Today's Letters

Mon, 12 Jun 2017 11:51:06 +0000

VJ’s being sycophantic to the UPND leadership

Dear Editor,

It is said that the real hero, is the man who fights even though he is scared. But can that apply to Zambia’s veteran politician and UPND sympathizer Vernon Mwaanga (VJ)? I doubt it.

I don’t know about you, but I am getting really worried by VJ’s antics when he claimed that the 2016 general elections left a divided country, characterised by the alleged refusal by the Constitutional Court to hear the presidential election petition and the consequent non-recognition of President Edgar Lungu by UPND (“VJ calls for dialogue without preconditions”, Daily Nation, June 10, 2017).

First, I put it down to his UPND sycophancy, but the veteran politician’s subsequent U-turns in the last few weeks have given me cause to wonder if there isn’t more to him than merely being sycophantic to the incarcerated UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema.

Whichever way one looks at VJ, there is a good reason why right-thinking Zambians should take what he advises and suggests on the Zambian political scene with a pinch of salt.

I guess you know what I am driving at. After threatening that printing of ballot papers in Dubai would lead to the Zambian government rig the 2016 general elections, the UPND then went on, a few weeks later, through the Post Newspaper (in liquidation) to allege that 500,000 Malawians had allegedly registered as voters in Eastern Province they did this in order to divert people’s attention from UPND’s own electoral malpractices. I bet many of you may have forgotten UPND’s age-cheating in the registration of first-time voters that disgustingly took place in Southern Province.

All in all, for the good of the good country in which he resides, VJ should decide where he stands. He cannot say one thing today meant to cause electoral havoc in Zambia, and proceed tomorrow to shoot his big idea of election rigging down to his fellow UPND supporters, with confused ideas about what dialogue without preconditions means.

The lesson which this teaches the ordinary Zambians is simple: we should not allow ourselves to be bamboozled by UPND lackeys and cronies who have fallen into political and economic irrelevance and who crave a return to their ignoble glory days. And those who try to foist their post-election questionable ideas of a divided country, characterised by the alleged refusal by the Constitutional Court to hear the presidential election petition on us when those ideas conflict sharply with our own post-election ideas and analysis.

In the final analysis, however, it does not mean that we should tolerate the culture of impudence and of impunity exhibited by the opposition leaders who champion the non-recognition of President Edgar Lungu narrative. This is a salutary lesson to VJ and the political party he supports – the UPND.

Mubanga Luchembe,

LUSAKA

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Stop using Kaizer Zulu’s name for selfish reasons

Dear Editor,

It is sad that the friendliness that the special assistant to the President for politics Kaizer Zulu is giving to some youths in the Patriotic Front (PF) is being abused to the extent that his name is being destroyed without his knowledge.

Why would one pretend that Kaizer Zulu has instructed him to go and collect money from Indians to set up a meeting with President Edgar Chagwa Lungu?

How can the whole lot of Kaizer Zulu demand for a $ 400 as commission for setting up a meeting with President Edgar Chagwa Lungu?

One would wonder why some civil servants despise PF and President Edgar Chagwa Lungu and yet we have some youths on a daily basis busy threatening civil servants to say if you don’t do this, I will ask Kaizer Zulu to fire or transfer you, something that the political advisor is not even aware of.

Some PF members mostly on the Copperbelt have been swindled a lot of money all in the name of Kaizer Zulu without his knowledge by some scrupulous and overzealous PF youths.

Now it answers the question why there is a lot of animosity and resentment from the general public towards Kaizer Zulu all because of such malicious issues that he himself knows nothing about.

Today I won’t expose names but those in the habit of doing so should refrain or I will be forced to reveal next time.

Let us all protect the Patriotic Front party, its leadership and President Edgar Chagwa Lungu and not indirectly destroy their names by swindling people.

We were all given an equal opportunity to build our political names during campaigns, so if you are not known to the public then keep it to yourself and stop using other people’s names to embezzle or threaten innocent citizens.

Maxwell Chongu

PF die-hard

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HH not above the law

Dear Editor,

The thinking by some section of society that HH should be pardoned by the President is not only absurd but also bad at law. This country is governed by laws not classes, it is disheartening to hear those who should be guiding some of us who are not experts at law to understand that in this country no one is above the law advocating that HH must be released before the courts conclude his case.

How many of Zambians have left their families and are languishing in prison to answer to their crimes they committed?  Others by mistaken identity, others by circumstances beyond their control, are they not human beings as well?

Where has Isaac Mwanza of YALI been when all our prison facilities were getting full with 90 percent of Zambians for him to claim that he is a human rights defender in the case of HH? Is it because he is rich? Or is it a case of wanting to be liked by the western imperialists?

Whatever the case, let us leave the courts of law to adjudicate the case conclusively that is when the President can consider using his prerogative of mercy if HH is convicted. It is premature to call for that.

Actually, HH has not even shown remorse going by his party’s many misguided statements. It is also laughable to hear the so called governance experts and some bogus economists pointing to the fact that Zambian international profile is being damaged by the arrest of HH.

In fact, it is achieving the opposite because the investors and the international community in general look at whether the laws of the land are followed by both the government and the citizens of that particular country and how strong the justice system is. What is wrong with us Zambians?

Citizens in other countries fight to protect the law, anyone who breaks the law is made to answer to his or her crime without interference from the citizens regardless of his or her class in society.

No wonder the Americans want to know the truth whether Russia and the Trump campaign team colluded to influence the presidential election outcome in that country today, they are not looking at who is involved here, they are looking at whether the president’s campaign team broke the law of the land.

If we allow the politicians to get away with murder, the prison facilities in this country will not be improved because it will only be for the poor ordinary citizens, the arrest of HH is a lesson to all politicians that every Zambian is a potential prisoner. It is for this reason that I wish to commend the current government for bringing sanity.

Today, every class of Zambian citizen can either be arrested or pardoned by the authority using the existing laws. This is how it should be not looking at names. I urge the Government to continue to follow up on all those that are breaking the law including those that are stealing from government by working with the private businesses by inflating the prices of goods and services that are procured by government.

This kind of crime has reached unacceptable levels and should be fought with the seriousness, otherwise the government is losing lots of money. Let us learn to advise our friends to live in the way of Jehovah so that we can avoid what happened to HH.

Enock

Lusaka