Mucheleka confident despite bloody campaigns in Chilubi
By Staff Reporter
Opposition United Party for National Development (UPND) deputy national secretary Patrick Mucheleka is confident his party would scoop the Chilubi parliamentary by-election despite the violence instigated by the ruling Patriotic Front.
There have been scenes of bloody violence since President Edgar Lungu went to Chilubi to drum up support for PF candidate Mulenga Fube in an election necessitated by the death of Rossaria Fundanga last year.
Mucheleka believes that his party would cause an upset when the people go for polls tomorrow.
Mucheleka said his team was ambushed by PF thugs believed to be from Lusaka with a view of intimidating the opposition and the voters in tomorrow’s by-elections.
He said two of the campaign team members were hacked around 17:00 hours yesterday when their vehicle was ambushed.
“They just went in front of our vehicle and blocked us. They came out armed with all sorts of weapons – machets, knives and AK 47 guns and two of our members were injured badly,” narrated Mucheleka.
The thugs damaged a Hilux Toyota registration number ALM 2787 belonging to the UPND campaign team.
Last week, Police cancelled campaign meetings for the opposition leaders claiming that the Head of State would be in the area for six days in the run up to the elections.
UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema and National Democratic Congress (NDC) leader Chishimba Kambwili were expelled from Chilubi.
The two opposition parties participating in the Chilubi by-election have since petitioned the Elections Commission of Zambia (ECZ) in the Lusaka High Court to postpone the elections due to unfair and undemocratic management of the by-election.
