Chiluba isn’t a factor in elections - Madyenkunku
By George Chellah in Lusaka and Misheck Wangwe in Kitwe
Sun 08 Aug. 2010, 04:00 CAT
SYACHEYE Madyenkuku yesterday said the Chifubu and Chimwemwe by-election victory is a reminder to Frederick Chiluba that he is not a factor as he is forced to believe.
And Copperbelt Patriotic Front (PF) acting chairperson Davies Mwila said the party’s victory in the by-election is a clear indication that MMD will be voted out of government in next year’s elections.
Commenting on PF’s victory in Chifubu and Chimwemwe, Madyenkuku, who is also PF deputy national chairperson for mobilisation, advised Chiluba to take a back seat from politics.
“I personally think that Mr Chiluba is the man who actually initiated the former president’s Act. But if he is campaigning, going in the field to campaign, he is demeaning his status.
That takes so much away from him,” he said. He urged Chiluba not to yield to any pressure on him to go into the field to campaign. “Chiluba is not a factor he thinks he is or is forced to believe he is. People can respect him, but people are able to analyse what you are saying to them,” Madyenkuku said. “So these results Chifubu and Chimwemwe it’s a reminder that he needs to rest.
It’s important that Mr Chiluba takes a back seat from politics.” Recently, Chiluba publicly campaigned for the MMD in the Chimwemwe local government by-election. On the Luena by-election, Madyenkuku described the results as interesting and thought-provoking. “The winning of Mr Charles Milupi is not about his personal strength.
One sees a reaction from the people on the unfulfilled promises by the MMD,” Madyenkuku said. “Of course, I congratulate Mr Milupi but from the results there seem to be some under currents than what meets the eye.
The question is, is what happened in Luena representative of the whole province Western Province? That is yet to be seen.” He said the results in Luena were good for the country’s opposition.
“It means the people are beginning to understand. People are comparing words from the ruling party with action on the ground,” said Madyenkuku.
And Mwila, who is also Chipili member of parliament, said the MMD had been taught a lesson despite pumping in billions of kwacha and sending Chiluba to campaign in the Chimwemwe ward by-election in Kitwe.
“Our president Michael Sata was in Chifubu only for two hours. For them the Vice–President George Kunda was on the Copperbelt for two days, Rupiah Banda was also on the Copperbelt for two days but what have they achieved in the two elections? Nothing. The people of Chifubu have spoken to the entire country that change is inevitable next year and we are winning,” Mwila said.
He said the PF did not dish out money in Chifubu like the MMD, but managed to scoop the seat because the party was very organised. Mwila said the people of the Copperbelt and many parts of the country realised a long time ago that the governance of the country was in wrong hands and were ready to make change next year.
He said the party’s victory in the parliamentary by-election in Chifubu and Kitwe’s Chimwemwe ward was a big achievement and a big shame on the ruling party and the ‘rebel’ parliamentarians who were going round the country discrediting the PF and Sata. Mwila said the people of Chifubu voted for PF because of its dedication to serving the people and the country.
“I encourage the people of Chifubu and the entire Copperbelt to remain a shining example. We want the Copperbelt Province to come out strongly next year and show other electorate in various parts of this country that change is inevitable. We are confident that we are winning next year’s elections as opposition because the massive support we are receiving has spoken volumes of this fact,” Mwila said.
Copperbelt Province PF acting secretary Elias Kamanga said the MMD would suffer massive defeat in next year’s general elections because of their mistaken belief that Chiluba was a factor on the Copperbelt and the country at large.
He said the decision the people of Chimwemwe and Chifubu made to vote for the PF candidates had shamed Chiluba who camped on the Copperbelt to campaign for the MMD.
Kamanga said Chiluba was a disgraced former head of state who should not be allowed in the political arena. Kamanga said Copperbelt residents never wanted to hear the name Chiluba because of the misery he brought in their lives.
On Thursday, PF’s Susan Kawandami was declared winner of the Chifubu parliamentary by-election after amassing 6,976 votes against the MMD’s Frank Ngambi’s 4,539 votes, while Bryan Banda of ADD got 412 votes and Poko Mambwe of UNIP received 221 votes. In Chimwemwe ward by-election, PF’s Overtone Nyondo got 691 votes against MMD’s Nicholas Nzunda who polled 460 votes.
In Western Province, Milupi, who was Luena Independent member of parliament, retained his seat after he polled 3,688 votes. The MMD polled 2,800, UPND polled 1,806, UNIP got 115 and the ULP polled 116 out of the 8,630 votes cast.
