PF is taking over Eastern Province - sata

PF is taking over Eastern Province - sata
By George Chellah in Chipata
Mon 18 July 2011, 08:00 CAT

MICHAEL Sata yesterday vowed that Patriotic Front (PF) will take over Eastern Province during the forthcoming general elections. And Lusaka lawyer Sebastian Zulu yesterday joined PF in the presence of Dr George Chabwera at a mammoth rally in Chipata addressed by PF leader Michael Sata to officially welcome Lameck Mangani into PF.

Addressing the rally at Mpezeni Park yesterday, Sata urged Chipata Central member of parliament Lameck Mangani to work with the people. “Power is the people, if you speak for these people they will defend you,” Sata said.

“Chipata is the entry to the province. With all of you, we have to move and take over Eastern Province during the coming elections. Let’s show the people change.”

Sata said President Rupiah Banda’s government is going in two month’s time.
“Each one of you wants change. We will have to create change in each household. I have toured Chipata, where the development Rupiah Banda is talking about?” Sata asked.

He said Dr Kenneth Kaunda left a lot of infrastructure countrywide.

“Those houses where Rupiah is putting his portrait smiling, that is Levy Mwanawasa’s project,” Sata said.

He said he had a history of hard work from the days when he served as member of parliament.

“Mangani here is a strong man. Whenever he tried to advise Rupiah he was told to shut up. But he has come to PF,” he said.

Sata said the people of Eastern Province were being betrayed by their own children. He said there was no mining in Eastern Province so there was every need for any caring government to support the agriculture sector.

“God gave you good rains and Levy Mwanawasa a Lamba left you with five bags of fertilizer.

Your own relative Rupiah Banda gives you two bags and you rejoice,” Sata said. “You people from Eastern Province are good. You gave us mobile phones, mobile hospitals and you also gave us a mobile President.”

Sata said there was unemployment in Eastern Province because most factories like Luangwa Bicycle Industries were closed. He urged people not to listen to the propaganda by the MMD against him.

“They are saying that when Sata comes, he will stop giving you ARVs. But who brought ARVs to Zambia? It was me when I was health minister,” Sata said.

On homosexuality, Sata said if God wanted men to be marrying each other he could have given Adam a man instead of Eve, a woman.

“Why has Rupiah Banda’s government not taken Mangani or Kazonga to be distributing fliers on homosexuality?

They picked Dora Siliya to be distributing the fliers because they know her that that’s her politics,” Sata said.

“That is why I want to take Dora to alangizi in Mpika because here they have failed. A woman who is well taught cannot be distributing such shameful images of homosexuality.”

Sata said President Banda recently cheated the people of Eastern Province that he would bring a company to buy tobacco but nothing has happened. He also said there was a lot of maize lying in the streets without being purchased.

At this stage, Sata informed the crowd that he had spoken to a PF senior official Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba popularly known as GBM to ensure that his milling company helps the people of Luangeni Constituency by purchasing their maize which is lying idle.

Sata also accused President Banda of cheating the people of Eastern Province on the Chipata-Mchinji railway line.

“They go and bring a small train and they start celebrating. That train you saw was the first and last,” he said.

He further complained about the bad state of the road that leads to Paramount chief Mpezeni’s palace.

“When I went to his palace this morning, I mocked Paramount chief Mpezeni that he is just a paramount chief in Lusaka and not here,” Sata said, adding that Mpezeni’s area was neglected by President Banda’s administration.

Speaking earlier on Feel Free Radio, Sata said going to State House was not his main pre-occupation but what he was more interested in was to leave a better Zambia. He said President Banda and himself were age mates but he had achieved a greater deal in life than President Banda will ever achieve.

Sata said it was a disaster when President Banda served at Namboard, as Lusaka district governor and in Zambia’s embassies abroad.

On the government selling houses, Sata wondered when the police, intelligence, Zambia Army, Zambia National Service and prisons officers will benefit from the home ownership scheme.

