Maravi

I'll bite, warns Rupiah

I'll bite, warns Rupiah
Written by Chibaula Silwamba in Siavonga
Friday, March 06, 2009 6:25:46 PM

PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda on Friday warned that he will continue to bite MMD members and government officials who think they are indispensable and become indiscipline.
Speaking on arrival at Siavonga High School for the launch of the Kariba North Bank Extension Project, President Banda described as nonsensical Jonas Shakafuswa's argument that he was fired as science and technology deputy minister because the head of state did not like Lenje people.

He said his firing of Shakafuswa and Mpulungu member of parliament Lameck Chibombamilimo as deputy ministers and their subsequent expulsion from the MMD was just the beginning.

"I am visiting you at the time immediately after I took some decisive steps to instill discipline in our party. As you all know, since before my election up to now I have been subject of attacks continuously by certain quarters of the press and unfortunately by even some of my own colleagues," President Banda said. "They mistook my teeth when I smile that I can't bite. So I thought now is the good time to show them also I can bite and bite deeply and therefore I took care of those two gentlemen. I hope that those of my colleagues who are working with me in the party and the civil service will learn some lessons."

President Banda said he was not after firing people but that he would do so if provoked.

"I will go after you, of course, because otherwise the rest of the people will think I am not in control. I hope that those decisive measures which I have taken against these two young people will teach them a lesson, to start with so that wherever they [are], whatever political party they will join, it will still be necessary for them to be disciplined," President Banda said. "Therefore, I hope that they learnt something from this. I hope my colleagues [who] will remain with me within the government and the party will also learn some lessons so that we don't see some more of these bloodletting."

President Banda said the decision he took against Shakafuswa and Chibombamilimo was not harsh.

"I hear that some people are complaining saying that, 'no! no! This is too harsh and so forth and so forth'. You remind me of the saying, that it is good for the dog to bite a goat but if the goat gets near the dog threatening to bite it, you say, 'no! no! Ipayeni nimaloza [This is a taboo, kill the goat]'," President Banda said. "I have been a subject of attacks and bites continuously. Now I have turned around. This is just warning shots, I am going to bite even more."

President Banda urged leaders not to take Zambians for granted.

"I just want to warn my fellow leaders that all the 11 million Zambians are capable of being leaders. When we become leaders, starting with the President right down to the party leaders, we must never think that we are indispensable, we must always be humble to the people, we must always provide them with the honest service. We must always be fair because if we don't do these things other people can take over," President Banda said. "Just like these two gentlemen, they have just given an opportunity; Mr. Chibombamilimo will just find out that in Mpulungu there are better people than him and will be deputy minister very soon. The same with Mr Shakafuswa, [he] must learn that he was just lucky to be a deputy minister. There are many people where he comes from, better qualified, better able to serve the people of the constituency where he has been."

President Banda said Shakafuswa and Chibombamilimo had created opportunities for others to take over and serve the Zambian people.

"Even if I take out 10, I can find 10 new ones. That is the lesson we should all learn from being leaders. Sometimes when we are leaders we think that we are everything, we are better than all of you people here," President Banda said. "Everyone is waiting for the opportunity to provide his service and those who go they create space for others to come in. That's it, it's created."

President Banda urged Shakafuswa and Chibombamilimo to go and stand as parliamentary candidates in the coming by-elections on Patriotic Front or UPND tickets or as independent.

"We shall meet them there, we are ready we have already started," said President Banda. "They are going round telling people saying, 'no, in the case of me, Shakafuswa, you know Mr Banda doesn't like Lenjes'. I am not going to bring a Lozi to go and take over his place; I am going to bring a Lenje also. His argument is nonsensical. The people of there [Katuba constituency] will have another one of their children, perhaps a better one than him."

The MMD last Tuesday expelled Shakafuswa and Chibombamilimo from the party for alleged indiscipline and bringing the party into ridicule.

Announcing their expulsion at a press briefing, MMD national secretary Katele Kalumba said the duo had repeatedly and arrogantly made pronouncements and conducted themselves in ways that had placed the party into disrepute.

Shakafuswa and Chibombamilimo were earlier on Thursday fired by President Banda from their positions as science and technology and energy deputy ministers, respectively, in front of MMD cadres that marched to State House to express their solidarity with the head of state. A visibly agitated President Banda also warned that he would take the duo's names to the party's NEC where he would have them removed from the party and later follow them to their constituencies where he would defeat them.

But reacting to his expulsion from the party, Shakafuswa said President Banda was a very weak and scared person. Shakafuswa said he would not seek legal action over his expulsion because he wanted to teach President Banda and his minions in the MMD a lesson. Shakafuswa also said the Lenje people were no longer an inferior tribe as they were now a strong force in the country.

President Banda was in Siavonga to officially commission the second phase of the construction of a 360 mega watts hydro electric power station at Kariba North Bank.

Labels: JONAS SHAKAFUSWA, MMD, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 6:26 PM