MMD to boycott Youth Day celebrations
By Bright Mukwasa
Sun 11 Mar. 2012, 11:58 CAT
MMD youth will boycott tomorrow's Youth Day celebrations because of the PF's harassment of its members, according to a Lusaka youth leader. MMD Lusaka district youth chairperson Watson Mtonga yesterday said that party leaders including its youths had suffered at the hands of violent PF cadres and no government official had condemned the acts.
He told the press that since the MMD lost last September's elections, their properties had been looted, members beaten but the government had done nothing to restrain its cadres.
"Our youth are being harassed every day and some of them are in hiding because even police are knocking on their doors every day. We can't attend the Youth Day because we have seen that we are not protected by the police," Mtonga said.
"We cannot celebrate when our leaders are being persecuted. Every day you read the papers you're being told this one and that one has been arrested and giving them fake charges."
He said allegations of corruption against former leaders were an act of intimidation.
Mtonga said the defeat of the party did not mean that it must be obliterated.
He appealed to the Inspector General of Police Stella Libongani to be fair in the manner the police handled MMD and the violence it suffered from the ruling party.
Mtonga also said his party would support the youth of Mazabuka who intend to protest over the realignment of districts.
He said his party would send busloads of youth to Southern Province to go and give solidarity to the UPND youth who were expected to protest.
Mtonga also said his party would fight "nail and tooth" over the removal of Rupiah Banda's immunity.
He challenged President Michael Sata to deliver the jobs and 'more money' that he promised the youth prior to the elections.
Mtonga also said his party supported the demands civil servants were making and President Sata must deliver as he had promised to increase their salaries and conditions of service once voted for.
He said the President's threats against public workers were unjustified.
He said President Sata's failure to deliver on the many promises he made to the youth would be tantamount to duping his way to State House.
Labels: AFRICAN YOUTH DAY, MMD, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, YOUTHS
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COMMENT - George Kunda should be preparing his defense, instead of spouting off in the media. The MMD left a giant mess for the PF to fix, so they are no one to start giving advice to anyone. I hate the idea of randomly dismissing something a specific person says, because I always take in information from many diverse sources. However, I am sick and tired of the self serving lies coming from the crooks and dirtbags of the MMD. George Kunda tried to put Chansa Kabwela in prison for outing hospital conditions and sending photographs, which he then tried to have prosecuted as 'pornography'. He is also photographed handing out brown envelopes to villagers during the election time. Holding multiple positions at the same time in the government, he was as corrupt as they came.
Kunda accuses government of bringing socialism
By Allan Mulenga
Fri 03 Feb. 2012, 14:01 CAT
GEORGE Kunda has accused the government of bringing socialism ideologies into the country's governance system. And Kunda, who is the former Republican vice-president, has maintained that Vice-President Dr Guy Scott's continued stay in the office is illegal. Speaking to journalists yesterday, Kunda said the government had no policy direction in its governance system.
"We have seen that the PF government is now pursuing its own cause, there is no continuity now. What we have now is like we are now following socialist policies of nationalisation. The PF government in its manifesto, it's clear that they espouse socialism, scientific socialism, or communism. This is what they are trying to bring to Zambia," he said.
Kunda said the outcome of the commission of inquiry into the sale of Zanaco, currently sitting, was predetermined.
"These outcomes are predetermined, they just move in as a smoke screen. The President has already made a decision to nationalise Zanaco, so these commissions, if they have already decided they are just a waste of taxpayers' money. We can as well just nationalise these banks. We know that it is about nationalisation, they are just moving from Zamtel to Zanaco and they will move to the mines also. Nationalisation of the mines and major industries because this is the socialist government," he said.
Kunda said contrary to the submission to the inquiry by David Chewe, a financial advisor to the technical committee of the commission of inquiry into the sale of Zanaco, that there were no documents to show that Rabo Bank paid US$8.25 million to acquire the undervalued 49 per shares in the bank, records were for everyone to see.
"Well, this thing happened a long time ago. So, from 2007 we are out of government, we need to look at the records to see whether what they are saying is the correct thing. But if people have got a political agenda, they can make such statements. These things were even explained in Parliament, we used to debate it in Parliament. How can you say there is no record?" he said.
Kunda said the PF government policies were unpredictable.
"With us our policies were predictable, the PF policies are not predictable. Each time the President wakes up, he makes pronouncements of one sort or another and this cannot instil confidence for long-term planning because most of their measures are ad hoc," he said.
"Districts are promulgated every week, there are new districts. We don't even know the boundaries of those districts. So, the whole situation is chaotic to say the least."
And Kunda said Dr Guy Scott was just masquerading as the Vice-President.
