Maravi

Business community discussing with PF, UPND – Sata

Business community discussing with PF, UPND – Sata
Written by Mwala Kalaluka and Chibaula Silwamba
Sunday, June 07, 2009 3:48:23 PM

SOME members of the business community are into discussions with the PF and UPND following the formation of an electoral pact between the two opposition parties, PF leader Michael Sata has said. And Patriotic Front (PF) spokesperson Given Lubinda has said it is disappointing that the MMD leadership is making dangerous tribal sentiments following the formation of a political pact between UPND and PF.

Meanwhile, the PF and UPND in Southern Province have described the pact between the two parties as a revolution because their leaders have listened to people's demands for them to come together and liberate Zambia from corruption and poverty.

Addressing members of the PF central committee in Lusaka yesterday, Sata urged the party to start moving and re-organising itself because the MMD and its ‘cooperating’ parties would get more united following the recent announcement of the UPND-PF pact.

“Colleagues, we (PF and UPND) had a very successful meeting. We have had a number of business communities who have been coming to us and going to UPND and finally we are going to have a meeting,” Sata said. “That is why we need to be very organised.”

Sata said nobody would fight them once the party became more organised.

“With our working together with Comrade HH, our colleagues will be united. Our colleagues are going to be united, as they were united last year,” he said.

“Our colleagues, those who forced themselves out, are trying to work with the government to try and frustrate us, to try and demoralise us, the former secretary general left an organised party and has gone to organise rascals and ruffians. Like the press conference, which was held yesterday to try and oppose what he does not know.”

Sata said although he was very grateful with what was happening within PF, he was not very impressed with the status quo in Lusaka and Copperbelt provinces.

“Because I am not impressed with what is going on in Lusaka, I am trying to reorganise, I am trying to regroup. I am bringing another person,” Sata said.

“Lusaka is the head, there is no party in Lusaka, because if there was a party in Lusaka all the nonsense is coming from Lusaka, it is not coming from the provinces. We expect this nonsense from the provinces. Comrade (Paul) Moonga, you have to reorganise Lusaka Province.”

Sata said Moonga’s scope of operation, as new Lusaka Province PF chairman would extend to Mazabuka, Chirundu and Nampundwe.

Munali member of parliament Mumbi Phiri was introduced as the new chairperson for land and natural resources.

“Now it was necessary for us to make some adjustments, we wanted people to assist Honourable Gerry Chanda, the chairman of security. Comrade (Chishimba) Kambwili takes over the chairmanship of youth and youth development and another veteran politician Comrade Chuumbwe,” Sata said.

“We need, with the permission of the central committee, becomes number two in this committee. So the question of Mr Kambwili and Mr Chuumbwe, we have to change the approach. It is not the question of being chairman of youths just by title.”

Sata said the party should be ready for any election.

“We never expected an election last year. President Banda might resign tomorrow, so we have to be ready,” he said. “Copperbelt that is where the political opinion has to come from but at the moment I am not very comfortable.”

But Sata said the PF in Northern Province was trying.

“Luapula Province has been doing extremely well under one-man leadership. So far Luapula, we can sustain the pressure but Copperbelt and Lusaka, we need Copperbelt, Lusaka and Central Province and all of us at one stage or another we have to move into Chitambo,” said Sata. “We want to go and terrorise Chitambo, I am very grateful to all you for coming under very difficult conditions.”

And Lubinda said he was disappointed that a young person like Chisamba MMD member of parliament Moses Muteteka could issue such tribal sentiments over the PF-UPND political pact.

“The reaction from MMD on the collaboration between the UPND and PF is a sign that this is what the Zambian people have been asking for. It has sent some shock waves in MMD and there is no doubt that MMD are not sleeping anymore, they are panicking,” Lubinda said.

“They are making extremely scary statements. I am particularly disappointed that a young man like Muteteka can question whether it is possible for a Tonga and Bemba to work together.”

Lubinda said the pact between the two political parties was beyond winning the 2011 elections and that it was clear that it had come with a bang.

And commenting on the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Sata and Hichilema on behalf of their parties with a view to remove the governing MMD from power, PF Southern Province coordinator Opper Hamiyanze said the pact gave Zambians hope.

“The MoU between PF and UPND is a welcome move and it brings a lot of fresh air to Zambians who for a long time have been crying for these leaders to come together. These leaders have listened to what the people have told them and we highly commend them for listening to most of the Zambian people who have been calling on them to come together so that they can liberate Zambia,” Hamiyanze said.

“Öwe know that MMD is scheming to frustrate the pact as it has already been heard from the MMD that the pact has been there before and it has not yielded results.”

He observed that the MMD leadership was jittery about the pact between PF and UPND.

“They know that the pact will lessen the rigging of election results,” said Hamiyanze. “It’s now a revolution. Zambians have now come together from all walks of life to support one common goal and change their lives through putting in leadership that will bring change to their lives.”

And UPND Southern Province vice chairman John Chidyaka said party members in the province were happy with the signing of the MoU between Sata and Hichilema on their behalf.

“We overwhelmingly support the pact which has been initiated by our leaders and that is what we call Zambia forward,” said Chidyaka.

“We can only hope to remove this devilish MMD from power through a pact and it is the way forward for these two parties and we call upon these small political parties that are still in hiding to come on board to join the pact.”

Labels: GIVEN LUBINDA, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, JOHN CHADYAKA, MoU, MUMBI PHIRI, PF, SATA, UPND

posted by MrK @ 2:52 PM