Maravi

PF, UPND team up

PF, UPND team up
Written by Patson Chilemba
Friday, June 05, 2009 2:56:54 PM

THE Patriotic Front (PF) and United Party for National Development (UPND) yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) whose focus is to remove the ruling MMD from power.

According to a joint communiqué signed by PF president Michael Sata and UPND president Hakainde Hichilema, the two parties would work together on all matters of national importance.

"The Patriotic Front and the United Party for National Development this morning the 4th of June 2009 made the following landmark agreement.

Recognizing that:

(I) our two parties are the only representatives of the majority suffering masses of Zambia;

(II) The MMD has in the past taken advantage of the differences within the opposition to entrench corruption, massive inefficiency;

(III) the suffering of the Zambian people shall not end under the prevailing rule of the corrupt MMD; and

(IV) responding to the loud and growing appeal from our party members and the general public," the communiqué read in part.

The two parties stated that they had therefore started a long and difficult march in the same direction, not as one organisation but as two giants in Zambian politics.

"We do hereby commit ourselves to the following:

(1) our parties will work together at all levels on all matters of national importance;

(2) our parties will jointly provide more effective checks and balances on Rupiah Banda's corrupt MMD administration with immediate effect;

(3) we will provide an effective, formidable and unbeatable electoral challenge to the corrupt MMD in all elections and we demand early Presidential and Parliamentary elections," read the communiqué in part.

"We will lay the groundwork for an effective, accountable, efficient and pro-poor government to replace this most notorious, scandalous and corrupt MMD regime."

And addressing the media after signing the communiqué, Sata said he was confident that the MoU would succeed.

He said in the past such undertakings had not been successful because they were made during election time.

Sata said the PF and UPND were the only parties that could liberate the country.

He said the parties had agreed not to attack each other both inside and outside Parliament.

Sata said there were several people even in the MMD that would want to join PF or UPND but they were discouraged because of fragmentation in the opposition.

He said the two parties would go to all the parts of the country to liberate Zambians.

"UPND must recover their initial 49 seats," said Sata.

He said even when contesting possible by-elections in Katuba and Mpulungu or the upcoming by-election in Chitambo, the two parties would consider their geographical strengths.

Asked on who the two parties would adopt to contest presidential elections in 2011, Sata said the parties had just started working and there was need to first inculcate trust in each other.

Sata said between now and 2011, there would be attempts by MMD to destabilise the MoU but that PF and UPND were ready for such a challenge.

Hichilema said the MMD had miserably failed and people could attest to this even in their dreams.

He said the failed alliances of the past would be used as a stepping stone to achieve greater things.

"The milestone is to take MMD out," he said.

Hichilema said people shall not see fragmentation in the opposition anymore and that the parties would accelerate the pressure President Banda's government had exerted on itself.

He urged all Zambians of goodwill to join and support the MoU.

"The message I am giving you is, this process is meant to take away hyenas that are eating Zambians every day," said Hichilema.

Labels: HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, MoU, PF, SATA, UPND

posted by MrK @ 2:00 PM