Maravi

MMD leaders congratulate Nyangu for telling UPND off

MMD leaders congratulate Nyangu for telling UPND off
By Allan Mulenga
Fri 28 Sep. 2012, 12:10 CAT

THE UPND leadership is displeased with MMD deputy national secretary Chembe Nyangu's statement that the opposition party has nothing to offer Zambians, sources have disclosed.

But Nyangu has maintained his earlier position and refused to succumb to pressure from the UPND that he retracts his statement.

Nyangu, in his reaction to UPND deputy spokesperson Cornelius Mweetwa's assertions that the former ruling party could not claim popularity in Mufumbwe because it was no longer in power, said it was "nonsense" for the UPND to think in those lines simply because the MMD lost power in last year's elections.

MMD sources told The Post yesterday that the UPND called for an emergency meeting to discuss Nyangu's statement which was, however, highly supported by several NEC members of the former ruling party.

The MMD says UPND members' selfish interests make it hard for them to work with other political parties.

There is a rift between UPND and MMD over the latter's decision to field a candidate in Mufumbwe by-election.

Sources have disclosed that senior UPND members called for an emergency meeting in which they discussed among other things the views expressed by Nyangu that the party had nothing to offer to the Zambian people.

"The UPND now they are questioning what MMD deputy national secretary has said. This is going to create problems, but they said the UPND senior officials have vowed not to give up on Mufumbwe.

They complained bitterly about the story which appeared in The Post on Wednesday," the source said.

Sources further disclosed that there was jubilation in the MMD camp following the views expressed by Nyangu that UPND had been antagonistic and unrealistic over the by-election.

"The NEC officials congratulated Nyangu for telling the UPND off. Because last week when we held a NEC meeting at the secretariat, people complained that UPND shouldn't take us for a ride. They will not go there, it is our seat, you tell them. So they were told to leave it. So the way it has come out, it has just showed that they UPND cannot work with any party. Even under UDA it was the same; with Patriotic Front it was the same, ULP it was the same, now it is MMD," the source said.

Sources further complained that since the two opposition parties entered into a loose alliance, the UPND had always wanted to be treated like a bigger party as compared to the MMD.

"They UPND can't work with any opposition party in the country; they will never progress because they have selfish interests. They are just being unrealistic; they should exhibit leadership. We have more members of parliament; we had 55 MPs against 28. But you see we were very much ahead of them. Now they are taking advantage of us, they are saying MMD always give us, not knowing that we are big boys, a mother of all political parties. They are worried about their future," said the source.
The UPND on Tuesday told MMD not to claim popularity in Mufumbwe because they were no longer in power.

And Nyangu hit back, saying UPND had nothing to offer the Zambian people and dismissed their claims as "nonsense".

The two opposition parties, who claim to be in a loose alliance under which they agreed to collectively field a candidate for by-elections, have separately engaged in discussions to each contest the upcoming Mufumbwe parliamentary by-election.

And Nyangu yesterday said he still stood by his earlier statement that the UPND had nothing to offer Zambians.

"I am not going to retract my statement," said Nyangu when asked to comment on the matter.

Labels: BY-ELECTIONS, CHEMBE NYANGU, MMD, PF

posted by MrK @ 5:38 PM