Labels: FREDERICK CHILUBA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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Rupiah’s misrule is alarming, says Sata
By Patson Chilemba and George Chellah
Sat 20 Mar. 2010, 04:10 CAT
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) president Michael Sata yesterday warned that threats to arrest those who want to demonstrate in favour of the red cards are only helping to unite more people against President Banda's misrule. And UPND president Hakainde Hichilema has said the UPND has joined the civil society organisations in the red card campaign.
Meanwhile, Syacheye Madyenkuku has observed that the arrests are just igniting the red card campaign. Commenting on home affairs minister Lameck Mangani's threat that Police had been instructed to arrest those who demonstrate in favour of the red card campaign, Sata said.
President Banda and his government were only provoking more reactions from the people and opposition groups were becoming more united as a result of the threats.
He said President Banda's failing government was panicking.
“People of Zambia from all walks of life have to find means of showing their disgust against Rupiah Banda's misrule. The government of Rupiah Banda is panicking because the money which could have been spent for the people, he is using it on aimless travels and carrying 400 people,” Sata said.
“So people have to show that they are not happy. The people should not be discouraged, and my warning to this government is they should not take the people of Zambia for granted because you might provoke more reaction from the country. Excessive provocations makes people to dare those who are excessively provoking them.”
Sata said the PF central committee would sit next week to decide on the party's participation in the red card campaigns.
He said President Banda's misrule was so alarming such that people were left with no option but to resort to expressing their freedom of expression through red cards.
Sata bemoaned the double standards being exercised by the police, saying the wanton arrests of PF members of parliament, Change Life Zambia executive director Fr Frank Bwalya and others were unnecessary.
He said currently those who were with President Banda could commit crimes like threatening to gang rape people but nothing was happening to them.
Sata said people could now commit crimes in the name of the President knowing very well that they would be protected.
“And our colleagues in the police, they should realize they are equally suffering like all of us. They have not received their meal rations for four months, and they are going in the forefront protecting a brutal regime by using violence,” Sata said. “Violence breeds violence.”
And Hichilema said it was both a civic and human right for citizens to express views for or against any issue.
He said it was a fact that the MMD had failed and people should be afforded the right to express their disgust through red cards.
“No matter what propaganda they may try to put up, it remains a fact that there are no desks, there are no adequate health arrangements in the country. Unemployment is high. Look at the floods in Kuku. So why shouldn't Zambians express their disgust?
And the red symbolises the people's disgust. This perception that you can suppress citizens is misplaced, it's parochial thinking,” Hichilema said. “We support, and we are part of the organisations that stand up against the MMD dictatorship. If my vice-president was there, we fully agree with the resolution. We fully disagree with government's deregistration of SACCORD.”
Hichilema said the MMD had been overtaken by UNIP vigilantes like William Banda and President Banda.
He condemned William Banda's intimidation of ministers, saying this could only happen in UNIP where sweepers could intimidate ministers.
He asked Mangani to take away his small mindedness on national issues.
“Tell Mangani to come and arrest me today. Yes, we will support the red card because it is absolutely a national agenda. At Buchi meeting where it was planned my vice-president was there.
After consultations I said 'honourable Kapita, go there', and by the way he was there,” Hichilema said.
Meanwhile, Madyenkuku condemned the government's intimidation of people that were advocating for the red card campaign.
“It has been proven through historical statistics that whenever you repress people that are trying to express themselves you actually ignite the desire to do so. The red card campaign is a civil manner of expressing a view and those who don't agree with it can also do a similar thing but obviously in a non-violent manner,” said Madyenkuku who is former sports minister.
“I think that 46 years after independence we should not see a situation where people are taken to court unless they have acted, they committed acts of violence but in the case of Fr Bwalya really I don't think that it was correct.”
Asked if arrests would encourage the red card campaign, Madyenkuku responded: “Yes! Because when you repress people it boomerangs. The intended goal of stopping them from doing what they are doing is actually ignited.”
He urged the government to put in place better priorities of utilising the police service.
“I would like on the basis of that, that we spend our resources in the right direction by putting correct priorities on the use of our police force who are already overstretched by a number of real demanding issues in combating crime and not to reduce them to arresting people who are merely expressing a political will,” he said.
Madyenkuku advised the state to withdraw unconditionally the case against Fr Bwalya.
“We don't want to have prisoners of conscious in Zambia after independence. Anybody who expresses his political will by non-violent means must not be persecuted whatsoever,” Madyenkuku said.
“This is one of the benefits of the struggle for independence. This is what Martin Luther King Junior started alongside other civil rights leaders in the United States after the liberation of the black people from slavery.
“I would like to urge the state to courageously withdraw the case, I don't want to go into the details of the case. I would like to urge government to withdraw that case instantly and without any condition.”
He said as a former political detainee, he was a proponent of expression of views through non-violent means.
