By ROGERS KALERO
UPND President Hakainde Hichilema must not be shocked that some traditional leaders are endorsing the candidature of President Edgar Lungu in the August elections because Senior Chief Mukuni has led the way in taking a partisan stance in support of the opposition, Mufulira ex-miners have said.
Mr Gift Mushinge, the patron of the Mufulira Ex-Miners, said Mr Hichilema should not cry foul when traditional leaders endorse the candidature of President Lungu because Seior Chief Mukuni had set the trend by literally becoming a UPND cadre.
This was in reaction to Mr Hichilema who said recently that traditional leaders should not endorse the candidature of President Lungu or any other candidate openly.
His complaint came in the wake of eight village indunas in Liuwa constituency in Kalabo, pledging to support President Lungu in the August 12, 2021elections
But Mr Mushinge said President Lungu was enjoying massive support among traditional leaders, hence Mr Hichilema should also continue parading Chief Mukuni as his supporter.
“Mr Hichilema is not happy that some traditional leaders in Western Province have pledged support for President Lungu. If those traditional leaders had pledged support for him, he would have kept quiet and possibly would have welcomed the support.
“But because they are supporting President Lungu, he has decided to protest about it. Just a reminder, Mr Hichilema should first tell Senior Chief Mukuni to stop behaving like his cadre so that other politicians can have trust and confidence in him,” he said.
Mr Mushinge said President Lungu has gone through a lot of challenges from the time he became Republican President, but God has been on his side despite that the opposition wanting to capitalise on everything including the effects of Covid-19
He said the UPND had no ability to address the economic challenges the country was facing, but were merely after power for fame and prestige
“We are facing various challenges in our economies because of this Covid-19. In this country, we are trying to do something, but some of our neighbours, the situation is bad. Lives have been lost and economies have been devastated,” Mr Mushinge added.