"Guy Scott should vacate office instead of wasting our time. He does not qualify to hold the position of vice-president. What I am telling you is the legal position. When he (President Sata) went to the AU African Union he (Dr Scott) was never appointed to act as president, but there he is masquerading as Vice-President of this country. The earlier he leaves instead of wasting our time, let him vacate office, so that people who qualify can take over this particular position and on this one I have got the support of even some PF members," he said.
Asked whether he has rescinded his earlier decision to seek judicial review over the matter, Kunda responded: "Our options remain open and at some stage we shall hammer him with a court process. I am not playing games. I don't want to play games; just tell him that this is the very serious matter. We don't want to have a constitutional crisis in this country."
Labels: CORRUPTION, GEORGE KUNDA, GUY SCOTT, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, VICE PRESIDENCY
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Muteteka warns MMD youths over ‘violent’ resolutions
By Kombe Chimpinde
Thu 28 July 2011, 13:59 CAT
SOME of the campaign resolutions suggested by Lusaka youths border on national security, says Moses Muteteka who is the MMD national youth chairman. And former Patriotic Front national youth secretary Eric Chanda says President Rupiah Banda should tame the MMD youths who have resolved to respond with violence once provoked.
Muteteka, in an interview, said the resolutions made by Lusaka youths led by Lusaka Province youth chairman Chris Chalwe were not approved and are not final.
“I am summoning Chris Chalwe because the society does not agree with some of the resolutions as they border on national security. We have been advocating for no-violence campaigns and issue-based campaigns so we realise that we must not embrace any form of provocation,” Muteteka said.
He said as chairman of the MMD’s youth wing, he would not tolerate any behaviour that is likely to incite violence.
¨Any suggestions that have been made by the youths, I appeal to the public not to take them serious. I am getting to the youth and they have to explain how such resolutions were made,” he said.
Muteteke also acknowledged responsibility of the two MMD cadres that were arrested for assaulting Muvi TV journalists, warning cadres of stern action if found wanting.
The MMD youths in Lusaka this week came up with 14 resolutions, calling them the “rules of engagement in this year’s campaigns”, where they resolved, among other things, that they be allowed to reciprocate violence if provoked by the opposition.
Chalwe threatened that any media organisation that oversteps its role in the electoral process would be met with unspecified action from his party’s youth brigade.
And Chanda said from the 14 resolutions of the MMD youths, it was clear that the youths were not interested in having a peaceful and fair election, but only in causing anarchy in the country.
“I want to challenge President Rupiah Banda to tame these youths like Chris Chalwe who want to bring anarchy in the country because this country is not meant for violence. It is not meant for civil strife, we want peace and tranquility to prevail in the country. If president Rupiah Banda cannot do this, I think he has to handle the outcome of the violent acts of these youths,” Chanda said.
He said the violent conduct of the youths was a true reflection of the MMD as a party.
“I think this violence is the true picture of the MMD and their election campaign strategy. It gives the people of Zambia an indication of what these people are planning to do. For instance, in their 14 points, they have threatened the media organisations and we know it is not the public media because they are in good books with them. We know they are threatening the private media,” Chanda said.
He said Patriotic Front youths had condemned in the strongest terms the violent behaviour of the MMD youths.
“Now we want to tell them that if they are peace-loving Zambians, they should do away with these threats over the media. Let them do away with these threats of violence because it is not the opposition political parties that are threatening violence, but it’s the ruling party. We want these coming elections to be peaceful for the sake of the peace-loving Zambians who want to see this country move forward,” said Chanda.
Labels: CHRIS CHALWE, MMD, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, MOSES MUTETEKA, POLITICAL VIOLENCE
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Resolutions of MMD youths in Lusaka
By The Post
Wed 27 July 2011, 14:00 CAT
What we need to inculcate in our people, especially our young people in politics, is a culture of tolerance and humility which places the humanity of others before self and accepts that all citizens have a right to participate in the shaping of their destiny directly without fear of reprisal.
Tolerance and respect for our fellow citizens makes us allow our critics, our political opponents to express their opinion about our views, our actions without inhibition, whether these seem to be unpalatable or not.
At the same time, we should expect the same treatment or privilege when our turn comes. This is not something we achieve instinctively. Rather, we develop it consciously and respectfully; our very instincts would drive us to throttling our opponents in argument, or, better still, smack them with a deadly blow. This is familiar to all those who have seen the manner in which MMD youths have treated their political opponents or those they consider to be the enemies of their political masters.