“We dislodged the one-party system in 1991 in order to enhance our ability to express our desires and views whether they are political, social or indeed economic through non-violent means,” said Madyenkuku. “It will be a big change for that case to continue. It will tarnish Zambia's image badly in the eyes of the international community.”
On Friday, Mangani was quoted by the Daily Mail as having said he had instructed the police to arrest people that would go ahead with the red card campaign.
Labels: CORRUPTION, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, LAMECK MANGANI, RUPIAH BANDA, SATA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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PF-UPND pact is a real threat to MMD, says Madyenkuku
By George Chellah
Wed 10 Mar. 2010, 04:40 CAT
SYACHEYE Madyenkuku has said the MMD is so anguished and stressed about the PF-UPND pact because the alliance is a real threat to the ruling party.
Reacting to Southern Province minister Daniel Munkombwe’s statement that PF had no following in the province and that as a Tonga, he was aware that the UPND’s alliance with PF had caused mystification in the UPND, Madyenkuku dismissed Munkombwe’s remarks.
“The position that there is no PF in Southern Province is totally wrong, it is not correct! The PF’s presence is virtually in every part of the province and this is evidenced by the fact that there is not a single district in which there are no PF structures in all the 11 districts of Southern Province,” Madyenkuku said.
“In fact, if its true that the PF-UPND pact was not accepted in Southern Province that should have been good news for MMD logically and they should have been the last to sound that view that this thing is not acceptable because to them that should have been good news.
“The fact that they are so anguished about it and that the Vice-President is now making it his main platform subject wherever he goes shows that the PF-UPND pact is intact and is real. It is a fact that the leading party in Southern Province is UPND, there is no doubt about that but it is also correct that MMD’s position as the second largest party in Southern Province is threatened in this province, there is no question about that.”
Madyenkuku, who is also PF member of the Central Committee, questioned Munkombwe’s observations.
He said if the situation in the province was as Munkombwe claimed, the MMD would be rejoicing.
“Do you think it will be normal for MMD to tell us the weaknesses in the alliance so that we work on them? The existence of PF in this province is real.
MMD is threatened in Southern Province as a second largest party in the province,” Madyenkuku said. “What has happened is that we have combined forces very well.
The UPND and PF enjoy mutual respect for each other in this province and because of that we have decided to work together sincerely believing that this is the right way to proceed in fashioning a strategy that will bring the country in the right direction by providing it with a new government. And this is a real threat to the MMD.”
On the flood situation in Sinazongwe, Madyenkuku said the situation was completely out of hand mainly due to negligence on the part of government.
“At the moment Sinazongwe is completely cut-off from the rest of Zambia. There were two bridges last year that were washed away at two points on the Batoka-Maamba road.
On these big streams they put temporary bridges but during the subsequent dry season they never installed permanent bridges. As a result one of those bridges has now been completely washed away on Sialamba river on the foot of Sinazeze township,” said Madyenkuku.
“There is also another strip of road in Sinazongwe linking Sinazeze to a place called Chiabi; this is the road known as D 499. What happened last year is that the National Roads Agency dismantled between 15 and 20 culverts on that strip of the road at the same time.
They dismantled all the culverts saying that they did that so that they replace them all. But you know that logically you cannot dismantle all the bridges at the same time because you know that the reconstruction time will not be there before the onset of the rains.
“What they would have done was dismantle one bridge, replace it and go to the next and so on. The kilometre strip is totally inaccessible. We have warned time and again about the poor workmanship. This is why we are calling upon the people of Zambia to be very serious in their change on government.”
Labels: DANIEL MUNKOMBWE, PF-UPND, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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Rupiah’s vice-presidency card is divisive, says Madyenkuku
By George Chellah
Thu 18 Feb. 2010, 12:01 CAT
SYACHEYE Madyenkuku yesterday said the vice-presidency card that President Rupiah Banda is playing is premature and has the potential to divide people.
Commenting on revelations that President Banda had promised to appoint a vice-president from Luapula Province if the people there delivered the area to the MMD in 2011, Madyenkuku - who is former sports minister - urged President Banda to promise development instead of positions.
"He should not promise the vice-presidency, he should promise development because development is universal, it benefits everybody," Madyenkuku said. "The vice-presidency goes to an individual and there is no guarantee that
even if whoever is elected vice-president gets into office, he can even last for a long time under his administration. It's the discretion of the President at the end of the day."
Madyenkuku said President Banda should be telling the people wherever he goes about development.
"And if you promise the vice-presidency to one province, what is there for other provinces? If I were him, I would not have even been discussing this because what effect does this have on the other provinces? The others will think there is nothing at stake," Madyenkuku said.
He said President Banda's vice-president card was dividing the people because it is coming prematurely.
