Maravi

Katele has now been reduced to a figurehead in MMD – Mpombo

Katele has now been reduced to a figurehead in MMD – Mpombo
By George Chellah
Wed 27 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT

GEORGE Mpombo yesterday said newly-appointed MMD deputy national secretary Chembe Nyangu is the de facto national secretary and Katele Kalumba will now remain a figurehead within the party.

Commenting on the appointment and subsequent inclusion of Nyangu in the MMD national executive committee (NEC), Mpombo argued that the move to replace Jeff Kaande with Nyangu depicts President Rupiah Banda's usual stubborn determination.

He said President Banda had commenced the process of setting up his campaign team.
“It is a manipulation to pave the way for President Banda's re-election at the party conference convention. He is consolidating his campaign strategy, it is a campaign strategy purely meant to enhance his chances,” he said.

He emphasised that Nyangu was the defacto MMD national secretary.
“You see by bringing in Chembe he becomes the defacto national secretary because he is going to have access to the President while Kalumba will remain just a figure-head,” Mpombo said. “Kalumba will just remain a figurehead and it is the deputy national secretary and the President that will be making decisions.

“And Nyangu has been placed in that strategic position purely for the purpose of coordinating and orchestrating the campaign effort in order to re-elect the President. So it clearly shows that the forthcoming MMD convention will not be on level ground.”
He said with the recent NEC appointments of people from Eastern Province, MMD supporters were now feeling a sense of invasion.

“You see, people will clearly see that there are certain manipulations to marginalise other people because if you look at the situation already the whole process started with putting in William Banda as MMD provincial chairman Lusaka. That was building one of the pillars for the election and now it is being cemented with the appointment of Chembe as MMD deputy national secretary,” said Mpombo. “And in any case what raises eye brows...it is strange that a man should straight land in the position of vice-national secretary. It has never happened before because in NEC there are senior members in NEC, when you have a vacancy you start looking at vacant positions in the party within NEC.

“You don't bring somebody straight in there NEC. It is abnormal and it is very de-motivating to senior members. Again this goes to show the stubborn determination of RB to get back into power at all cost.”

Last weekend, MMD national secretary Kalumba announced that the ruling party had re-organised itself by bringing into the NEC former national secretary Vernon Mwaanga, Dora Siliya as party spokesperson, former Nyimba member of parliament Nyangu as deputy national secretary, and losing Solwezi Central member of parliament Albert Chifita. Jeff Kaande was dropped as party deputy national secretary.

Labels: GEORGE MPOMBO, JEFF KAANDE, KATELE KALUMBA, MMD

posted by MrK @ 8:54 PM