The Constitution of this country allows every citizen to hold their own views and propagate them. Our Constitution also gives every citizen the right of association, the right to join a political party of their choice. Our Constitution gives every citizen the right to form a political party. Ours is a constitutional multiparty political setup. One cannot form a government without being sponsored by a winning political party. This is so because there was a realisation by our people that no one party can ever have the final and perpetual solution to all our problems. And indeed, it is negative conservatism to assume and believe that any one political party can ever have the final and perpetual solution to all problems of any social system. Such conservatism has no existential basis. To suggest, in any way, that meaningful political participation in the affairs of this country is only possible within the contexts of the machinery of the ruling party is tantamount to saying that what is good for MMD is good for everyone, a suggestion which is patently false as far as what is known about the diversity of the human condition goes.
Some of the 14 resolutions passed by the MMD youths in Lusaka, which they are calling “Rules of engagement in this year’s campaigns”, are a recipe for anarchy and lawlessness. While no one will deny the MMD youths the right to self-defence, no responsible person can recommend resorting to violence whenever provoked. The use of violence should only be in self-defence. And this is different from resorting to violence when provoked. The MMD youths in Lusaka resolved that all committees at all levels of the party embrace the spirit of retaliation against any form of violence targeted on it in this year’s elections as a protective mechanism. One may morally disagree with this approach but one cannot deny them the right to use violence in self-defence. But to say that “youths shall be allowed to reciprocate violence if provoked by the opposition” may be stretching self-defence a bit too far.
Provocation can be dealt with very well within the confines of the law. The police are there to protect every citizen. And moreover, cadres, members and supporters of the MMD are the most well protected by the police – their complaints receive very urgent responses from the police. We urge them to report any unlawful provocation on them to the police. Lawlessness, under any pretext, is not good for the country because “every lawless act leaves an incurable wound, like one left by a double-edged sword”.
Their resolution that they will “not allow any form of parallel vote tabulation to take place” because the Electoral Commission of Zambia was the only one allowed to count votes may stretch their liberties too far. It has been established, even by the Law Association of Zambia, that parallel vote tabulation is not illegal. And no one says parallel vote tabulation involves people not representing the Electoral Commission of Zambia going into polling stations or vote counting centres to count votes.
If someone does that, it will be an offence for which law enforcement officers, and not MMD youths, should take responsibility. MMD youths are not police officers or law enforcement agents. If they are not happy with parallel vote tabulation, the only way they can stop it is to go to court and obtain an order against it. But again, the enforcement of that order will not be by themselves but by law enforcement agents. If they try to use violence against those carrying out parallel vote tabulation, they will be committing a crime for which they should be arrested, prosecuted and sent to jail.
This is what the rule of law requires. And there should be no laws for MMD youths and another set for their political opponents. All our citizens should be entitled to the equal protection of the law without regard to their political affiliation or lack of it.
The MMD youths in Lusaka also resolved that “if a media institution is violating our principle of precision, by not precisely doing that for which its organisation was registered to do, every member of the youth brigade should not allow”. Again, MMD youths, like all other citizens, have the right to vigorously take issue with the media when they regard it as appropriate without that in any way implying a right on their part to infringe on the freedom of the press.
If they are wronged as many others, including ourselves, are being wronged by some media outlets, the solution is not to take the law into their own hands. We are being defamed every day by the media that is controlled by the MMD and its government. We have taken matters to court but the defamations, the libel and slander has continued – seemingly with impunity.
We have not taken the law into our own hands. We are waiting for the law to take its course – it’s moving slowly but one day it will get there. This is what it means to be civil, to be law-abiding and to be tolerant. Tolerance is not about the things one likes; it is about the things that one doesn’t like, the things one detests or finds totally unacceptable. There is no effort required to allow what one wants. A lot of effort is required to tolerate that which one finds intolerable. This is why tolerance is important.
MMD youths, like every citizen of this country, have the right to defend their rights. But this has to be within the confines of the law. They will never be allowed to operate as if they were the police or any other law enforcement agency.
They are also saying that “in this regard, anyone that shall publicly use derogatory language against the President in campaigns, that person shall be declared enemy of the party and a target of our responsibility”. What does this mean? If being a target of their responsibility means violence against that person, then they have got a serious problem.
They can take issue politically with that person or resort to legal action against that person, but under no circumstances should they resort to violence against that person. We have enough laws in our statute books to deal with matters of defamation, especially that of the president. The most they can do is to report to the police or resort to civil litigation in our courts of law. Any other move will be illegal and a promotion of anarchy and lawlessness. As we have already stated, lawlessness is not good for the country and for all those involved in it.
What our country needs are peaceful elections. And we will only have peaceful elections if certain conditions prevail in our country and in the hearts of our cadres and their leaders. There ought to be a conducive atmosphere. The major players have to agree on the conditions under which the coming elections are held. The contestants have to conduct themselves in a manner that does not put others at an unfair disadvantage.