"Other provinces are feeling left out. Next time he goes to another province what will be the basis of the relationship if one province has already been assured of that position?” he asked.
He also dismissed accusations that opposition parties were insulting President Banda.
"Another issue which is being misrepresented is the misconception that President Banda is being insulted by members of the opposition. I would be grateful to find someone who will give me the definition of an insult," Madyenkuku said.
"If I express my view that is different from the head of state's, that's not an insult. Different opinions and understanding, that's what constitutes multi-party politics, we are not going to think alike. I will be the first person to condemn any person who insults others. But I do not remember any Zambian that has insulted the President."
Labels: LUAPULA PROVINCE, RUPIAH BANDA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU, VICE PRESIDENCY
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Madyenkuku urges Kunda to withdraw his K5bn request
By George Chellah
Mon 08 Feb. 2010, 04:00 CAT
SYACHEYE Madyenkuku yesterday dismissed Vice-President George Kunda's justification and urged him to immediately withdraw his recommendation to Cabinet to pay about K5 billion to ministers and other Lusaka-based parliamentarians attending the National Constitutional Conference (NCC).
Reacting to Vice-President Kunda's statement that the government is following financial regulations as they pay delegates to the NCC, Madyenkuku, who is former Sinazongwe member of parliament and sports minister said the NCC was already taking a very high toll on the treasury.
“It will not be surprising if before the end of this year the Minister of Finance goes to Parliament to ask for supplementary expenditure. And this will be an unnecessary expenditure because this government doesn't seem to know where to spend the money on,” he said.
He said allowances for some delegates and ministers who were already sufficiently subsisted by government represented irresponsible placement of priorities.
Madyenkuku wondered how Vice-President Kunda was going to lobby for funding for disaster management in the country amidst such lavish spending.
“We are now facing an unpredictable weather pattern where although we had a dry spell in some parts of the country, right now we have continuous rains and we cannot rule out the damage to some bridges. We wonder really what really the plight of ordinary Zambians is going to be in the country,” Madyenkuku said. “How is Kunda going to lobby the NGOs, how is he going to lobby the outside world? When at the time when he is supposed to prepare all the necessary funds... we know that there are no funds readily available in the time of disasters, we always have to stampede for assistance.
“These floods are expected anyway, they are about to come. If there will be no floods in some areas there will be droughts so every penny must be pushed aside now in preparation for that eventuality. It is not too late; we call upon this man, the Vice-President, to withdraw this move in the national interest. He must withdraw this thing immediately or else the MMD will meet the wrath of the Zambian people at the next election.”
He insisted that there was no justification for such spending on the NCC.
“To begin with, this constitution making process should have been concluded. It should have been concluded last year. They asked for an extension of three months, the three months is now turning into another year and it’s still open-ended. The nation has no idea on earth whatsoever when this NCC business is going to conclude. It seems that the NCC is becoming a parallel legislative body running concurrently with Parliament. It's a complete circus, I think the whole notion of constitution making is being abused," Madyenkuku said. “And matters are not being helped by the attitude that the Vice-President is now taking. Parliament closes on Friday, by Tuesday following week NCC convenes. Talks about ministers, ministers are provided for sufficiently in terms of fuel, they are sufficiently catered for in terms of housing, what justification? When are we going to see a government that leads by example? When are we going to see government making sacrifices before they can ask Zambians to make sacrifices? Is it a question of do what I say not what I do?”
He said it had become very clear that the NCC did not have a limited mandate.
“By now the NCC should have concluded business so that administrative work such as the compilation of their findings could have commenced. It appears this is a deliberate ploy to avoid holding the next elections on a new constitution,” said Madyenkuku. “Clearly this seems to be a ploy. When is the matter going to be debated by the public? We have an open ended constitution making process, which does not make sense. It is dragging on and whenever time is due for it to conclude they ask for more time and government extends it.”
On Friday, Vice-President Kunda said the government was following financial regulations as they pay delegates to the NCC.
Speaking upon arrival at Livingstone International Airport, Vice-President Kunda said the NCC had credible men and women who could not be matched with Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata and the money they were being paid was budgeted for.
Vice-President Kunda's comments came in the wake of condemnation from various stakeholders in the country over his recent recommendation to Cabinet to pay about K5 billion to ministers and other Lusaka-based parliamentarians attending the NCC.
Labels: GEORGE KUNDA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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I’m ahead of NCC – Sata
By Patson Chilemba and George Chellah
Mon 25 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) president Michael Sata has said he is way ahead of his opponents who are trying to fix him at the National Constitutional Conference (NCC).
And Syacheye Madyenkuku has said the MMD and its sympathizers have been caught flat-footed on the degree clause because Sata is unstoppable.
