Resign now that you have lost, Kambwili tells Mwila
By Staff Reporter
OPPOSITION National Democratic Congress (NDC) leader Chishimba Kambwili has reminded Patriotic Front Secretary General Davies Mwila to honour his promise by resigning after losing the Roan parliamentary seat.
And UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema has congratulated the alliance partner NDC for scooping the Roan parliamentary seat.
Speaking last night following NDC candidate Joseph Chishala winning the Roan seat, Kambwili said he also expected PF’s media director Sunday Chanda to resign together with Mwila.
He also said told President Edgar Lungu that keeping Mwila and Chanda would make the ruling party even more vulnerable to loosing future elections.
“Bowman Lusambo, Richard Musukwa and Kampamba Mulenga see you in your constituencies’ next week. I will be visiting NDC structures in Kabushi, Kalulushi and Chililabombwe, I am coming for you one by one,” promised Kambwili
And Hichilema sent special congratulations to Chishala and Kambwili for putting up a spirited fight and saying together they would overcome the ruling party.
“Many thanks also go to our party members and supporters who joined us in supporting and voting for our colleague from NDC. We all know who is causing the country untold misery, let’s unite and democratically remove them from the driving seat……Mwabombeni abena Roan,” Said Hichilema
Meanwhile, Patriots for Economic Progress (PeP) has also extended their hearty congratulations to the Opposition Alliance partners, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for scooping the Roan seat.
PeP president Sean Tembo said the victory was a culmination of both hard work of the NDC team as well as the general loss of confidence in the ruling PF and its Government by the citizenry, due to their infinite incompetence, arrogance, gluttony and corruption.
“As Patriots for Economic Progress, we believe that the NDC victory in Roan is further testimony that each alliance member is bringing value to the Alliance table and that an Alliance electoral pact for 2021 general elections, with the right presidential candidate and right running mate, would be the most assured way of ensuring that the opposition is victorious and the citizens are redeemed from the current suffering under the PF and its Government. As we move towards 2021 with the Alliance project, we are cognizant of the fact that certain members of the Alliance partners may feel that the Alliance is threatening their positions in their respective political parties. However, as leaders, in our quest to reassure our members that their positions within our respective political parties are secure, we must trade carefully so as not to indirectly undermine the Alliance, which would only be to the benefit of our opponents in the ruling PF who would only be too happy to see the Alliance weakened,” cautioned Tembo.
He said it is their considered view that it would be very difficult for any of the opposition political parties to single-handedly beat the ruling PF in 2021.
“Therefore, instead of members of any political party jostling for positions in an imaginary future Government which might never materialize, at the expense of opposition unity, each opposition political party must focus on how best to create and strengthen ties and synergies with fellow opposition political parties in preparation for a more robust showdown against the PF in 2021. Given the extent to which the ruling PF have damaged not only the economy but all institutions of governance, the drive to replace them with a better Government in 2021 is a matter of public interest. Therefore, the need for opposition unity must not be premised on the self-interests of any individual political party or member of a political party, but rather on the need to give salvation to the Zambian people based on how much they have suffered under the current regime. The people are very expectant of the Opposition Alliance and we must ensure that we do not disappoint the people whether advertently or inadvertently in our quest to try and assure our members that their positions are secure in our respective political parties,” he said
Tembo added that Zambians deserve better and we must not deprive them of the chance to have a competent, patriotic and accountable government in 2021 because of the fear to offend the sensibilities of some of our members in our respective political parties.
Meanwhile, the PF has congratulated the NDC and UPND for their joint victory in Roan Constituency by way of a protest vote that has been handed to the Patriotic Front.
Speaking during a media briefing in Lusaka this morning, Mwila accepted that the result did not go their way.
“We still receive it with thanksgiving and we shall be going back to Roan constituency to thank the people. We shall re-group, re-strategize and re-launch ourselves in Roan,” he said.
Mwila disclosed that the party would carry out a postmortem of ‘this painful setback and we will ensure that we regain our footprint in the constituency’.
“Most importantly, we know the issues that led to this protest vote, we will go back and listen to ensure they are attended to,” he said.
He stated that the party would take time to listen to the people including those who had been continuously fed on deceit.
“Ours is to go back to the people! We are going back to Roan Constituency. This is what democracy is all about; the people have a right to make their choice and we respect that,” he said.
Mwila has also thanked the general membership of the PF and all those who voted for PF in Roan.
“This is merely a setback, we are poised for a major comeback,” he said.
