MMD leaders shedding crocodile tears over Chibombamilimo - Magande

MMD leaders shedding crocodile tears over Chibombamilimo - Magande
By Patson Chilemba
Sun 15 Aug. 2010, 04:01 CAT

Chilanga MMD member of parliament Ng’andu Magande (in red tie) at the funeral of Mpulungu MP Lameck Chibombamilimo at UNZA SDA church in Lusaka on Friday. To his left is communications minister Geoffrey Lungwangwa - Picture by Joseph Mwenda
NG’ANDU Magande yesterday said MMD leaders like Michael Mabenga are shedding crocodile tears over the death of Mpulungu member of parliament Lameck Chibombamilimo.

Reacting to MMD national chairman Mabenga that Chibombamilimo’s death had robbed the party of a valuable member, Magande, who is Chilanga MMD member of parliament, said the MMD leaders rejected Chibombamilimo when he was still alive, and therefore could not claim his membership now that he was dead.

“What are they going to do with Chibombamilimo’s body? They should have said ‘you are our member’ even two, three months ago, or even six months ago and reconcile with him. But if you don’t reconcile, you wait until somebody is dead, what is that?” Magande asked.

“That is just crocodile tears. That is what they say in English. Nobody, none of us who are around will say what Mabenga said is correct.”

He said the leaders were saying things they did not believe in. Magande said President Banda was partly to blame over the political and emotional misfortunes that Chibombamilimo encountered before he died.

“It is very clear when you have a head of state mentioning your name and even saying ‘I will follow you wherever you go’. He is head of state for every inch of Zambia, and he is saying ‘wherever you will be standing, wherever you will be walking, I will be there’,” Magande said.

He said the statement the President issued when he fired Chibombamilimo should never be issued by a head of state.

He said President Banda did not even attempt to reconcile with Chibombamilimo after firing him from the government, and later instigating his expulsion from the party.

“I saw younger Lameck going down. He might have been depressed that he has been threatened by a head of state…for anybody to start threatening younger people and then you start losing them through death, who is going to take over to run the country?” Magande asked.

Magande said it was very sad to lose a young politician like Chibombamilimo.

“But then what can one do when you have so many problems? You succumb to so many illnesses and finally you can’t just obviously manage your life when you are under press, Chibombamilimo used to sit right behind me. I could see that as all these political things were being raised, he was losing interest. He seemed to have been low in spirits,” said Magande.

“So other people might not say they were not the ones who caused his death. These days some people are affected by depression depending on how you handle issues concerning them.”

Addressing MMD cadres who marched to State House last year, President Banda dismissed Chibombamilimo and Shakafuswa as deputy ministers of energy and science and technology respectively.

President vowed that he would not end at firing Chibimbamilimo and Shakafuswa from the government but would take them to the MMD national executive committee (NEC) and sack them from the party as well.