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Hichilema has no integrity, maturity to lead - MUZ

Hichilema has no integrity, maturity to lead - MUZ
By Staff Reporters
Wed 13 June 2012, 13:24 CAT

HAKAINDE Hichilema does not possess the integrity and maturity required to lead a country, says Mineworkers Union of Zambia president Charles Mukuka. And Kennedy Sakeni says Hakainde Hichilema's remarks against President Michael Sata are uncalled for and are tantamount to defamation of the President.

Commenting on Hich-ilema's likening of President Sata to a hyena without a plan (chimbwi no plan), Mukuka said the union would not tolerate disrespectful language towards the President at a time when all leaders worthy their salt needed to put their heads together to resolve problems in various sectors.

He said opposing the government out of bitterness will further hurt opposition political parties in Zambia.

"I think HH's bitterness is getting out of hands. In the first place no one told him to get into an alliance with the PF. In the same regard, no one told him to leave the pact, it's just his own selfishness. So if President Sata won elections without his support, what is his problem?" he asked.

Mukuka said President Sata, like any other person, was prone to err but he deserved to be respected.

"What makes him think that he is the most intelligent of all Zambians? And if he is as intelligent as he claims to be, where was he when the mining sector was thrown into disarray? In fact, he was part of the privatisation process of the mines (RAMCOZ) where was his intelligence? Why didn't his intelligence prevail on RAMCOZ? Why has his intelligence failed to win elections on his own? I think people of Zambia are watching these people and what they stand for and this is a warning that whoever will go into an alliance with them, will be crushed by people's choices. Because at a time when the President and his new team are trying to stabilise things, he wants to disturb him with personal insults. We won't tolerate that as mine workers because we know a lot of reforms are under way in the mining sector by the new government," he said.

Mukuka charged that if indeed Hichilema was as intelligent as he claimed, he could not have been making the political choices he had made since he assumed the presidency of UPND.

"He will not win elections by being bitter. An intelligent person reads the direction in which the wind is blowing. Right now no one is interested in his style of politics. We are interested to see how things will change in the new government, it's just nine months. We are not going to allow the UPND hooliganism to reign supreme in this nation," he said.

Mukuka said even the attacks on Lusaka Province police commissioner Charity Katanga were unwarranted and amounted to 'extreme' hooliganism.

"We urge the madam to be strong and not to be intimidated just because she's a woman by men playing politics in the name of good governance. If students who wanted to demonstrate in support of the decision to clean up the Judiciary listened to the advice not to stage that protest, who is HH and UPND? We will not allow him to hold this country at ransom because he has failed politically," said Mukuka.

He said the issue of the Post Newspaper and DBZ was not Hichilema's to handle and should be left to relevant authorities.

Mukuka said there is no way Hichilema could assume the role of defender of the wrongdoing in the Judiciary simply because the reform agenda was being carried out by a person he thought would never rule Zambia.

And PF Copperbelt Province chairperson Rebby Chanda said Hichilema was a small boy who was not well nurtured by his parents.

Chanda has since directed youths on the Copperbelt to stage a peaceful demonstration against Hichilema's statement.

And provincial youth chairman Menyani Zulu said PF youths will sort out Hichilema.

"We have tolerated HH for too long and this time, we will teach him to respect elders. We will sort him out and we will make sure he apologises to the President. We have asked people from Lusaka to get a police permit and demonstrate against HH. If they fail, PF Copperbelt youths will travel to Lusaka in numbers to deal with HH," he said Zulu said the party had organised 10 big buses to ferry youths to Lusaka.

"HH is an infant and we will deal with him because he has stepped on the tail of a tiger. He should know that we don't joke when people attack our President," said Zulu.

And PF provincial officials yesterday lodged a complaint with police about Hichilema with police.

Reacting to a statement issued by Hichilema at a briefing on Monday, in which he likened the President a hyena without a plan, Sakeni who is home affairs minister, said Hichilema had embarked on a scheme to dare the government by insulting the head of state, so that he can accuse the PF government of political harassment if found wanting.

"Whether he is using this as a gimmick, I think the guy is losing it because Zambians are reading between the lines. A leader who can use such derogatory remarks does not deserve to be called a leader. I think Zambians are not ready for leaders who are like that," Sakeni said.

"HH should not take law enforcement agency's patience for granted. He should not push his luck too far by daring the officers…to the point of bursting into offices uninvited."

Sakeni said Hichilema's decision to storm the office of Lusaka Province commanding officer Charity Katanga and the Inspector General of Police, Stella Libongani was unacceptable, saying Hichilema should have respect for government institutions and its officers.

"He should realise that the law of defamation is there. Let him test the waters if he wants to do. The police are there to analyse what we all say. There are pieces of law which deal with those matters. It's not a question of telling police officers what to do," he said.

Sakeni advised Hichilema to find other ways of getting attention from Zambians rather than through insulting the President.

And the Lusaka PF provincial executive led by Ben Nkandu, a provincial mobilisation member yesterday lodged a formal complaint with the police over the statements issued by Hichilema.

The officials who arrived at Lusaka Central police station at 15:00 hours were attended to by the 2nd district criminal investigative officer Andrew Mbewe.

Labels: HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, MUZ, UPND

posted by MrK @ 2:27 PM