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MMD campaign funds, materials were shrouded in secrecy - Njapau

MMD campaign funds, materials were shrouded in secrecy - Njapau
By Allan Mulenga
Fri 27 Jan. 2012, 13:59 CAT

SOURCES of the MMD campaign funds and materials were shrouded in secrecy, says Grace Njapau. In an interview, Njapau, who was until last week the MMD national trustee, said the party sidelined some national executive committee (NEC) members prior to the elections.

"If it (election) was about resources, the MMD would have won. But people wanted change... I don't think there is any NEC member who knew about the donations, what we only saw by that time was the campaign materials.

We thought the party was buying the materials, we didn't know if it was being donated. But what we knew was that the party had campaign materials at that time which you all saw because they displayed on

TV," Njapau said.

She said despite being the national trustee of the party, she was not privy to certain decisions made by the top leadership.

"From the time I was there as national trustee, there were people who used to call me, ‘tell us what is happening in the MMD', I said ‘me I don't know' and I normally referred them to the secretariat so that they can get information. I was not part and parcel of what decisions the national secretary and others were making," said Njapau, who has since resigned from the MMD to pursue other interests.

She doubted the MMD's chances of bouncing back in power, saying that there was need to re-brand the party.

"Even when I am talking about these things it's just that I have been in the party for the past 20 years and I have risen through ranks from branch up to the top and I landed a position of deputy minister of home affairs. I think the future of MMD lies on themselves. They have to re-brand the party if they want to survive. They have also to accommodate those who started the party because some people are leaving the party because they are not happy with certain things in the party," Njapau said.

She urged the leadership in MMD to accommodate members at the grassroots.

"Looking at African politics, it will be very difficult for the MMD to come back, unless they work hard because the trend is that we started with UNIP, UNIP ruled for 27 years, then MMD ruled for 20 years. Now, there is PF government. I know PF also will be there for 20 years. For them MMD to come back in 2016, they have to work hard," Njapau said.

She said President Michael Sata's crusade on corruption should be supported by all Zambians because it was the right thing to do.

"There must be accountability of government assets, government property, national resources. Corruption is not a good thing. He President Sata is following what his brother former president Levy Mwanawasa did. If they are found wanting, they must be taken to the courts of law, but the investigations have to go on. This fight against corruption, everybody must support it. It should not be left to the President alone," said Njapau.

Labels: 2011 ELECTIONS, MMD, NEC

posted by MrK @ 6:42 PM