Commenting on the revelation that he has a degree, a direct reaction to what some people view as attempts by the NCC to stop him from contesting the 2011 presidency following the adoption of the degree clause for one to be a presidential candidate, Sata yesterday said he had not been sitting idle since the MMD brought up the issue of a degree for one to be eligible for the Republican presidency in 2006.
“The NCC is being run by the PF rebels. The rebels are telling NCC what to do, and now they are making MMD and Rupiah Banda very foolish. We are far much ahead of them. They started in 2006 and only a foolish person will wait for them,” Sata said. “They started shouting about that degree in 2006, and we are not as dull as they are.”
Sata said he was aware that people like former president Frederick Chiluba, Luapula PF 'rebel' member of parliament Peter Machungwa and Nchelenge independent member of parliament Ben Mwila were trying to fix him in order to save their skins.
However, he said all those who had committed crimes should be ready to account for them when the PF and UPND pact assumes office next year.
“Peter Machungwa can't explain how MMD has forgotten about the K2 billion scam since Golden Mandandi died. And my brother BY 'Nashala neka', remember he was given money to repair that building in town?” Sata noted. “Even those at NCC, they are scared because they have been using NCC money for some other things.”
On the nomination of education minister Dora Siliya as the new MMD spokesperson, Sata said Siliya had been appointed to protect and speak for plunderers.
“So the spokesperson must be a person who protects plunderers. She is the right person to be there. So the spokesperson needs to be one who is dented like Dora. Everything is making our job much easier,” he said.
Sata revealed that President Banda had secretly given Chiluba back the properties that were confiscated from him on the Copperbelt.
“All the shops that were confiscated in Parklands have been given to him. He has been lying that he has gone to campaign for Banda, but he is renovating the shops and looking for tenants,” said Sata.
And Madyenkuku, who is former sports minister and Sinazongwe member of parliament, said he was extremely disappointed that the country had not learnt the dangers of legislating against individuals.
“Every constitution or any subordinate law must be for the country not for an individual or against an individual. It is very clear then that the intention to include the presidential candidate's qualification was ill-conceived. It was intended to deter an individual called Michael Sata from becoming eligible to stand as a candidate because of the massive following the man enjoys throughout the country as the figures show in the 2006 and subsequent 2008 presidential by-elections,” Madyenkuku said.
“Now that it has been disclosed that Sata has a degree, the MMD and those sympathisers who are some of the delegates who were convinced to support that clause have been caught flat-footed. It means that the whole idea of holding the NCC has been rendered futile, the credibility of most of those resolutions from the NCC now are going to be looked at with a lot of suspicion.”
Madyenkuku, who served in the MMD national executive committee (NEC) as an elected member from 1995 to 2001 before the late Levy Mwanawasa brought him back in 2007 to 2008, said the wind of change was unstoppable and that anything that would stand in its way would be crushed.
“Let me tell you that all of us have been destined by God to do certain things in life. And if it was by God's plan that Michael Sata will one day lead this country, no mortal being will stop that. Only God can stop Sata from becoming president,” Madyenkuku said.
“To legislate against individuals, we have seen how Chiluba enacted the former president's Act. Among those things in the former president's Act is the prohibition of former presidents partaking in politics. But you have seen that that thing has caught up with him Chiluba. Now he is himself now involved in politics, he is the one who enacted the former president's Act. That is the danger of enacting with an individual in mind.
“So really if Michael Sata was destined by God to lead this country, no human being can stop him because if it is God's plan it will always be fulfilled. In South Africa, where Jacob Zuma was being persecuted... and by persecuting Zuma they actually built him and made him much more stronger politically and today Zuma is President of South Africa.”
He advised the supporters of the degree clause to do first things first and level the playing field.
“...We have a lot of school leavers but cannot go to the university because of lack of space. Those that finally squeeze themselves in might not even access university education on account of financial constraints. In a climate like that how can you make it a requirement for anybody who wants to be a president to be a university graduate? That doesn't make sense,” he said.
He advised members of parliament to reject the clause with the contempt it deserved.
“... Because some of those MPs might have presidential ambitions, they might even have the ability to do so but will be limiting themselves. It should be the preserve of the Zambian people to know among the presidential candidates who has the credentials that will make a more efficient and effect president. You cannot take away that right and tie it to the Constitution," said Madyenkuku.
Labels: NCC, PRESIDENCY, SATA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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Banda must halt purge on Levy’s tribesmen, says Madyenkuku
By George Chellah
Wed 13 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT
FORMER sports minister Syacheye Madyenkuku yesterday said President Rupiah Banda must halt the general purge on the late Mwanawasa's tribesmen and perceived loyalists because it is a threat to national unity.
