Maravi

Rupiah will do anything to enter State House - Sata

Rupiah will do anything to enter State House - Sata
By Patson Chilemba in Chinsali
Saturday October 04, 2008 [04:00]

PATRIOTIC Front (PF) president Michael Sata has said Vice-President Rupiah Banda will do anything to get to State House even on the back of supporting corruption. Commenting on Vice-President Banda's campaign agent Benny Tetamashimba's statement that former president Frederick Chiluba was not a plunderer, Sata on Thursday said the MMD was contradicting itself.

Sata said the contradictions in the MMD camp had made their commitment to the fight against corruption questionable.

He said this was so because Vice-President Banda was like a headless chicken, which moved aimlessly in any direction.

Sata said Vice-President Banda had no direction and would do anything to get to State House even on the back of supporting corruption, if doing so could help win him votes.

"If they say one thing when president Levy Mwanawasa is around and do another when Mwanawasa is dead, it becomes very difficult. And Rupiah, when he's talking of legacy of Mwanawasa, what legacy is he talking about?" Sata asked.

"It is the MMD government which took Frederick Chiluba to the London Court. It's the MMD government which is taking Chiluba to the local courts here where he has been found with a case to answer. How does the same MMD today come and say no?"

Sata challenged the MMD to state publicly if Chiluba had promised to assist them in the campaigns so that that they would in return drop his corruption cases.

"What type of human beings are they? Rupiah Banda doesn't stand on anything. He moves aimlessly. He doesn't believe in anything. So he's pushed left, right and centre," Sata said.

PF spokesperson Given Lubinda said Vice-President Banda was not straight in his dealings and that he risked being arrested. He said people like Tetamashimba and information minister Mike Mulongoti desperately wanted Vice-President Banda to win so that they could loot the country's coffers by receiving hefty salaries and allowances.

Lubinda said Mulongoti would perish should he attempt to stifle press freedom.
Lubinda also advised pastor Nevers Mumba to stop cheating God because his ways were not straight.

Last Wednesday, Tetamashimba told journalists that Chiluba was not a plunderer, but was in court facing "allegations and not truths."

But on October 5, 2006, Tetamashimba, was quoted in The Post as saying the MMD did not want to be associated with Chiluba because he "made the country to be bad."
And in 2006 during campaigns for the general elections, Sata said he would not arrest and prosecute Chiluba for plunder of national resources.

Sata, who was drumming up support for himself and parliamentary candidates for Luapula Province in Mansa, said people like former intelligence chief Xavier Chungu, Chiluba and former Zambia National Commercial Bank managing director Samuel Musonda should not be arrested but should instead be made to explain how they used plundered money on president Mwanawasa.

"I won't arrest them. I will only ask them to explain how they used the money plundered on Levy. Chiluba needs to tell us the money he spent on Mwanawaya Mwanawasa," Sata said.

Earlier, addressing a huge rally in Chinsali Central on Thursday, Sata said most endorsements Vice-President Banda had received from chiefs were not genuine because many were paid to do so. He said he feared visiting chiefs during election periods because he did not want to cheat them.

"Because visiting chiefs you are going to cheat the chief and when going there you are supposed to send 'talk time'," Sata said to a loud applause from Chinsali residents.
However, Sata said once elected president, he would return the authority of chiefs so that they could oversee most developmental projects in their areas.

He said it was sad that people were living like they were in a borrowed country because of the acute suffering.

Chimwemwe PF member of parliament Willie Nsanda urged Chinsali residents to become angry with their suffering and vote out MMD. He warned people that Zambia risked going back to UNIP days should people make the mistake of voting for Vice-President Banda.

"We have got some development in urban areas and people there don't want MMD, but why you people here?" asked Nsanda.

On Saviour Chishimba's endorsement of Vice-President Banda, Lubinda challenged Chishimba to resign from PF and see if he could retain his seat.

Meanwhile, Chinsali PF member of parliament Christopher Mulenga knelt before a huge crowd of residents and apologised for having gone against the party directive by going to the National Constitutional Conference (NCC).
Mulenga also thanked Sata for being fatherly and embracing him back to PF. Chinsali district was on Thursday a hive of activity. People had converged in numbers at the rally site, hours before the rally started.

Sata and his entourage were welcomed into Chinsali by enthusiastic crowds, which wanted to catch a glimpse of the PF leader and listen to his campaign address.

Labels: RUPIAH BANDA, SATA

posted by MrK @ 11:23 AM