I didn’t know UPND planned to kill PF – Miles

…the Matero lawmaker says he is not ‘miles away’ from his archrival Jay Jay Banda in defense of democracy and has urged Zambians to respect former President Edgar Lungu

By NATION REPORTER

MILES Sampa has said that until now, he did not know that the UPND had an agenda of reducing the numbers for the opposition Members of Parliament by orchestrating the plan to kill and annihilate the Patriotic Front (PF), the country’s largest opposition political grouping.
Mr Sampa has vowed that he will endeavour to fight any schemes by the UPND to continue inducing by-elections by arbitrary expelling PF MPs from parliament on flimsy grounds in a bid to bolster its numbers in the House.
Mr Sampa, the Matero lawmaker said by-elections were such an expensive undertaking and that it was not in the interest of Zambians, who he said were suffocating under the ever-increasing cost of living.
He said he had joined the petition against Speaker of the National Assembly, Nellie Mutti’s desire to declare the Petauke Central parliamentary seat vacant without following Standing Orders.
“I did not know that UPND had a bigger agenda to reduce the number of PF Members of Parliament and when I realised that Robert Chabinga and Morgan Ng’ona were working behind my back, I stopped the expulsion of the nine PF MPs,” Mr Sampa said.
Mr Sampa said it was one reason he fired Mr Chabinga as Leader of the Opposition in Parliament because he had realised that the Mafinga MP was working and doing things behind his back. He said he would not support lawlessness hence his decision to side with Mr Banda the Petauke Central Independent MP.
“I stand with Nickson Chilangwa (the jailed Kawambwa PF MP), I stand with Jay Jay (Banda). The implication of by-elections to the nation is huge. This is