By BARNABAS ZULU
UPND Lusaka Province Chairperson Obvious Mwaliteta, has confidently declared that the ruling party will win the Petauke Central seat in the upcoming by-election, citing the positive impact of the policies introduced by President Hakainde Hichilema.
The Petauke seat became vacant following the disappearance of former MP Emmanuel Jay Banda. The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) has scheduled the by-election for February.
However, Mr Mwaliteta believes the UPND is in a strong position to retain the seat.
Speaking about the by-election, Mr Mwaliteta said, “I don’t know what President Kalaba was trying to say there because this is the same ECZ that oversaw everything. They have never plunged this country into war. Even when we were in opposition, we feared that ECZ might cause chaos, but it was the same ECZ that conducted the 2021 elections. To accuse them of helping the UPND is not true. Harry Kalaba, President of CF, is offside.”
Mr Mwaliteta also emphasised that the UPND does not need assistance from ECZ, asserting, “We don’t need help from ECZ anyway. We are a mature and formidable political party. When we founded this party, we were in opposition for a long time, so we know how to win elections. We know how to campaign. I was talking to a colleague who was there, Brian, and he said, ‘Now we know how to campaign.’ It is very easy to campaign because of HH’s policies.”
On the success of UPND’s recent campaigns, Mr Mwaliteta pointed to the example of Kawambwa, where he claimed the party’s policies had made a significant impact. “In Kawambwa, all the children are going to school because of free education. UPND is standing on strong grounds because of these policies.
We have a lot of messages to give out to people. In Kawambwa, the government is very transparent, especially regarding cash transfers. Everyone is benefiting from the free education policy,” he said.
Mr Mwaliteta also highlighted the government’s achievements in addressing food security, specifically in Shangombo, a region that had previously been plagued by hunger.
“Today, if we had any other government, we would have heard about Shangombo. We heard about Shangombo because of hunger. But nobody is talking about Shangombo today because of the good policies of HH. He has allowed the FRA selling point in all the wards,” he explained.
He expressed confidence in UPND’s ability to replicate its success in Petauke. “It was easy for our colleagues in Kawambwa to campaign. Those women you saw in the queue, there were differently-abled people and others. It was easy. We will go to Petauke, and we will do the same. We will win. The opposition should prepare themselves. We are winning because of the good policies,” Mr Mwaliteta said.
