Let’s stand up for democracy – Kalumba
By Staff Reporter
OPPOSITION Democratic Party (DP) president Gift Kalumba says Zambians should stand up to defend democracy, which is being threatened under the Patriotic Front government.
On Tuesday, Kalumba whose party was deregistered by Registrar of Societies in June this year on operational technicalities led hundreds of DP members in escorting Bahati member of parliament Harry Kalaba for interrogations at the Copperbelt Police Division headquarters in Ndola.
However, the the Lusaka High Court reversed de-registration of the DP last week and ordered the Registrar of Societies to issue it with a new certificate of registration.
Kalumba said the DP was back with renewed vigor to challenge the injustices perpetrated by those in power.
“This is where all democratic Zambians need to stand up and say democracy is being defeated,” Kalumba said. “But we can make one statement very clearly that we shall not relent, we shall not give up on what is right. In fact, we are launching an attack on the Goliath that has stunted the progress that this country is supposed to make. This country is endowed with a lot of wealth that we can share equally and if any of our progressive members like Honourable Kalaba, who is a candidate in 2021 under the Democratic Party, is going to be harassed in such a manner, we are going to stand with him through and through.”
He pledged that the DP would strive, now and in the government, to revamp the spirit of patriotism because the opposition political party was standing for the right thing.
“We are not standing for anybody but the future of our children,” Kalumba noted.
“We feel pity for the police because we know that they are being abused – they no longer have the authority that they had. The Democratic Party will come to reinstate the police’s professional position. This journey of trying to get rid of the average political leadership of arrogance and indifference is coming, come 2021. I can guarantee you, as I’m warming this seat for Honourable Kalaba for 2021, that a miracle will happen. Abantu bakatola imipamba (people will get the shock of their lives.) We are going to win because we are the new majority.”
On Kalaba’s delay to officially respond to the DP’s invitation that he contests as a presidential candidate in 2021, Kalumba said the party was still confident that the former foreign affairs minister would respond positively.
“Whatever happened in this period where we where de-registered gave us a lot of time to think and re-orient our position that as Democratic Party, we still want Honourable Kalaba to be the card-bearer for Democratic Party. Personally as president, I have had so many chances to talk with him and whatever he believes in and what the Democratic Party believes in is the same,” explained Kalumba.
“We don’t by any second doubt that he will stand on our ticket because what we are offering as the Democratic Party, even Barack Obama can accept [to be a member!] We are saying that we want the future of this country to be returned to the Zambian people. This means the Zambians have to be the ones in charge of all contracts in government and to be having a very good share in the mining sector and that’s what Honourable Kalaba believes in. We have to make sure that we re-orient our education system so that it is tailored to the needs of this nation and if there is any better platform that Honourable Kalaba can stand on, it’s the Democratic Party.”
