LUSAMBO TELLS OFF HH

Sat, 14 Jan 2017 11:31:43 +0000

By VIOLET TEMBO

HAKAINDE Hichilema is the greyest opposition political leader Zambia has ever had and it is not surprising that he has failed to convince Zambians to entrust him with State power, Copperbelt Minister Bowman Lusambo has charged.

Reacting to Mr Hichilema’s attacks against President Edgar Lungu over his intention to seek re-election in the 2021 general elections, Mr. Lusambo said the opposition leader should accept his fate and desist from utterances on issues he had little or no understanding of the Constitution.

Mr. Lusambo said President Lungu was a lawyer by profession and had clear understanding of the articles contained in the amended Constitution.

He said Zambians had voted for President Lungu and there were no two ways about it, pledging that his constituency was ready to mount serious campaign for the re-election of President Lungu in 2021.

“President Lungu is eligible to stand in 2021 and there are no two ways about it. Zambians voted for him as Republican President and we are going to give him the protection and support he requires in running the affairs of the country. President Lungu understands and he is able to interpret the Constitution better than Mr Hichilema and other visionless leaders that have continued to rumble the third term noise. No one can stop President Lungu from running for presidency in 2021, that I can assure you,” Mr Lusambo said.

Mr. Lusambo charged that the pronouncement by President Lungu, who is leader of the Patriotic Front (PF) that he was ready for 2021, had dwarfed the ambitions of Mr Hichilema of ever ascending to the presidency of Zambia.

He said President Lungu had delivered to the expectations of Zambians and showed that his strategies were working out well for the majority of the people.

He challenged Mr Hichilema to put his house in order by ensuring that the party had its convention and adhered to democratic tenets.

“There is no democracy in UPND and they have failed to even hold a convention, yet the Constitution of the country demands that all political parties should hold regular democratic and transparent elections if they were to participate in the country’s general elections. Mr Hichilema has been president for UPND for a long time,” he said.

He has urged Mr. Hichilema to stop showing ignorance to the world by keeping quiet on matters he had no understanding such as the constitutional provisions on the eligibility of a presidential candidate.