Maravi

Rupiah is already cracking – HH

Rupiah is already cracking – HH
Written by George Chellah
Thursday, July 02, 2009 4:34:23 PM

RUPIAH Banda is already cracking and we are going to put more pressure on him, UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema said yesterday. In an interview, Hichilema dismissed accusations that he has been insulting the head of state saying, President Banda was just feeling the pressure because he was facing real opposition now.

"He is cracking already. We are going to put more pressure. The UPND/PF pact is already running Zambia. Even nature is angry, George Mpombo [defence minister] thought he was escaping the monkey at State House by going to Livingstone," Hichilema said.

"You are going to see more strange things. This is what happens, we in the opposition are talking for the people. They will be making blunders everyday, every decision they make will be a blunder."

He advised President Banda not to provoke citizens.

"Being President is not an entitlement to provoke citizens thinking that he can run away from it just because he is President, no! He felt that he could buy everybody but he can't, he is facing real opposition now," Hichilema said.

"He was saying that I wanted a pact with him...because I refused to be a surrogate party like others, that is not an insult. You can't use old age as an excuse for failing to run government."

Hichilema insisted that he had only been advising President Banda and not insulting him as was being suggested by the ruling MMD.

"He thought that running a country was easy. He thought it was just going on holidays and foreign trips. If talking for the Zambian people is insulting then we will continue talking," he said.

On chief government spokesperson Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha's statement that he had no moral right to call for the reduction of Cabinet when his party has just increased the number of vice-presidents to four, Hichilema said Lt Gen Shikapwasha must understand the difference between an election strategy and a strategy of running government.

"A strategy of running government is not the same as that of running a party. That is an election strategy, we want to bring more people on board. Shikapwasha's thinking is limited, that's why he can't understand our strategy," Hichilema said.

"In their party, the party is run the way government runs but for us that is different from running a country. Running a country is based on economic and social programmes while running a party is based on mass country mobilisation. Shikapwasha always has difficulties in understanding the word 'strategy'."

He reminded Lt Gen Shikapwasha that the ruling party was abusing public resources for their political activities whilst the opposition was not.

"We insist that they need to reduce the size of Cabinet," he said.

He urged the government to find a lasting solution to the just-ended strike by health workers countrywide.

"When Shikapwasha and Rupiah decided to increase their salaries in a recession, they incited the workers. We are happy the nurses have gone back for work but we ask them to find a solution to these problems we are facing. Government must find a long-term solution," said Hichilema.

"They gave themselves a 15 per cent increment of the already high salaries. We told them that increasing salaries for themselves was a big blunder. They didn't listen to us."

Labels: GEORGE MPOMBO, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, RONNIE SHIKAPWASHA, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 3:35 PM