Maravi

Need for change is everywhere, says Panji

Need for change is everywhere, says Panji
By Christopher Miti in Petauke
Thu 14 July 2011, 14:01 CAT

COLONEL Panji Kaunda says the need for change is everywhere in the country.
In an interview, Col Panji said Zambians had a huge disaster on their hands.

“Looking at what is on the ground in Petauke, it shows that the MMD has completely failed to run this country. We challenge any leader in this province Eastern to take the media both local and international to go round the constituencies and show us the so-called unprecedented development they are talking about,” said Col Panji on Tuesday.

He said the need for change was inevitable and it would certainly come this year. On Vice-President George Kunda’s attacks on him during his tour of Eastern Province last weekend, Panji said the remarks were unwarranted.

Vice-President Kunda is said to have asked the people of Eastern Province not to listen to Col Panji because he was a failure who had failed to attain a high level of education but instead opted to join the military and eventually became a farmer. Col Panji said Vice-President Kunda had no right to comment on his education.

“I don’t know Mr Kunda personally. I have never met him, maybe he saw me in a picture. He has no right to comment on my lack of education. I went to the best school in this country then Canisius College in Chikuni, Southern Province run by very good Jesuit priests. I went to the best army college in Sandhurst where people like General Chinkuli, General Mibenge and many others went,” he said.

“He is belittling the work of soldiers. What he is saying means that to be a soldier is to be inferior. Therefore, it shows you that this government has no regard for the army. He is laughing at me because I am a farmer, but this province is an agricultural area. This means that this government has no regard for agriculture.”

On President Banda’s remarks that there was no corruption in the country, Col Panji said it was difficult for some leaders to see corruption because it was part of their lives.

“This is a danger that we have when the government stops seeing corruption as corruption. To them it is normal because corruption is purely part of their life. They can’t say they are corrupt. It’s up to us to tell them that they are corrupt. The best way to tell them that they are corrupt is by voting them out of power. For us Zambians who think there is corruption we should come together across party lines and vote for change through PF,” Col Panji said.

Col Panji, under the auspices of the People’s Pact Forum, is currently touring Eastern Province.

Former Chipata mayor Patrick Chirwa, who is in Col Panji’s entourage, said the roads in Kapoche constituency were very bad.

“Instead of unprecedented development we saw unprecedented problems in Kapoche. There are no roads in Kapoche; two big villages Kaphaine and Chandema share one borehole. There are no dams for livestock and I even took some pictures of some of the damaged bridges and the roads.

“I challenge area member of parliament Fashion Phiri to deny these facts,” said Chirwa.

Labels: GEORGE KUNDA, MMD, NEOLIBERALISM, PANJI KAUNDA, PF

posted by MrK @ 2:50 PM