Maravi

W/Province MMD committee still intact, says Namakando

W/Province MMD committee still intact, says Namakando
Written by Mwala Kalaluka
Wednesday, October 07, 2009 7:30:29 AM

SIMASIKU Namakando has maintained that he is still the provincial chairman of the MMD in Western Province because the party national secretary Katele Kalumba had no constitutional powers to dissolve any committee.

Reacting to Kalumba’s decision to dissolve the entire Western MMD provincial executive committee following its position that the national convention should not be deferred, Namakando said in an interview from Lukulu that the provincial committee was still intact.

Namakando said he was still a member of the MMD and that nobody would chase him and his committee from the party because they had committed no offence.

He said those MMD members that wanted to follow UNIP principles should form their own party, which would be devoid of principles and constitutionalism.

“I will make a comprehensive statement later with the entire executive committee organs in the province, but for now I am still a member of the MMD,” Namakando said. “Article nine talks of the rights of a member and it reads as follows, ‘rights and obligations of a member. A member of the party has a right to (a) demand the fulfillment of what is enshrined in the constitution, resolution, directive and obligation of the party, (b) to participate in fora and meetings of the party organs and to freely discuss in the policies and activities of the party, (c) to put forward proposition and defend his opinion before agreement is reached on any matter under discussion.’”

Namakando said the above articles gave him the powers to demand anything from the National Executive Committee because he was an MMD member.

“I will continue to ask that we go to the MMD convention…because we have two members in the MMD. We have got the true and progressive MMD members and the UNIP group of the MMD who don’t want to hear anything from the constitution. These are the people who are saying we do not have to go to the convention, because to them a convention is taboo. They know they will lose their positions,” an emotive Namakando said. “Those people who are shouting around are the people who joined yesterday from UNIP. The National Chairman (Michael Mabenga) is the one who introduced this debate of the convention. It is the National Chairman, Mr Mabenga, who was forcing members to sign these things because he has an agenda to protect and to get favours from President Banda.”

Namakando said even Kalumba had his own share of problems.

“Even himself he does not believe in the action he was doing yesterday. He did that to buy his freedom from Mr Banda because of his many problems,” he said. “Because even the article he has quoted does not warrant him to dissolve any committee. Where did he get the power from, because one, we have never committed any offence against the party or against anybody but we have the right to demand anything enshrined in the constitution?”

Namakando described the action to dissolve his committee as a UNIP way of solving issues.

Labels: MMD, SIMASIKU NAMAKANDO, WESTERN PROVINCE

posted by MrK @ 6:32 AM