Maravi

Teta has been deceiving Rupiah, says Hichilema

Teta has been deceiving Rupiah, says Hichilema
By Chibaula Silwamba and Lambwe Kachali
Tuesday September 30, 2008 [04:00]

UPND presidential candidate Hakainde Hichilema yesterday said Vice-President Rupiah Banda has now realised that MMD spokesperson Benny Tetamashimba has been deceiving him that he has support in North-Western Province. And UPND Mazabuka Central member of parliament Garry Nkombo charged that cronies around Vice-President Banda were playing political games

against Hichilema to disturb him from winning the October 30 presidential election.
Commenting on the people of North-Western Province who warmly welcomed him during the Luvale's Likumbi Lya Mize traditional ceremony in Zambezi district as opposed to Vice-President Banda and the subsequent jeering of Tetamashimba during a campaign rally in Kabompo, Hichilema bragged that he had a lot of support in the province.
"Tetamashimba is misleading the people because of his personal greed," Hichilema said. "I think he was deceiving Rupiah Banda that he has support in North-Western Province when he doesn't have. Now, Rupiah Banda saw it for himself."

And reacting to Opper Hamiyanze's defection from the UPND to the Michael Sata-led PF and his claims that several UPND members will follow him, Hichilema observed that some people were being paid to claim that they were senior party members who had defected.

He said Hamiyanze was not a provincial publicity secretary of the UPND in Southern Province.
Hichilema warned PF members and leaders to desist from corrupting people to be purporting that they were defecting from UPND.
Asked about Hamiyanze's claims that several senior UPND members are expected to defect to PF in Choma today, Hichilema said this was not true.

"You go to Choma yourself and see what is happening. If PF is engaging itself in corruption by buying people, they will not achieve anything," said Hichilema.
Southern Province UPND deputy chairman John Chidyaka said Hamiyanze was not the party's provincial publicity secretary but an ordinary member.

He said Hamiyanze was an opportunist who was playing monkey politics.
"I know Hamiyanze; he has been a party member but not the position he claims. He is fabricating. People must learn to resign in a humble manner with dignity and morality and not lies and immorality," he said. "To us in the province, many people will melt but the cream will remain."

Chidyaka advised Hamiyanze not to talk about issues he did not know because he might end up in courts of law.
Meanwhile, Hamiyanze apologised to the UPND and Hichilema for saying that he was the party's provincial publicity secretary, saying that he was just a vocal party member in the province.

Hamiyanze said he was appointed by the late UPND leader Anderson Mazoka although he did not want to use this to his advantage.
However, Hamiyanze said the defection of UPND senior party members to form the provincial structure for the PF would take place today in Choma, though it would be a closed door meeting.

And featuring on the October 30 countdown programme on Hot FM yesterday, Nkombo said some officials around Vice-President Banda wanted to block Hichilema from going to Zambezi where he Vice-President Banda had gone to attend the Likumbi Lya Mize Traditional Ceremony. Nkombo said after Hichilema chartered a plane, he was delayed to be given one. He said the motive behind that was to block him from attending the Likumbi Lya Mize ceremony, which he later managed to attend.

"Mr Rupiah Banda himself may not be aware; I cannot take blame on him. But the cronies around Mr Banda have already started playing up games where they say 'this plane is grounded it cannot go'. But because HH is a very determined person, he left Lusaka at 13:30 and arrived in Zambezi at 15:00 hours and the people were waiting for him at Zambezi airstrip which was filled to capacity and they walked with him through where he met Mr Banda. Mr Banda was very surprised to see them. They tried to block him up but couldn't manage. People of Zambia must be given a chance to hear who wants to be of service to them," Nkombo said.

Nkombo also said although the electoral pact between PF and UPND would have been an ideal thing, it would have only achieved one purpose of dislodging MMD from power and not the fundamental interest of Zambians.

Nkombo explained that it took like-minded people to achieve a common goal.
He said there was need to harmonise many issues before a pact could come into effect.
"Now, if you are going to go with a pact with the purpose of just winning, and no other things... you know we have a vision, we have a manifesto which is different from PF.

We need to harmonise these things together for us to move in one accord for real. Don't forget, MMD in itself disintegrated in the year 1994 because they got together based on the wrong fundamentals to remove Dr Kenneth Kaunda. No sooner had they removed Dr Kaunda than they split...," Nkombo said.

Asked on assertions that the electoral pact could not materialise due to Hichilema and PF leader Michael Sata's preoccupation to go to plot one, Nkombo said the two parties believed in different principles.

"... I just said to you that PF and UPND were created under completely different circumstances, with one reason to rule the country in a certain fashion. Certainly, the fundamentals that govern PF and the fundamentals that govern UPND differ. The issue of fundamentalism, what you believe in, came to play and I want to show you that seemingly MMD could be in the advantage of the instrument of power. The fact that Mr Mwanawasa managed to get them the vote they needed, they won the election. And so everybody is just regrouping in that same old, fadeout thinking MMD is still very popular," said Nkombo.

Nkombo also warned the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) against rigging the October 30 election, saying UPND would not tolerate any electoral irregularities.

Labels: BENNY TETAMASHIMBA, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 5:29 AM