HH responds to Chiluba’s attacks

HH responds to Chiluba’s attacks
By George Chellah
Tue 23 Feb. 2010, 04:00 CAT

UPND president Hakainde Hichilema (left) yesterday said Frederick Chiluba is asking for too much from him if he believes that he can be supported against PF leader Michael Sata.

And Hichilema urged Zambians to fight corruption and not accept to be hoodwinked on matters which are clear. Responding to Chiluba attacks on Sunday, Hichilema said he was not duty-bound to defend Chiluba as that was not his responsibility.

"What I saw is that there is this fight with my partner Sata and I am assuming that Mr Sata will respond to those many, many issues and I am sure he will because it's important that he responds to those matters," Hichilema said.

"And I think it's a matter that if he Chiluba believes that I can support him against my Pact partner, that is asking for too much from me. I think he must deal with that matter and my partner is capable enough to deal with those matters."

Hichilema said Chiluba was free to vote for whoever impressesed him.
"That is his constitutional right. But it's also a constitutional right of many Zambians to vote for people who may impress them and those people may not necessarily be the same people that Chiluba is impressed with.

Ultimately, in 2011 the people of Zambia will vote for somebody and a group, a party or a group of parties that they believe will take Zambia away from the current mismanagement of the country," Hichilema said.

"Luckily, his vote is one and there are millions of other votes that will matter when it comes to 2011. So the majority would prevail and I am not worried about his views. I will not comment about what I feel about him. I have views about him."

Hichilema said Chiluba would never be president of Zambia again.
"It's not a matter of whether he wishes or not. I will reserve my comments about his persona.

I will just answer to say that luckily his vote is just one. He may garner the votes of a few others, that's his constitutional and democratic right. We will go out and campaign and alert the people of Zambia as to how we believe MMD has failed to run this country," Hichilema said.

"We must all know that every Zambian who qualifies to be president is entitled to be president. It's not a wish of a particular individual to be impressed or not to be impressed.

I think that statement borders on believing that only him and a few people should become presidents, that is wrong, absolutely wrong!"
On Chiluba US $12m claim, Hichilema said he was not too sure of what Chiluba was trying to say.

"I can't understand exactly what he was trying to say because I read your paper The Post, I read the Daily Mail that 'Hakainde didn't protect me when Mwanawasa was accusing me'.

I am not too sure if it's my responsibility to protect Chiluba. I am trying to figure out what exactly was he saying? Why should I defend something I don't know about?" laughed Hichilema.

"This is why I am saying I am trying to understand what he was trying to say. What I actually think he was trying to do is he went ahead to attack Michael Sata so he realised that he had to say something bad against Hakainde and he looked around and tried to fish what to say, very little to say about me, anyway!

"If he was insinuating he paid me US $12m, he didn't. That is the truth of the matter. He didn't pay me US $12m.

Why would a president pay a common citizen like Hakainde? I was not involved in what he may have done.

I think those are matters that he must exonerate himself than bringing me into the picture. But I think he was trying to pin me down to have had an obligation to say something about things I am not aware of, that's not my obligation."

Hichilema challenged Chiluba to approach Grant Thornton over his claims.
"If he believes there is something that was not handled properly and as he claims that he has got a dossier on other people, I am sure he may have a dossier on me. But he failed to bring out that dossier if it is there," Hichilema said.

"The issue that he paid US $12m to Grant Thornton, frankly speaking what was he paying Grant Thornton for? The question is what was he paying Grant Thornton that amount of money for? What was it meant for? Grant Thornton is there, he can go there and ask Grant Thornton, he didn't pay Hakainde US $12m.”

Hichilema urged Zambians to fight corruption and not accept to be hoodwinked on matters, which are clear.

"I really think my neighbour must uphold good neighbourliness. I think my neighbour also knows that he took me to court. He knows that the case was withdrawn.

I hope he is not trying to get into those matters again," said Hichilema who resides next to Chiluba's Kabulonga residence. "But for me, I think I have maintained the good neighbourliness with him.

I don't disturb him. Actually, he makes a lot of noise over the wall. A lot of people come singing in awkward hours but I don't complain. I think am a good neighbour. I don't make noise for him, he makes a lot of noise for me."