Commenting on revelations by former State House special assistant for policy implementation and monitoring Jack Kalala that President Banda was directed by Eastern Province chiefs to purge the late Mwanawasa's tribesmen from government, Madyenkuku described the development as a very sad one.
“It would also imply that there are other people who call the tune to the President's action. If these people who are calling the tune happen to be his tribesmen and he follows them I think that is very sad. But Jack Kalala's statement was made with so much confidence because he even went as far saying if he wants the President should challenge him because those statements were made in the presence of Gabriel Namulambe,” Madyenkuku said.
“If that is true, the situation could not be any worse because the presidency is the fortress for all of us. And if some people from the outset, even before Namulambe made that statement… if there was a premeditated state of affairs and then action later comes which tends to confirm this then it couldn't be worse than that. It's a sad state of affairs. Let's go back to acting on cases based on merit, you can't have a generalised group categorisation and label them in a certain manner because what tends to have happened is that there is a general purge.
“You look at the diplomatic service, the people have been withdrawn, those of us who were appointed in the NEC by Mwanawasa were withdrawn. Now the chiefs say 'remove this category of people' and action is pointing in that direction. I think the best is to take cases on individual merit. The general purge on Mwanawasa's tribesmen and perceived loyalists should be halted because it's a threat to national unity.”
Madyenkuku, who served in the MMD national executive committee (NEC) as an elected member from 1995 to 2001 before the late Mwanawasa brought him back in 2007 to 2008, also said the reaction to Namulambe's statement was overly too much.
“They should know that he was merely reacting to a statement made by a certain official. In fact, the official who made that statement is the one who ignited the debate. Namulambe's statement was very modest, in my view. I don't think they would have warranted these actions and reactions that have taken place after the dismissal,” Madyenkuku said. “But if you recall very well you will perhaps remember that I said that the MMD had been engulfed with a level of intolerance that was very strange. I have been vindicated. What has happened to Namulambe is characteristic of what has become of the MMD today.”
On Sunday, Kalala disclosed that traditional leaders from Eastern Province instructed President Rupiah Banda to purge the late Mwanawasa's tribesmen from his administration.
Kalala, who challenged President Banda to deny his revelations, said Namulambe's initial statement over the late Mwanawasa's legacy is deeper than meets the eye.
Labels: RUPIAH BANDA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU, TRIBALISM
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Madyenkuku, Mushala quit MMD and join PF
By George Chellah
Wed 23 Dec. 2009, 04:01 CAT
MMD founder member and former Sinazongwe member of parliament Syacheye Madyenkuku together with former North Western Province MMD chairman Bert Mushala have joined the opposition Patriotic Front (PF). The duo's applications for membership were among those that were approved by the PF central committee meeting last Saturday.
Madyenkuku, who served in the MMD national executive committee as an elected member from 1995 to 2001 before the late Levy Mwanawasa brought him back in 2007 to 2008, said Zambia was desperate for an alternative. He said this was due to the shortcomings and inability to listen to the wishes of the people by the MMD government and also given its extent of elasticity.
“In other words, its inflexibility…there is no other cause available to any serious-thinking Zambian other than that of working together with a group of other Zambians, which has already started a programme offering this alternative to the Zambian people,” he said.
Madyenkuku, who is also former sports minister, said he had a lot of other considerations.
“But ultimately, I thought that I am faced with a situation of either just being unavailable to the people of Zambia or my making myself available to them,” he said. “And with the climate in the MMD now where alternative views have no room, I found it extremely humbling to be given an opportunity to work with the Patriotic Front and therefore I am using the Patriotic Front as a vehicle to serve the people of Zambia.”
Madyenkunku urged Zambians to unite.
“Unite to ensure that in 2011, the people of Zambia will not accuse us, who are said to be their leaders, of not having offered a viable alternative. And by conglomerating like this, I think that the people of Zambia will have themselves to blame if they don't seize the opportunity to do so,” Madyenkuku said. “Really that is my immediate reaction and it will be a pleasure for me to work with a party that is grounded already, that is relevant to the people of Zambia, a party that so far the Zambian people are endorsing by every opportunity. So really it is for me an opportunity to serve the Zambian people.”
Madyenkunku said in a multiparty system, one could not operate as an island.
And Mushala, who is also former North Western Province minister and Mufumbwe member of parliament, confirmed that he was now a PF member.
“What encouraged me to make the decision is that I think you have followed my political career. When I left the MMD, I decided to get to the pact and work with PF,” Mushala said.
He dismissed home affairs minister Lameck Mangani's claim that he was part of Luena Independent member of parliament Charles Milupi's new party - Alliance for Development and Democracy (ADD).
