PF, UPND lock horns over  bus stations, markets

Sun, 22 Jan 2017 12:15:16 +0000

By BENNIE MUNDANDO

LET the UPND dare try to take over bus stations and markets in Southern Province and see what we will do to them because these are public places where all Zambians are free to work from, the PF in the Southern Province has warned.

Provincial information and publicity secretary Leonard Siachona told the Daily Nation yesterday that the threats by UPND that it would take over the running of bus stations and markets were retrogressive and that whoever would attempt to engage in such would be dealt with squarely by the law.

Mr. Siachona said PF secretary general Davies Chama’s statement did not mean that the cadres were supposed to wrestle the facilities from the council but that just like any other Zambians, the cadres needed to take a leading role in running businesses in markets and bus stations.

He said the PF was alive to the fact that such facilities were in the hands of the local councils and were governed by laws which gave powers to the local authorities to effectively run them and warned that anyone fanning trouble in the province will be dealt with decisively.

“Let them try to bring confusion in the markets and bus stations in Southern Province and see what will happen to them. The UPND has gone too far and this time around, we shall deal with them accordingly. The PF will apprehend whoever will cause confusion in these facilities and surrender them to the police so that the law can take its course.

“Have they ever seen any PF official or cadre running any bus station or market in the country? They just want to promote illegality while hiding in the name of our SG but that will never be tolerated. These are public places where all Zambians have an equal opportunity to trade in and so, we expect the UPND to be civil when talking about such issues,” Mr. Siachona said.

He said Zambians knew that the UPND was a violent party that never practiced decent politics but only preoccupied with antagonism.