There ought to be transparency in the organisation of the elections. And for the MMD, as the ruling party and the facilitator of the forth-coming elections, they should ensure that the concerns of all key players are adequately addressed. This is what will ensure peace and not threats of violence by MMD youths, or any other party youths for that matter.
Labels: MMD, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, POLITICAL VIOLENCE
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‘Youths must participate in politics’
By Salim Dawood
Mon 13 Dec. 2010, 04:01 CAT
YOUTHS must participate in politics to strengthen democracy and good governance, according to the Commonwealth Secretariat.
In a keynote address during the youth indaba at Lusaka’s Mulungushi International Conference Centre on Friday, Commonwealth Secretariat regional director James Odit said youths made up the large part of most African populations and therefore engaging them through dialogue would add value to democracy and development.
“Youth political participation would strengthen good governance and democracy. Through your participation, you will in addition contribute to building of peace and positive values in society, a just and equitable society, national prosperity and reduction in unemployment among others,” Odit said.
And sports, youth and child development minister Kenneth Chipungu said youths were critical in promoting peace and security as the country prepared for general elections next year.
He said the youth indaba underscored the need to build space for cooperation and strengthen mutual understanding and respect among political players and stakeholders.
Chipungu said dialogue could diffuse tensions, keep situations from escalating and promote reconciliation in the aftermath of conflict elections.
“At a time when political prejudice and hatred are there all common, when political extremists and opportunists seek new recruits through incitement and identity-based appeals, when politicians use divisiveness as a strategy to win elections, dialogue can be an antidote,” Chipungu said.
Meanwhile, one of the youths at the indaba said the event would be a meaningless exercise if what would be discussed would not be implemented.
Bertha Kalongwa said young people were tired of being invited for discussions that did not yield positive results.
She said a lot of areas including learning infrastructure in tertiary institutions and youth entrepreneurship needed more than just meeting and discussing what would never be implemented.
Kalongwa said young people needed to be included in all stages of the decision-making process because they were the majority.
“In a democratic dispensation, it’s the majority that win. So in this case, we are the majority and it’s only prudent that we rule. As youths, we have become organised, we will not re-elect or vote for any leader that does not want to work with the youth,” warned Kalongwa in a vote of thanks.
Hundreds of youths converged for the indaba under the theme ‘Let the youth be heard, dialogue and mutual understanding’.
Labels: BERTHA KALONGWA, KENNETH CHIPUNGU, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, YOUTHS
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Kitwe MMD members bemoan endorsement of Chilambwe
By Kabanda Chulu in Kitwe
Mon 13 Dec. 2010, 04:01 CAT
SOME MMD Kitwe district executive committee members are unhappy with the endorsement of Joseph Chilambwe as the candidate at the forthcoming provincial convention. But district chairman George Lungu said the matter was discussed and the majority showed continued support for Chilambwe.
The members, who preferred anonymity, said interim provincial party chairperson Chilambwe and his entire executive had failed and the party was not performing well in the province.
“At the province the party is sleeping and why should we endorse people who have failed to organise the party? If anything, the provincial committee only becomes active when the President is in the region and this approach is wrong especially that we are entering an election year,” one of the members said.
“Even some ordinary members like task force chairperson Joe Malanji are able to organise the party through holding campaign rallies but we don’t see this coming from the provincial committee.”
But Lungu, who was flanked by his deputy Simon Kunda, said the decision to endorse Chilambwe was democratic.
“We are 24 in the executive and this matter was put to a vote and the majority won so it is not true that we bulldozed this decision and we understand people have diverse views but in this case it is a collective decision whether one likes it or not and we shall support Chilambwe,” said Lungu.
Information and publicity secretary William Nyirenda described Chilambwe as a hardworking member who was loyal to the party and President Rupiah Banda.
Labels: GEORGE LUNGU, KITWE, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE
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MMD youth leader okays verbal assault on Rupiah’s critics
By Patson Chilemba
Fri 12 Nov. 2010, 04:00 CAT
AN MMD youth leader claims it is not wrong to verbally assault those who attack President Rupiah Banda. Speaking yesterday, Watson Mtonga, Lusaka Province youth vice-chairperson, said the MMD would appeal against the conviction of youth chairperson Chris Chalwe. Mtonga said he was confident the higher court would overturn the judgment.
“He Chalwe is a committed soldier for President Banda. It is true. He is a gallant soldier. He is not a coward and whatever the verdict, we are praying for him to remain strong,” Mtonga said.
Mtonga said Chalwe was not a violent person.
