By Staff Reporter
Major Ben Phiri has insisted that Development Bank of Zambia (DBZ) chairperson Noel Nkhoma authored the statement in support of Angela Cifire’s position that appointments to key public positions are skewed towards Southern, Western, North Western and Lenje speaking areas of Central Province.
Reacting to a statement where Nkhoma is purportedly denying having issued the statement and that he had even called Maj Phiri on the same, Maj Phiri said Nkhoma posted the statement in the whatsapp Group for UPND Eastern Province where they are both members.
“This statement from Noel was apparently supported by postings from Mr Nason Msoni who has come out prominently supporting this position and quoting Noel Nkhoma. So he can’t refuse. He has not called me. He has not communicated with me,” Maj Phiri said. “I stand by my word that hr authored this implying that the President has been biased on his selection criteria which I vehemently oppose.
“Let me conclude by stating that Noel Nkhoma is the one who wrote the following statement which was posted on our UPND Eastern group… And it ends in his trademark style of “Zikomo”
In the comment, Nkhoma stated that there was a lot of talk on social media on the tribally inclined appointments in the UPND administration.
Maj Phiri stated that following his earlier statement in which he responded to Nkhoma, he had been inundated with all manner of calls from a myriad of people hailing from the East.
“For avoidance of doubt, l happen to be one of the Easterners and l strongly abhor any form of sectarianism which is being championed by well known habitua politicall defectors. I also want to state that l stand by my statement(s) on account of my recognition of President Hichilema’s well intentioned programs,” Maj Phiri stated. “Firstly, l find it odd very odd that new entrants would want to hide behind the so called ethnically inclined presidential appointments when we can clearly see that their MMD/PF instincts of “chancing” political opportunities have not vacated them . Zambia is a unitary State with more than 73 tribes inhabiting our country under the One Zambia One Nation motto.
“People like Noel Nkhoma, who has been a political “Vasco da Gama” moving from MMD to PF with what l suspect to have been a stint in the now moribund DP, can not possibly stand today and accuse President Hichilema of bias in his appointments so far made. That kind of scheming was only possible in Lungus time not now when we have a meticulous President who is neither susceptible nor prone to the unenviable art of mudslinging others to the appointing authority. “
He wondered on what basis Nkhoma could pretend to have the legitimacy to point out what he erroneously considers regionally tilted appointments.
“We have people like our Deputy National Chairman Amb Andrew Banda who have toiled for the UPND from inception but has not uttered a word in form of a complaint against the President’s appointments! What about Potipher Tembo who stood in Chawama but also comes from Eastern province? If our respected elder like Amb Andrew have continued supporting the party in general and President Hichilema in particular, why should the eleventh hour UPND entrants throw mud at the President?” asked Maj Phiri.
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