By Angela Moonga
Socialist Party (SP) leader Fred M’membe says Zambia will never be a better society if people continued replacing one fool with another, or one thief with another thief.
Featuring on a Radio programme in Mufulira over the weekend, M’membe Zambians he seen governments before, saying some people who were in government before and were seeking to take over from President Hakainde Hichilema’s did not have the same clean record as his SP colleague, former Commerce minister Bob Sichinga.
“We have seen governments before. Some of our friends who are competing with us were in government. They don’t have the record Bob Sichinga has. They have got damaged records. Are they the ones you want to put there?” M’membe asked. “You can accuse us that we are attacking our fellow opposition. No! We are contesting with everybody. We want the best people to lead this country, with or without us. Give this country a chance, we have better leadership.”
He said even in God’s scheme of things, leadership was very important.
“In the Bible, leadership was not just handed to fools, mwafumya ichipuba ichi, mwaisa bikapo ichipuba nachimbi. Mwafumya kabolala uyu mwaisabikapo kabolala naumbi (you remove one fool and replace them with another fool, or you remove one thief and replace them with another thief), and you expect society to be better,” M’membe said.
He said when choosing leadership, people must not focus on the one making the most noise, but one who was making more sense.
“It’s not about choosing the one who has gathered most musicians to sing and dance. We are not in a dancing contest. We are not in a song contest. The contest is about choosing leadership … the one who knows the country better, the one who can take care of the people of the country,” M’membe said.
He said while the role of singers was appreciated, however, if the country wanted singers to run the country, then parties would be fielding singers in the front.
M’membe said the country must not be deceived by liars, saying the UPND promised a lot but they had not delivered.
He denounced the practice of buying opposition candidates to withdraw from the races, saying the same was not only being done by the UPND but some of the opposition parties as well.
He said there would be no need to buy any candidate if people believed that they had delivered.
“The foolishness we have in Zambia is where leadership is being bought. And the pressure has not been only from UPND. There has been pressure also from others, even amongst the opposition,” said M’membe, with Sichinga who was appearing with him on the same programme adding, “we can’t allow that. That is corruption.”
M’membe said candidates were being offered K350,000s to withdraw from the race.
He said the SP candidate for Mufulira-Central Reagan Kashinga had been under immense pressure to withdraw from the race.
And Kashinga said the forces that were bribing people were scared of competition as they wanted to go unopposed, warning that “we shall destroy the country if we are not careful.
Interjecting, M’membe said freedom fighters did not buy Independence but now some people wanted to bring in the vile practice of buying leadership.
