Sat, 23 Dec 2017 10:10:46 +0000
By Chite Mtonga
EVERYTHING in the United Party for National Development UPND revolves around Hakainde Hichilema and those who are considering taking up positions in the party should seriously brace themselves for political exploitation and intimidation, the party’s former deputy spokesperson Edwin Lifwekelo has said.
Commenting on assertions that the UPND is considering courting a vice president from the Eastern Province, Mr Lifwekelo said people should start to ask themselves why the UPND had changed vice presidents six times under the leadership of Mr Hichilema.
Mr Lifwekelo told the Daily Nation that Mr Hichilema was only interested in exploiting politicians in an attempt to depict the party as regionally balanced.
He said there was no intra party democracy in the UPND and Mr Hichilema was trying to give the party some national character.
“The UPND is Hichilema’s property and he runs it that way, there are no collective decisions in the UPND, he funds the party, gives people positions and can even fire them at will, the only reason why he would consider an easterner for the VP position is because he wants to replace Canisius Banda to give the party a balance regionally, but once he is challenged over a decision that VP will be out, and that is how HH is like,”Mr Lifwekelo said.
He said those who were considering joining the party should know that Mr Hichilema only wanted to use them as a camouflage to achieve his political ambition of becoming president at all cost.
Mr Lifwekelo said UPND was a one-man show and no one could separate the party from Mr Hichilema.
“I was in the UPND and I can tell you that HH makes decisions alone, he only consults those who he knows believe in his thinking, you know the so-called blue eyed boys within the party, that is the way it is, the man does not listen to anyone, if you advise him you are out and this is how even Canisius was victimised,” he said.
Mr Lifwekelo said legislation should be put in place to bar people like Mr Hichilema from running political parties like personal property.
“I feel a law must be put in place to ensure that there is intra party democracy in opposition parties because people like Hichilema will continue standing as president and behaving like the alpha and omega in political parties,” Mr Lifwekelo.
Mr Lifwekelo further added that the behavior and conduct of Mr Hichilema had poisoned the fertile land on dialogue between the UPND and PF.