“It is unfortunate that our Minister of Home Affairs entrusted with the security of the country can indulge himself in peddling lies that, I, Bert Mushala is linked to the formation of a new party when he could have found out from his colleagues in MMD, government or indeed contacted me to confirm my party affiliation, which is not a secret anyway,” Mushala said.
He said he was with the PF/UPND pact and exclusively as a PF member.
“He Mangani should do better to learn and understand which person he is talking about. I am a politician of his own and respected. I need an apology from him,” Mushala said. “As for the Times of Zambia, it is clear why Zambians don't read the newspaper because it sometimes publishes lies, baseless and unconfirmed stories. They know where to find me. Why didn't they contact me…? I am a PF member.”
Labels: BERT MUSHALA, MMD, PF-UPND, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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Madyenkuku urges Rupiah to leave in 2011
By George Chellah
Tue 01 Dec. 2009, 04:00 CAT
THE MMD has been hit by a self-inflicted tornado whose full magnitude we are yet to know, MMD founder member and former Sinazongwe member of parliament Syacheye Madyenkuku has said.
And Madyenkuku said the people surrounding President Rupiah Banda have a very shallow understanding of the MMD philosophy and that the party membership must just resign to fate because then MMD under the current leadership cannot reform.
In an interview, Madyenkuku, who served in the MMD national executive committee (NEC) as an elected member from 1995 to 2001 before the late Levy Mwanawasa brought him back in 2007 to 2008, urged President Banda to keep his promise and leave the Presidency at the end of his term.
He said leaving as earlier promised would be President Banda's own contribution in attempting to revive the MMD.
“By doing that, he will have gone a long way in helping the MMD to resuscitate itself. Although it's already going to do that in very precarious and extremely difficult circumstances because as we are speaking now MMD has been hit by a tornado, it has been hit by a self-inflicted tornado whose full magnitude we are yet to know,” he said.
Madyenkuku said President Banda must not offer himself for the presidency because he promised to serve for only three years.
“If you want to look at the people surrounding President Banda, their understanding of the MMD philosophy is very shallow because they are basically all new and old members like Katele Kalumba, Jeff Kaande clearly you can see that they are on the periphery,” he said.
Madyenkunku also denounced the u-turn on the convention adding that if held, the convention would only be a mere circus.
“This is actually very deceptive to begin with. It is public knowledge that the MMD leadership did not want to go to the convention, there is no secret about it. But following public pressure they have been forced to concede and instead of coming clean that they have been able to see the point that people are making and that they regret having wanted to stop the convention, they are claiming that nobody in the MMD said there will be no convention whatsoever, a matter which is not true,” Madyenkuku said. “They are unable to come out and admit that they were wrong. This convention will not have any meaningful purpose whatsoever because it will have a serious credibility deficiency. To put it straight, it will be a sham! It is a desperate manouvre to hoodwink the people and the general membership at large that there will be a free expression of their views.
“Right now as I am speaking to you, the machinery is already underway on the ground to even influence the outcome of the district and subsequently the provincial elections so that only those who toll the line can be able to win positions in these structures and even at the end of day individuals are going to be picked at random to go to the convention. This is contrary to the provisions of the electoral regulations of the MMD constitution, which specify which office bearers could go to the convention.”
He maintained that it was pointless to hold the convention.
“MMD members must just resign to fate because it is going to serve no meaningful purpose. The MMD under the current leadership cannot reform. You need an extraordinary national plan, which is not in sight as far as I can see to revive the MMD. It is irreformable, it is incorigable, it has totally departed from the principles upon which we formed this party for which some of us were detained as political detainees in 1990,” Madyenkuku said. “The general membership of the party has fled to other parties. We have just a skeleton membership of very demoralised and demotivated cadres who cannot even rally the people behind MMD.
“He (President Banda) promised the people of Zambia that he wanted just to complete three years of the Mwanawasa period and it will be honourable for him to leave up to his promise. That was the promise during the campaign…I had given advice when I was a member of the NEC at the time when president Mwanawasa died because I saw that the party was digressing from the democratic path which it had always stood for. I gave him very honest advice in that meeting, which cost me my place in the NEC subsequently,” Madyenkuku said.
“Right now I know there are men and women of very high integrity in the NEC who have very sound ideas but who are afraid of speaking out because of the well-known consequence. I think that this convention is not going to solve any purpose whatsoever and I would not advise anybody to even attempt to stand at the convention because they are just going to legitimise an already predetermined outcome.”
Madyenkuku said MMD has stopped running the party on the basis of the outlined constitutional guidelines.