But when reminded that apart from beating journalists, Chalwe and his group threatened to gang-rape FDD president Edith Nawakwi, Mtonga said the threats of violence did not manifest into reality.
“Yes, it was a political threatening assault because Nawakwi also was insulting and demeaning our President,” he said.
When asked if it was right to verbally assault those attacking President Banda, Mtonga responded: “Yes, because they are also injuring the image and the heart of the President. The words they use are also very bad.”
Mtonga said the MMD youths would not back out but defend the interests of the party.
“The key thing is that in MMD, we shall not promote violence,” said Mtonga.
Senior resident magistrate David Simusamba on Tuesday jailed Chalwe one year with hard labour for common assault. Chalwe assaulted Post Newspapers journalist Chibaula Silwamba and Times of Zambia senior reporter Anthony Mulowa on July 29, 2009 in Lusaka.
However, magistrate Simusamba acquitted Chalwe on a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
Labels: CHRIS CHALWE, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, RUPIAH BANDA, WATSON MATONGA
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MMD youths declare support for Rupiah
By Henry Sinyangwe
Thu 13 May 2010, 04:00 CAT
SOME MMD youths have declared that they will rally behind President Rupiah Banda even in the most difficult times because
they are aware that the fruits of his efforts will soon start showing.
MMD Kabwata Constituency youth chairman Daniel Tembo yesterday said the youths were impressed that President Banda had already stabilised the economy and that road infrastructure development had continued.
Tembo said George Mpombo, who is Kafulafuta MMD member of parliament and also former defence minister, was finished politically, socially and economically and should not feel that President Banda was responsible for putting food on his table.
He said the youths took great exception to people insulting President Banda.
“As the National Youth League, we take great exception to people insulting because they are no longer ministers and the economy is bitting them,” he said.
And Tembo said opposition PF councillors should look at the challenges of water, drainage, and poor road network in compounds where they live instead of living in luxury.
“We have reasons to believe that PF councillors are involved in heavy-duty corruption. Is this the kind of leadership that people want where despite all the challenges, the leaders want to live like kings using public resources?” asked Tembo.
Labels: CADRES, DANIEL TEMBO, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, RUPIAH BANDA
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MMD youths give Hichilema 48hrs to withdraw RB comment
By Abigail Chaponda in Ndola
Mon 26 Apr. 2010, 04:10 CAT
MMD youths in Ndola have given UNPD leader Hakainde Hichilema a 48-hour ultimatum to withdraw his statement that President Rupiah Banda is a man with a small brain, failure to which they will take the law in their own hands.
During a press briefing at the Ndola swimming pool on Saturday, district chairman Patrick Nyasulu said calling President Banda “a man with a small brain” was not a small issue and that no one would get away with insulting the President.
“From here, we will not leave an enemy behind. It is time to reposition ourselves. We will not allow evil practices in our country,” Nyasulu said.
“We know why people are insulting our President. It is because he is hard working. The mines have reopened, employment is growing, the national treasury is growing, hospitals have both staff and medicine, food is available and affordable and thieves are exposed. What more do you want? Just mention it, and RB will deliver.
“We are demanding an interpretation of a man with a small brain. Who is Hichilema to call our President a man with a small brain? To prove that we don’t believe in violence, we have given Hichilema 48 hours to withdraw his statement or else we will teach him a lesson of his life.”
Nyasulu said people who were insulting President Banda were provoking MMD youths, who should not be blamed when they react. He warned that whoever was belittling President Banda was going to answer to the youths because they were sick and tired of people picking on their beloved President.
Nyasulu called on the Inspector General of Police Francis Kabonde to do something over Hichilema’s statement and that if he (Kabonde) was not going to do anything, the youths would have no choice but to take the law into their own hands.
Reacting to President Banda’s statement that Hichilema was deceiving himself that he would be the presidential candidate for the PF-UPND Pact because Michael Sata was already the Pact leader, Hichilema said only a man with a small brain can say that.
He said that was because the issue of who leads the Pact does not bother the two parties involved. Hichilema said both PF and UPND have said many times that at an appropriate time, they would sit down to agree on the leader for the Pact in 2011 elections.
Hichilema said that was why he was convinced that only a man with a small brain would keep on raising the issue of who leads the PF-UPND Pact in next year’s election.
Labels: DEFAMATION, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, PATRICK NYASULU, POLITICAL VIOLENCE
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A lesson in tolerance from Livingstone MMD youths
A lesson in tolerance from Livingstone MMD youths
By Editor
Thu 14 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT
The announcement by the Livingstone MMD youths that they will not allow any form of violence against any party member demonstrates more than anything else that young people are capable, when aroused, of bringing down the towers of injustice, unfairness and raising the banners of justice and humaneness.