And Mangani thanked Sata and all the leaders that traveled with him from Lusaka to show him solidarity in Chipata. He said the going of Sata to Chipata announced the entry of PF in Eastern Province. Mangani said it was his prayer that Sata becomes stronger politically to enable him rule Zambia.

He said the issues of development were not going on well in Eastern Province under President Banda’s administration.

“Mr Rupiah Banda comes from here. But if a vehicle has a knock engine, then it is not ok,” he said. “MMD has been in power for twenty years so its engine is tired, and is knocked.”

Mangani said it was people like himself Mike Mulongoti and late Benny Tetamashimba who assisted President Banda to replace the late Mwanawasa.

“But see what has happened. Mulongoti is out, Teta is dead but I know that if he was alive today he would have been out as well,” Mangani said. “I am out and Mpombo is out, even Sylvia Masebo is out so the MMD has finished.

Mulongoti told me that Mangani come here, let’s call Teta and assist Mr Rupiah Banda. Now I am bad. Mulongoti is bad, Masebo is bad, Mpombo is bad. So who is indeed a bad person here,” Mangani asked as the crowd shouted: “It’s Rupiah.”
Mangani said: “The only person who is good is Dora Siliya.”

Mangani, who took time to introduce Patrick Mwanawasa to the cheering crowd, said if a son of a former president could leave MMD “then the party has finished indeed”.

He said a good leader did not harbour grudges. Mangani praised Sata for his good leadership qualities.

“We want to ask you to vote for Sata. Let’s not remain behind as easterners,” said Mangani.

And Chongwe member of parliament Masebo said Chipata has changed because people turned up for the rally in huge numbers. She said she was surprised at President Banda’s recent statement that there was no corruption in Zambia.

“A lot of youths today in Zambia do not have jobs,” she said. “If you vote for Sata, Sata is a man of action and all the youths will find jobs.”

Masebo said MMD died together with Mwanawasa.

“When Mwanawasa died, MMD was in the fridge. They thought it could wake up. But when Chiluba who was the father of the MMD was buried, that is when MMD was also buried,” Masebo said.

She said President Banda was a very undemocratic man surrounded by puppets. She said most people around President Banda were there just to keep their jobs. Masebo said the public media, ZNBC in particular, were now for President Banda and his family.

“In future, we will start coming for people to stop paying TV levy because we are not watching anything that is making sense,” she said.

And Mulongoti said three years ago he asked the people of Eastern Province to support their own child in Rupiah Banda who has now turned out to be fighting Mangani.

He said together with his colleagues from MMD, they would double the efficiency they used to install Rupiah Banda to ensure that Sata becomes president of Zambia this year. Mulongoti urged Easterners to vote for Sata who is their traditional cousin.

And addressing the same rally, Judith Kapijimpanga said: “2011, don’t make a mistake. Osa bwezapo a Bwezani ndaba a Bwezani ndalama zatu a bweza mumatumba.”
Patrick Mwanawasa urged Zambians to give the reconciliation between his late father and Sata the credit it deserves.

George Mpombo announced at the rally that he was joining the PF with immediate effect. He accused President and his children of looting. He urged the people to support Sata during the coming elections.

Lusaka lawyer Sebastian Zulu joined PF saying there was no good governance in the MMD. He said he was convinced that the PF government would make better laws that would enable them send plunderers to jail.

“Sata is a man of action. I believe that his administration will perform,” Zulu said.

He also advised chiefs not to engage in partisan politics.
Dr Mbita Chitala said they would ensure a victory for PF in the coming elections.

Fackson Shamenda urged the people to go back home to mourn the death of MMD in Eastern Province.

Lukulu East member of parliament Eileen Imbwae said she was in Chipata to give solidarity to Mangani because he was a nationalist. She urged all voters to vote for change in Sata.

Those who attended the rally included, Wynter Kabimba, Professor Nkandu Luo, GBM, Willie Nsanda and Given Lubinda, among several others officials.