“It is now just running like a Kamikazi camp and the general rank and file as I have told you have deserted. That's why you find in some ward by-elections, the results they are getting are fewer than the number of party officials in the party structures in those wards put together. Just ask yourself how come?” Madyenkuku asked. “We should be under no illusion that the forthcoming convention will serve any purpose whatsoever. It will not even be enough to hold it in order to revive the public confidence that is fast eroding, an erosion of the magnitude of melting ice-cream in summer heat.”
Labels: ELECTIONS, RUPIAH BANDA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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Madyenkuku urges Rupiah to leave in 2011
By George Chellah
Tue 01 Dec. 2009, 04:00 CAT
THE MMD has been hit by a self-inflicted tornado whose full magnitude we are yet to know, MMD founder member and former Sinazongwe member of parliament Syacheye Madyenkuku has said.
And Madyenkuku said the people surrounding President Rupiah Banda have a very shallow understanding of the MMD philosophy and that the party membership must just resign to fate because then MMD under the current leadership cannot reform.
In an interview, Madyenkuku, who served in the MMD national executive committee (NEC) as an elected member from 1995 to 2001 before the late Levy Mwanawasa brought him back in 2007 to 2008, urged President Banda to keep his promise and leave the Presidency at the end of his term.
He said leaving as earlier promised would be President Banda's own contribution in attempting to revive the MMD.
“By doing that, he will have gone a long way in helping the MMD to resuscitate itself. Although it's already going to do that in very precarious and extremely difficult circumstances because as we are speaking now MMD has been hit by a tornado, it has been hit by a self-inflicted tornado whose full magnitude we are yet to know,” he said.
Madyenkuku said President Banda must not offer himself for the presidency because he promised to serve for only three years.
“If you want to look at the people surrounding President Banda, their understanding of the MMD philosophy is very shallow because they are basically all new and old members like Katele Kalumba, Jeff Kaande clearly you can see that they are on the periphery,” he said.
Madyenkunku also denounced the u-turn on the convention adding that if held, the convention would only be a mere circus.
“This is actually very deceptive to begin with. It is public knowledge that the MMD leadership did not want to go to the convention, there is no secret about it. But following public pressure they have been forced to concede and instead of coming clean that they have been able to see the point that people are making and that they regret having wanted to stop the convention, they are claiming that nobody in the MMD said there will be no convention whatsoever, a matter which is not true,” Madyenkuku said.
“They are unable to come out and admit that they were wrong. This convention will not have any meaningful purpose whatsoever because it will have a serious credibility deficiency. To put it straight, it will be a sham! It is a desperate manouvre to hoodwink the people and the general membership at large that there will be a free expression of their views.
“Right now as I am speaking to you, the machinery is already underway on the ground to even influence the outcome of the district and subsequently the provincial elections so that only those who toll the line can be able to win positions in these structures and even at the end of day individuals are going to be picked at random to go to the convention. This is contrary to the provisions of the electoral regulations of the MMD constitution, which specify which office bearers could go to the convention.”
He maintained that it was pointless to hold the convention.
“MMD members must just resign to fate because it is going to serve no meaningful purpose. The MMD under the current leadership cannot reform. You need an extraordinary national plan, which is not in sight as far as I can see to revive the MMD. It is irreformable, it is incorigable, it has totally departed from the principles upon which we formed this party for which some of us were detained as political detainees in 1990,” Madyenkuku said.
“The general membership of the party has fled to other parties. We have just a skeleton membership of very demoralised and demotivated cadres who cannot even rally the people behind MMD.
“He (President Banda) promised the people of Zambia that he wanted just to complete three years of the Mwanawasa period and it will be honourable for him to leave up to his promise. That was the promise during the campaign…I had given advice when I was a member of the NEC at the time when president Mwanawasa died because I saw that the party was digressing from the democratic path which it had always stood for. I gave him very honest advice in that meeting, which cost me my place in the NEC subsequently,” Madyenkuku said.
“Right now I know there are men and women of very high integrity in the NEC who have very sound ideas but who are afraid of speaking out because of the well-known consequence. I think that this convention is not going to solve any purpose whatsoever and I would not advise anybody to even attempt to stand at the convention because they are just going to legitimise an already predetermined outcome.”
Madyenkuku said MMD has stopped running the party on the basis of the outlined constitutional guidelines.
“It is now just running like a Kamikazi camp and the general rank and file as I have told you have deserted. That's why you find in some ward by-elections, the results they are getting are fewer than the number of party officials in the party structures in those wards put together. Just ask yourself how come?” Madyenkuku asked.
“We should be under no illusion that the forthcoming convention will serve any purpose whatsoever. It will not even be enough to hold it in order to revive the public confidence that is fast eroding, an erosion of the magnitude of melting ice-cream in summer heat.”
Labels: ELECTIONS, RUPIAH BANDA, SYACHEYE MADYENKUKU
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