Maravi

'Lubinda has started Kabwata campaigns'

'Lubinda has started Kabwata campaigns'
By Kombe Chimpinde
Thu 10 Jan. 2013, 14:10 CAT

And Lusaka district PF officials say they will mount pressure on the party's central committee to ensure that Lubinda is expelled. But former PF national secretary Eric Chanda said the party must forgive Lubinda.

Banda revealed yesterday that Lubinda had constituted a campaign team comprising cadres from United Liberal Party (ULP), UPND and PF to campaign for him.

He dared Lubinda, who is also foreign affairs minister, to relinquish his Kabwata seat, since he claims that he can defend it.

We are moving in (Kabwata) and meet him squarely. I have personally received reports of him campaigning and I have verified the reports to be true but I waited for the disciplinary committee to finish its findings, said Banda who was flanked by all the seven constituency chairmen from Lusaka.

''When I was getting these reports and I verified from people who are even in that campaign team, they confirmed to me saying 'yes ba chairman'," he said.

Banda warned the PF members aligning themselves to Lubinda of disciplinary action.

We are not sitting idle. He has been going round in the markets and people have seen him with their naked eyes. Some are UPND, ULP and so on but what I am saying is it is better he does so in the open, Banda said.

"One man said 'a best actor leaves the stage when people are still clapping' so for him to save his skin and little respect that other people have for him, it is better he resigns.''

Banda said PF members were not comfortable with Lubinda going outside the country to represent a party and government to which he was not loyal to.

He said even other senior government officials seen to be frustrating government efforts would be recommended for dismissal.
And Chanda said the central committee could not fail to control and discipline Lubinda without necessarily expelling him from the party.

We need to call for reconciliation. Let us sit on a round table. Let us make Lubinda what we want him to be. He has not committed a crime that warrants expulsion. The disciplinary committee that has recommended for his resignation is just an arm of the central committee. The central committee has powers to override the decision of the committee, said Chanda in a walk-in interview.

Chanda said that the party must not resort to expulsions whenever an individual is found wanting.

Lubinda was found guilty of treachery and had been recommended for expulsion.

This was after Lubinda was accused of attacking fellow ministers by using opposition members of parliament.

Labels: BY-ELECTIONS, GIVEN LUBINDA, GOODSON BANDA, PF

posted by MrK @ 6:37 PM