Politics anchored on violence, intimidation and manipulation is of no value to the problems and challenges facing our people today.
The political line of non-violence that the Livingstone MMD youths have taken is what we expect or should expect from all our young people. We say this because all over the world, it is young people who are actually involving themselves in the struggle to eliminate injustice, unfairness and other forms of inhuman relations. They are the ones who most quickly identify with the struggle and the necessity to eliminate the evil practices and conditions that exist.
It is for this reason that we want our young people to start to assert themselves very strongly on the politics of our country. Zambia is theirs, as well as ours, but in the last analysis, it is theirs. And they therefore need to guard it jealously and ensure that its politics are directed towards the establishment of a more just, fair and humane society. We therefore place our hope in them. This country belongs to them; Zambia’s future belongs to them. We should help them become the most active and vital force of our country so that their very high sensitivities to injustice can be used to shape the future of our country.
Condemnation is always proper judgment on anything that is violent or leads to violence. Political violence by its very nature defiles those who practice it, notwithstanding any reasons they offer in mitigation or justification.
We therefore hope the position taken by these young people in Livingstone will be echoed by others across the width and breadth of our country. Political violence is cruel and quickly becomes uncontrollable when it is unleashed. Criminal acts can in no way be justified as a way to campaign for political office. We say this because violence inexorably engenders new forms of repression, which usually prove to be more serious than the ones our politicians are trying to protect us from. But most importantly, violence is an attack on life, which depends on the Creator alone.
And we must also stress that when politics appeals to violence, it thereby admits its own weaknesses and inadequacies.
It is the responsibility of our young peace-loving citizens to use all possible means to promote the implementation of non-violent tactics in the effort to re-establish justice in economic and socio-political relations.
We cannot fail to praise those who renounce the use of violence in the vindication of their political rights and who resort to methods of defence which are otherwise available to weaker parties too, provided this can be done without injury to the rights and duties of others.
We are also obliged to state and reaffirm that violence is neither Christian nor evangelical, and that brusque, violent political leadership changes will be false, ineffective in themselves, and certainly inconsistent with the dignity of all our people. The fact that we realise that even the best structures and the most idealised systems quickly become inhuman if human inclinations are not improved, if there is no conversion of heart and mind on the part of those who are living in those structures or controlling them.
As we have consistently and repeatedly stated, no doctrine, no principle or proclaimed political position can justify atrocious acts against any opponent. No crime can be committed in the name of politics and election campaigns.
Our young people in Livingstone are exposing something that is distinctively lacking among our politicians – a culture of tolerance and humility which places the humanity of others before self and accepts that all citizens have a right to directly participate in the shaping of their destiny without fear of being injured or killed.
Tolerance and respect for our fellow citizens should make us allow our political opponents to campaign freely and without inhibition for the positions they desire in their political parties or indeed in our government. And they don’t need our permission to do so – it is their right as members of our political parties and as citizens of this country. It doesn’t matter whether we like them or not; whether we support them or not. At the same time, we should expect them to treat us the same way. This is not something we achieve instinctively. Rather, we develop it consciously and respectfully. For our very instincts would drive us to throttling our opponents or better still, smacking them with a deadly blow. It is quite true that tolerance implies the highest respect for the human ideal, and its denial suggests a conscious and unconscious lack of humanity on our party. What we are striving to say is that we should take pride in our political opponents, whether we like them or not because without them, there will be no multi-party politics; no political competition and indeed no meaningful democracy.
Clearly, until our politicians and their cadres redress the imbalance between selfish pursuit of power and concern for the rights of others, between arrogance and self-respect and humility, between tolerance and mutual tolerance, we will forever be marching backwards in very long strides.
This is our tragedy, the inability to value every single innocent life and bring happiness to our people without attempting to brutalise them into fear. This is not democracy; it is tyranny.
Party elections that are based on violence and intimidation of others can never be said to be free and fair because people cannot be expected to freely express their will in such elections.
Political violence, in any form, seems to mean that we have not yet come up with a viable policy to broaden democracy in our political parties and indeed in the whole nation. There must be recognition in Zambian politics that our political practices must be based on sound moral values which serve to bind members of our political parties and all of us as a nation. A political party, or indeed a political system that recognises individual freedom and dignity is better placed to promote political participation. That is, the right of individuals to self-determination in pursuit of their constitutional rights in an open society not subject to politics of intimidation, blackmail and violence. And this should promote rational voting, that is, the right of individuals to choose their representatives under an institutional background which entrenches human freedom and dignity. Rational voting cannot take place in an electoral system based on intimidation and violence.
