By NATION REPORTER
MUMBI Phiri has proposed that the Patriotic Front (PF) should consider postponing its elective general conference to scuttle alleged machinations by the governing UPND to destabilise and cause confusion in the former ruling party.
But Davis Chama observes that Ms Phiri’s suggestions that the PF should shelve the holding of the convention until 2025 as personal opinion that did not represent the general view of the former ruling party.
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Ms Phiri is proposing that the PF should consider deferring the elective general conference to 2025 because, according to her, there is a plot by the UPND to fan confusion in the former ruling party so that it could disintegrate before the 2026 general elections.
Ms Phiri said, the former deputy secretary general of the PF who was recently freed from Mongu Prison on a nolle prosequi after 429 days said the UPND was rattled that the PF had remained united and strong despite losing power in 2021.
She said she was aware that the UPND was plotting to cause confusion in the PF by sawing seeds of despondency so that the former ruling party could be weakened and become easy to defeat.
“It is in in the best interest of the party that it should postpone the election to 2025 so as it does not get destabilized. There are machinations by the UPND to cause confusion in the PF so that the party could be weakened and disintegrate. The PF has been intact even without a president as those acting office bearers have done a good job in keeping it afloat and hence the need not to rush into going for a convention,” Ms Phiri said.
Ms Phiri stated that as a right thinking member of the PF, she would support the proposal to delay the elective congress because the mandate of the leadership that was elective at the last convention in 2021 had not yet expired.
She said the UPND and other non-PF members should not worry about what was happenings in the former ruling party because the former ruling party was united and intact, with all its structures in place.
But Mr Chama said as far as the party was concerned, the leadership had made it clear that it would hold its convention as soon as possible and that what was slowing it down was the court cases that had been undertaken by one of their own.
Mr Chama said the PF had discussed the holding of the convention in the central committee which Ms Phiri was part of and that it was unfortunate and that her views were personal.
“As far as the party is concerned we have made a road map to go for a general conference and it’s just that one of our own has gone to court and this is delaying the process for our preparations of the general conference,” Mr Chama said
He said the party was ready to hold the general conference as soon as possible once the court cases were disposed of.
Mr Chama said the party had not changed its stance over the general conference and that if Ms Phiri was making statements outside the central committee then it was unfortunate because she was a senior member of the party.
“If madam Phiri has a different view over the general conference then she should table it in the meeting and not like this,” he said.
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