By SIMON MUNTEMBA
IT is shameful that Senior Chief Mukuni has continued to issue alarming and reckless statements against government and myself for personal benefits but he must know that unlike him, we did not spend nights at the graveyard to be national leaders, Minister of Home Affairs Stephen Kampyongo has said.
Mr Kampyongo said it was unfortunate that a traditional leader of Senior Chief Mukuni’s calibre would deliberately issue unsubstantiated alarming and misleading statements to the public.
Senior Chief Mukuni recently accused Government and Mr Kampyongo of having halted the issuance of National Registration Cards (NRCs) in Southern Province for fear of losing power once a lot of people in the region get NRCs and voter’s cards
But Mr Kampyongo expressed displeasure with the manner Senior Chief Mukuni was giving false and misleading information to the public.
“I think that there must come a time when we as leaders have to be responsible in the manner we issue certain statements or make comments on certain issues of national interest otherwise, if we issue statements without obtaining facts on the ground then we don’t deserve the responsibility of leadership that our people bestow on us,” Mr Kampyongo said.
The minister said being a traditional leader did not warrant one to go about making false claims about national programmes.
Mr Kampyongo said contrary to the lies peddled by the traditional leader, Government only closed down Southern Province offices for a day so as to facilitate for an internal audit of registration materials and equipment.
He wondered why issues of violence seem to excite Senior Chief Mukuni who should, instead be in the forefront discouraging it.
Mr Kampyongo said if turmoil was to erupt in Zambia it would not spare Senior Chief Mukuni’s palace and entire chiefdom which would render him as homeless as many other Zambians who would be caught up in the web of violence.
He said Senior Chief Mukuni’s obsession with him and the Ministry of Home Affairs was quite disheartening.
“This is the same chief who not long ago challenged me to go and spend a night at the graveyard like he does himself, now it must be known to him that I don’t need to spend my night at the graveyard to be a national leader and be able to perform my sworn duties as minister of Home Affairs,” Mr Kampyongo said.
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