ACCEPTANCE SPEECH
I want to acknowledge and appreciate the presence of the leadership from the United Kwacha Alliance – UKA, with whom the CF has forged an alliance that and through which we will be able to rid this nation of this repressive and divisive government that has been consistently inconsistent in all its dealings.
I also acknowledge and appreciate the leaders from other political parties, members of the civil society, well-wishers and friends that have taken time to witness what we are doing today as we seek to set in motion our level of preparedness to weather the challenges that our detractors may wish to inflict on us in a quest to derail our progress.
I acknowledge the Chairman of the Citizens First, Hon. Levyson Mumba, the man with whom I have had the privilege of walking closely with in the last two years and I am happy to announce that he will be retaining in his capacity as Chairman so that we may continue to benefit from his wisdom as we prepare for the 2026 General Elections which are due within the next 20 months.
Dear delegates, friends and partners, I accept your election as President of the Citizens First and make a commitment to steer the Party to a higher level of engagement and mobilization as we seek to work with other progressive partners in our quest to rid the nation of this repressive and divisive government and usher in a pro-poor government that reflects the aspirations of the majority of Zambians.
It is with a deep sense of duty and higher resolve, that I accept the position of President of the CF. My Acceptance comes with a full realization of the burden it places on me like all partners in the United Kwacha Alliance and indeed in the opposition, to hold those in government accountable for the hardship they have brought to the people of Zambia. Hardship that has been compounded by a litany of lies perpetuated at the very core of the leadership of those in government including the President himself.
Just the other day, the Vice President was quoted as saying that the number of HIV AIDS cases are on the increase especially among the youth. What she failed to state was that this number has increased owing to the untold poverty and hanger that her government has inflicted on the citizens of this country and as always the most-hard hit are women and the youth. She also failed to mention that owing to her governments’ failure to order drugs on time resulted in people having heightened viral load which advertently result in higher vulnerability to partners. She also failed to say to the nation that hunger levels have increased from the time the UPND assumed office, resulting in higher maternal and infant mortality rates.
This government has moved corruption to the highest it has ever been in the history of Zambia. Over the last 60 years we have never had a government that has been as corrupt as the UPND government. A government whose leaders feel its ok to make deals through proxies externalize all the proceeds while Zambians are left wallowing in abject poverty. For the first time in the history of Zambia we have seen a negative outflow of FDI. This is unprecedented by any standard but thanks to a corrupt government, they do not see anything wrong with that, besides it being flagged by state actors.
We have a government and a leader that finds is hard to follow laid down procedures and thrives in abusing resources for their own self-interest. How does a serving Civil Servant offer his own company to make a multi-million Dollar procurement using his own company and it does not even get flagged throughout the procurement process? How many more of such rotten transactions is this government involved in that are yet to come out in public?
As I accept this election, I want to call upon all CF members starting from Members of Central Committee to the very last man and woman in the line of defense at the Section level, to ensure that we go back and speed up the mobilization of our Party and ensure that we encourage friends and family to join us in our quest to call as many citizens as possible to register as voters. Let us make use of the continuous voter registration to get as many people as possible to register as voters. We must start the exercise of encouraging our friends and family members not to wait until it is too late to register as voters. We are aware of the schemes at play that may involve shortage of materials and equipment in a bid to disenfranchise citizens from some parts of the country. It is therefore cardinal that we get as many people as possible to register as Voters now!!
I am alive to the fact that the victory we seek is not an easy one because we are faced with a regime that has committed many atrocities and is willing to go to extremes to protect their criminal acts. We are however consoled that we have the resolve of the citizens on our side and more importantly the will of God to restore the nation to its state of being a beacon of hope and a place of refuge for many.
And I end with the quote by Sir Winston Churchill that he made to the House of Commons on 13th May, 1940;
“I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat”
And so to those who want to join us on this journey of restoring hope for mother Zambia, join us because it is the right thing to do so that together we can RESET the nation and bring it back on the path of progress and growth.
I would reiterate and affirm that I accept the Presidency of the CF with a full and grateful heart that is noble and without reservation and with only one obligation. And that obligation is to devote every effort of body, mind and spirit to lead our Party and its Alliance Partners into victory and restore our country back to greatness and regain its dignity of being consulted and trusted as an integral part of the global community.
I thank you and God Bless our Nation Zambia.
Harry Kalaba
7th December, 2024
