Maravi

Rupiah is too ruthless for another term - Sata

Rupiah is too ruthless for another term - Sata
By George Chellah in Mpulungu
Sat 23 Oct. 2010, 04:20 CAT

PF leader Michael Sata yesterday said President Rupiah Banda must be defeated decisively in 2011 because he is too ruthless to be accorded another term of office. And police in Mpulungu on Thursday detained former Kitwe deputy mayor Chileshe Bweupe for allegedly obstructing the police.

In an interview, Sata said it was clear that President Banda had sanctioned police brutality against PF members in Mpulungu.

“Rupiah is trying to fight for this by-election with intimidation and brutality but he won’t succeed because our members are resolute. As you can see, Mbala and Mpulungu have been turned into police camps.

They have ferried a huge contingent of police here,” Sata said. “The police, under the supervision of MMD cadres, are everywhere and they are unnecessarily provoking the situation but we have told our members to remain peaceful.”

He complained at the manner the police mistreated Bweupe on Thursday.
“My former mayor in Kitwe Bweupe is being harassed for nothing.

He was found with our members campaigning but they instructed him to stop the campaign and go back just because Rupiah has arrived. When our members wanted to proceed with their programme, that’s when they first hit our campaign vehicle with a truck before picking up Bweupe and taking him to an unknown location,” Sata said.

“We have been looking for Bweupe the whole afternoon but now in the evening this is when we have managed to locate him. And the police are now saying that they have detained him for obstructing the police, whatever that is, because it doesn’t make sense. Since when did the police begin running Rupiah’s campaign programme? The only crime Bweupe committed was to campaign for his party.”
He said it was very unfortunate that President Banda took pride in seeing an abusive and brutal police service.

“For no apparent reason, the police have become extremely brutal with our supporters, and Rupiah has sanctioned it. Anyway, what do you expect if there is poverty?” Sata asked. “The police have to be in Rupiah’s pocket for them to show that they are working. That’s why Rupiah must be defeated decisively in 2011 because he is too ruthless to be accorded another term of office. Rupiah is just too cruel; I know him.”

He said President Banda was terrified with what he found in Mpulungu.
“Rigging or no rigging, Rupiah and the MMD are going down in Mpulungu; that’s why he is panicking,” he said.

And addressing a rally at Kopeka village, which is situated right at the boundary of Mpulungu and Mporokoso, Sata said Independence Day celebrations were now meaningless because of the widespread poverty countrywide.

“What is there to celebrate this Sunday? There is nothing to celebrate because our people are suffering,” Sata said. “The roads here are so bad as if it’s not people who live here and then you say you have a government, which does not even care about you. Rupiah is scared of me because I speak the truth; that’s why they hate me.”

Addressing another rally later in the afternoon in chief Chinakila’s area immediately after President Banda had finished his in the same area, Sata told the people that President Banda was not prepared to address their problems.

“Rupiah was here but before he came, didn’t he know that chief Chinakila lives in a thatched hut? Rupiah must be ashamed with what he found when he came because you can’t keep a chief in such a place as President,” he said.

He advised President Banda to desist from uttering nonsense about the dead.
“How can Rupiah come here and start saying that Lameck Chibombamilimo didn’t work? You don’t speak ill of the dead; that’s the tradition. Rupiah must respect us. When he flies to Chipata to mourn his relatives, we don’t hear him insulting the dead,” he said.

He also urged people not to be swayed by President Banda’s lies.
“When he came, he was promising you that he will build a mortuary. He is mocking you, why build a mortuary and not a hospital first to save lives? He wants you to be dying; no wonder he wants to start with a mortuary,” Sata said.

“By the way, how can he cheat you that he will build a mortuary here? Do you even have electricity? Tell me, how will Rupiah bring a mortuary here like he was telling you when there is no electricity? Have you ever seen a solar mortuary? Why must he cheat?”

And PF Copperbelt Province youth chairman David Kapumpe died on Thursday in a road traffic accident on his way to Mpulungu.
PF deputy sectary general Emmanuel Musonda said the accident occurred around 15:00 hours between Serenje and Chilonga.

“Kapumpe was with other party officials namely Mrs Chisanga, Mrs Mwansa and a younger sister of one of the two ladies. They were heading for Mpulungu. Unfortunately, he died on the spot but the other three are hospitalised at Chilonga hospital,” said Musonda.

Labels: MICHAEL SATA, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 6:51 AM