. We are pretty confident that we will win. I think we have messed up in the Eastern Province before; it's a difficult province with big constituencies, which are difficult for political parties without so much resources as the governing party. I think we are learning our way around it and I think they Easterners are learning about us," he said.
Dr Scott expressed concern at the bad state of the road infrastructure in Eastern Province.

"If Easterners want development they should vote for PF. We have served the people in urban areas very well - there are tax cuts because of our demands and we now want to serve the people in rural areas," said Dr Scott.

And six people who successfully filed in their nominations for the Milanzi parliamentary seat include MMD's Reuben Banda, UPND's Chimwala Phiri, FDD's Francis Phiri, PF's Peter Phiri, All people Congress (APC)'s Stephen Phiri and UNIP's Ahmed Randera.

After filing in his nomination, Banda said the MMD had programmes for everybody in the constituency and he would lobby the government to implement the projects it was undertaking in other parts of the country.

"On agriculture marketing system, it is driven by the government and all we need to do at the lower level is to lobby government to ensure that the programmes that are being done in other constituencies are also done here. I am also going to get the concerns of the people in the constituency back to the government," he said.

Banda said Milanzi would no longer be a stronghold of UNIP as the former ruling party claims.

"There is no UNIP, UNIP is not strong anywhere and UNIP is finished, it is going to finish in Milanzi," said Banda.

And Chimwala said he was the most experienced candidate because he had served as member of parliament for Milanzi for two terms.

"First of all, since I lost election in 2001 there has been no significant development in Milanzi," Chimwala said. "I will be fighting in Parliament to bring development in Milanzi. People want health centres, schools and clean
water."

And Phiri said he was the best candidate because he was a local person unlike the other candidates who were 'foreigners' in the constituency.

"My concern why I want to be an MP in this area is that we have been receiving 'foreigners' in this constituency and whenever they are voted into office they don't come back to the people to see and hear the people's concerns. It's like they just come to rob the people," Phiri said.

He said he would advocate that the government improves the supply of farming inputs to the area.

"Most of the times people here receive the farming inputs very late if any," he said.
Phiri also promised to help improve the road network in the area.
UNIP's Randera said people of Milanzi had been neglected for a long time by the MMD government.

"People here are suffering and they are starving because the government has neglected them...they are not even given fertiliser and other farming inputs on time," Randera said.

"We shall 'fight' in Parliament. I will speak on behalf of the people of Milanzi and we shall ensure that national resources are equally distributed. These resources are not only for MMD members but all Zambians."

Meanwhile, Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) candidate Francis Phiri said he would act as a bridge between the people of Milanzi and Parliament.
"My chances of winning are very high because I was a councillor here for three terms and I worked successfully," he said. "I am going to be a bridge between the people of Milanzi constituency and Parliament to bring
development."

He said although top FDD leaders did not accompany him to the nomination centre, he would still win the elections because it was all about the grassroots and not the top leaders being present.

"My priority will be to improve infrastructure like clinics and roads," Francis said. "I am committed to develop in this area."

Police in full riot kit kept vigil especially on UNIP supporters who were going round chanting songs in support of party president Tilyenji Kaunda and Randera.

Earlier, police had a tough time controlling UNIP members from coming closer to the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ)’s 100-metre radius fencing.

However, UNIP cadres argued that they would not move from the roadside until the police moved FDD and UPND cadres from the roadside.

Labels: GUY SCOTT, MMD, MWANAWASA, PF, SATA

posted by MrK @ 3:16 PM