Mubanga Mubanga and Isaac Zulu
UPND national youth trustee Charles Kabwita has asked former president Edgar Lungu to apologise to Zambians for all the bad things he made them go through.
And Political scientist Dr Neo Simutanyi said president Lungu’s Patriotic Front faction cannot form government in 2026.
Speaking in an interview with Daily Revelation, on president Lungu’s return to active politics, Kabwita said the Zambian people are still traumatized by the former head of state’s brutal regime.
“It so embarrassing to see Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu, without reflecting on the catastrophic calamities he inflicted on the people of Zambia. This man cannot just jump and say l have come back to active politics, without considering the calamities that the people of Zambia went through under his watch. We expected Mr. Lungu to apologize over the gassing. We were sleeping with whistles on our mouth, because the gassers were all over,” Kabwita said.
He charged that the administration of president Lungu was brutal and full of gangsters.
“Mr Lungu’s regime was brutal and was full of gangsters. Markets, bus stations were taken by his cadres. And some government institutions were run by PF cadreism,” Kabwita said.
He told president Lungu not to take the Zambian people for granted because they were not his Children.
“So Mr Lungu first of all should find time to apologise in all ten Provinces of Zambia and see if the people of Zambia will say yes, we have forgiven you. You shouldn’t take the people of Zambia for granted, we are not his children first and foremost, so he owes the people of Zambia an apology,” said Kabwita.
And Dr Simutanyi said it was difficult for Lungu’s faction to salvage themselves and reclaim political power, unless they form a different political party.
“I don’t want to be a prophet of doom. But speaking as a political scientist, I can tell you that Edgar Lungu Patriotic Front faction cannot form government in 2026. It is difficult for the Edgar Lungu faction to salvage themselves and reclaim political power,” Dr Simutanyi said. “And whatever Edgar Lungu and his faction are doing they are just wasting their time, which they could have used productively.”
He said what is currently happening in the Patriotic Front is the rerun of what transpired in the PF in the year 2014, stressing that this is not new thing on the Zambian political scene.
“If you remember the PF had two factions in 2014. One was under the leadership of Edgar Lungu who was elected by raising of hands and acclamation. And other contestants were barred from contesting. And another one is where GBM challenged Miles Sampa and GBM was defeated. So politically, what is happening in the Patriotic Front is just a rerun of what happened in the PF in 2026,” he said.
He also said Zambians should brace themselves for some parliamentary by-elections following the expulsion of some PF members of parliament by the Miles Sampa faction.
“The issue here is about legitimacy of the Patriotic Front leadership. And I know that those that have been expelled, whether legitimately or not, will challenge their expulsions through the Courts of Law, which is most likely to take long. These are not small issues, they are big political issues. But without going in the prejudice of the Courts, I can tell you that Zambians should brace themselves for some parliamentary by-elections,” said Dr Simutanyi.