We want to hear more condemnations of those who want to use violence to protect or advance their political interests. Mike Mulongoti should feel ashamed to be corrected by young members of his party in Livingstone on this very important issue of violence.
What the Livingstone MMD youth are teaching us is that peace is the fruit of honesty, truth and solidarity; it is the tranquility of order. And to guarantee peace, to remove violence from our politics, all are called to maturity, tolerance and responsibility. Peace is a project, that is, it is something that we must work to obtain.
We hope other young people in the MMD and in the opposition will emulate the political line taken by the Livingstone MMD youth to defend and promote tolerance in their political parties and indeed in their interaction with members of other political parties. The present political divisions within the leadership of MMD cannot be resolved by violence. Only an intelligent approach seeking compromise and consensus can clear away these differences.
The membership and leadership of the MMD should realise that the use of violence or intimidation against anyone is something that puts them next to animals.
There is need for all our politicians to realise that a healthy democratic society that we are trying to build in this country is not simply the provision of an arena in which individuals pursue their own goals. Democracy will only flourish in this country if we accept the need for tolerance and compromise in public life. To build a democratic society, we need the Livingstone MMD youth type of commitment, the commitment of citizens who accept the inevitability of political competition as well as the necessity for tolerance. We need to learn how to pursue our goals in a democratic and civilised manner and ultimately how to live in a world of diversity. We say this because democracy is not a set of revealed, unchanging truths, but the mechanism by which, through the clash and compromise of ideas, individuals can reach for the truth.
We do appreciate that there are fundamental differences among the membership and leadership of the MMD over their forthcoming party convention. There are others who didn’t want the convention at all. But after months of discourse, all seem to be agreed about the need to hold a convention. However, differences still arise on who should attend or compete for the leadership of the party, especially the presidency of the party. But this should not be the basis for threats of violence against each other. This should be the basis for intensive negotiations and compromise. And they shouldn’t forget that as they exercise their freedoms, they are bound to responsible behaviour and respect for the freedoms of others.
For instance, George Mpombo’s participation at the next MMD convention may not be acceptable to Mulongoti and others who worship Rupiah Banda and who see their survival in him being the leader. But there is need to accept that he is entitled by law, by the MMD constitution, to attend the convention and participate in party elections if he so desires. It is important for all those involved in our politics not to forget that the politics they are involved in is an area of great importance for promoting justice among all. It is folly for anyone to believe that they need to use violence or threats of violence to intimidate those who don’t share their views into acquiescence.
There is need for the membership and leadership of the MMD to try and understand that today’s Zambian politics cannot be successfully conducted on this basis – on intimidation and violence. Intimidation and violence is something that should be totally uprooted from our politics.
Labels: CADRES, MMD, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE, POLITICAL VIOLENCE
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Mulongoti backs calls to block Mpombo at convention
By Patson Chilemba and George Chellah
Sun 10 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT
WORKS and supply minister Mike Mulongoti yesterday supported calls by MMD youths to beat and block former defence minister George Mpombo from attending the convention, saying a nuisance should not be allowed at the convention. But MMD national youth chairman and former Kabwe Central member of parliament Patrick Musonda said Mpombo is free to attend the convention.
Commenting on MMD youth league president Daniel Tembo's statement that youths would wait for Mpombo at the convention and he should kiss it goodbye because they would not allow him to stand, Mulongoti said people should be in right standing with the party for them to be allowed to attend the convention.
“Let me tell you something, our party says for you to remain a member, you must be in good standing with the party, in your conduct, everything put together; you must be in good standing. If in the assessment of the party, your conduct is not in good standing, we have got every right to stop you from coming to contest the election, to stop you from continuing to be a nuisance,” Mulongoti said.
“How can you allow a nuisance to come to a convention? We want to go there as members to deliberate and eventually elect ourselves. A nuisance will not be admitted there because they will cause problems for us. We want good members with good standing to come to the convention.”
Mulongoti said spoilers should not be allowed to attend the convention because they might spoil the fun.
“You mentioned who and who? Yah, on others…, I have answered on Mr Mpombo first on the convention, who are the others?” he asked.
Reminded that the youths had also threatened to deal with former Sinazongwe member of parliament Syacheye Madyenkuku, FDD president Edith Nawakwi, Patriotic Front (PF) secretary General Wynter Kabimba and many others whom they said were insulting President Banda, Mulongoti said MMD youths were responsible but they were sending a message that political leaders should not be overly aggressive by demonizing the leadership of other political parties.
“I don't think that is fair. If you listened to our debate with Mr Kabimba, he thinks the use of unpalatable language is acceptable. I don't think in MMD we believe in that. What we want is that we must civilize our politics where we treat each other with respect,” Mulongoti said.
