Maravi

It will be unwise to do away with sitting president, says Mulongoti

COMMENT - What an idiot. Does Mike Mulongoti really believe that already being in State House is a reason to be re-elected? What an odd conception of democracy. Perhaps he is just trying to argue why the MMD should stay at State House forever, and is trying to present it as a matter of principle - my guess is he is.

It will be unwise to do away with sitting president, says Mulongoti
By Sututu Katundu
Sat 23 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT

ACTING MMD spokesperson Mike Mulongoti has said it will not be good for the party to hold a convention to waste money when there is the 2011 general election to fight for.

Featuring on The People That Matter programme on Joy FM Radio on Monday evening, Mulongoti said it would be unwise to do away with the sitting President and look for another candidate when there was the benefit of incumbency.

“With the benefits of incumbency, would it be normal for us as the MMD? The people who are fighting us want to go to State House, we are already in State House and want us to take a person from State House so that we can find another new person who will begin to struggle, who is not known and things like that,” Mulongoti wondered.

“Where in the world have you seen where you do away with a sitting president to get another one? If his term has come to an end, it’s a different issue. But let me say this, even if we are to find another candidate for that candidate to be able to succeed, he will need the support of the sitting president.

So I don’t think it will be clever politics for us to say ‘Mr Bupiah Banda, you have done enough get away we must look for somebody else’. No, I don’t think so. As long as the law permits it that he can continue as president for another term, I see nothing wrong for us as a political party.”

He said the party constitution provides for constituency, district and provincial conferences and ultimately the convention, which were all sponsored and a cost to the party.

He said this would exhaust the goodwill of the companies and business people that supported the party hence spending billions on the convention would be costly.

“Our party as MMD does not run companies, it does not run businesses, we depend on the goodwill of the people. And at the end of the day we have been accumulating debt as well over the years. So why spend five, six billion when we have got debts that have accumulated and when we have an election to fight in 2011?” he said.

“We need first of all to sharpen our tools, we need to get our organs in place. We need to ensure that we have got transport, bicycles, motor vehicles. We need to buy campaign material, chitenges, T-shirts, caps. How are we going to do it if we are going to spend that much money at one place where we are going to call the whole country of our members to come and feast and debate for one two three days, six billion gone? Is that clever and for us as a party?

“What we are saying is this, those who want to aspire for presidency are free to go to these party conferences, to go and articulate their views so they gain the support of provincial conferences. The declarations that have been made by provinces have been made through the provincial executive committees, which do not determine the outcome of resolutions at the provincial conferences and this is where the support is needed. The same people who are going to those conferences are the same people who are to gather at the convention. So there is nothing that stops all the aspirants from going there and if there is an indication that the person who NEC is pronounced as a preferred candidate is not as popular from the provinces there is nothing that stops NEC from making that decision.”

Mulongoti said Chiluba had won at the convention but the ultimate candidate was president Mwanawasa, an indication that nothing stops people from campaigning.

Labels: MIKE MULONGOTI

posted by MrK @ 10:47 PM