But Musonda disowned the MMD youths that warned Mpombo against going to the convention.
“There are only provincial, district, constituency and branch youth wings. We don't have yet a youth league as an organisation within the MMD. The party constitution has never provided for that. The hierarchy is such that a national youth chairman is the most superior personnel, then under the national youth chairman there are provincial youth chairmen, then district youth chairmen, then constituency youth chairmen, then the ward youth chairmen and branch youth chairmen. That's what it is, so there is no title in the youth wing of MMD as president,” Musonda said.
“Those who came to me as a national youth chairman I don't know them and I don't recognize them. This group of youths who came to your office they have got no blessing from the MMD leadership, we don't know them. They don't have the mandate to speak on behalf of the party youth wing. MMD is the founder of democracy in this country and that is the main principle, which MMD was founded on. And the people of Zambia accepted MMD just because of that democratic movement, so we are the pioneers and the preachers of democracy in the political dispensation of this country.”
He encouraged those that wanted to contest the elections at the MMD convention to freely do so.
“Coming to the calls that they are saying that they would ban and victimise Mpombo and ban him from attending the convention, that is wrong. In MMD we believe in democracy. Whoever wants to aspire, even the national chairman said that, they are free to come and can contest any position from the president and to a trustee at the convention,” Musonda said.
“So in this party, which is democratic, me as a youth national chairman… Mpombo is free if he will qualify to come and attend the convention and contest the position of his choice and that is good for him because outside that, he is growing wings as though he is very popular within the party membership.
“There are a lot of people that I know who are vying, who might come. Let them come…if they lose they will lose genuinely. If we are going to bar anyone from coming to contest, it means that we will just make them grow big for nothing.”
But MMD Lusaka Province youth chairman Chris Chalwe admitted that he knew Daniel Tembo.
“Those are Daniel Tembo's views and they do not reflect the views of the youths. We don't have an MMD youth league president or the youth league,” Chalwe said. “So what Mr Tembo is saying has nothing to do with the youth leadership. I know Daniel Tembo, he is an overzealous guy. He has no position, he is just an ordinary member of the party.”
MMD youths in Lusaka on Friday warned that they would block Mpombo from attending the convention.
“This is 2010, Mpombo should not even attend the convention because we will cut off his legs and all those who are insulting President Banda will not be spared,” said Tembo. “We are financially sound, we have hired 4x4 vehicles to get to where they are. We will beat them one by one like lizards coming from a hole.”
And on UPND president Hakainde Hichilema's assertions that the injury President Banda had caused the Lambas was too deep and would not be healed by his desperate appointment of Gladys Lundwe as lands minister, Mulongoti said Lundwe was a member of parliament from Masaiti and deserved to be appointed minister to replace her brother in apparent reference to former science and technology minister Gabriel Namulambe who was recently fired by President Banda who had left.
“It is him Hichilema who is panicking. He has got Mr Sata to deal with. It is not us. Him he has got Mr Sata to deal with first of all before he can show who he is. So let him deal with Mr Sata first,” Mulongoti said.
“You heard me, emphasise that, Mr Hichilema must first of all go back to Mr. Sata before he can claim that he has any chance to become president.”
On government bowing to media self-regulation, Mulongoti said he was information minister and government had never wanted to regulate the media but the problem was that there were those who resisted self-regulation.
“I think that is what is unfair. Yesterday, I was listening to a debate and somebody was saying that even to be told that 'regulate yourselves is not right'. You see, government cannot allow a situation where there is a total vacuum, where there is nobody responsible,” he said.
Asked if the government's decision to pave way for self regulation was not a tactical retreat because of the pressure against statutory regulation of the media, Mulongoti said government was not pushing the media to create a code of conduct.
He said the media had been in existence for a long time, but wondered how other associations had regulated themselves faster than the media.
“You want quacks to continue masquerading as journalists, why?” Mulongoti asked.
He said the MMD was grateful to its critics, both in Parliament and in the media, and was actively pursuing the advice it got from the two institutions.
However, Mulongoti said some critics were just malicious.
“This year we will be so robust about our achievements because it is evident, anybody can see what we have done, except that our critics because of jealousy have been saying that we have done nothing. But I can tell you we have proudly done so much,” said Mulongoti.
“I can tell you we have performed. We will not sit quietly this year and watch people disadvantage us on account of malice, sometimes jealousy, some hatred. Where we made mistakes, we apologise. We are human beings. We acknowledge that we have faults as well.”
Labels: DANIEL TEMBO, GEORGE MPOMBO, MIKE MULONGOTI, MINISTRY OF WORKS AND SUPPLY, MMD, MMD YOUTH LEAGUE
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