By Patson Chilemba
Anthony must have crossed the red line and taken advantage of his relationship with the President, says Economic Front (EF) leader Wynter Kabimba.
The absence of any statement from State House on Bwalya’s demotion from being presidential spokesperson to now serve as deputy High Commissioner in Tanzania has left space for speculation with some asserting that he was demoted due to infighting at State House and has therefore been sacrificed due to his ethnicity in the same manner Chellah Tukuta was gotten rid of and appointed Third Secretary in Brazil, while the fellow media colleagues, Clayson Hamasaka, Brian Mwiinga and Frederick Misebezi have been left in their positions.
But speaking with Daily Revelation, Kabimba said he felt there is something deeper which might have led to Anthony Bwalya’s dismissal, but thinks it is not tied to ethnicity.
Kabimba said there was more to the dismissal than meets the eye, saying Bwalya has from the opposition days been perceived as the President’s right hand man and that the imaging of the UPND in opposition can largely be credited to Bwalya.
He said when UPND came into government, Bwalya performed functions beyond the job description of presidential spokesperson and equivalent to those of a cabinet minister and therefore to see him dropping down the way he has done meant that there was something seriously and grossly wrong going on at State House.
He said it was something the public would get to hear about in terms of what is going on around the office of the Presidency, and that it was something which those interested in how such an office functions must delve to interrogate.
Kabimba said it was important that before people start speculating the President should tell the public why he has taken such a drastic decision against his own confidant so that he doesn’t tempt “the young man” to start disclosing information which he is not supposed to disclose because there is no doubt that he was depressed and felt let down.
He said this thing has not started today but was the last straw on the “camel’s back” as there was speculation on why he was being left out on presidential trips but that was played down, saying now it is clear that there is something that has been summering behind the curtains at State House.
But asked on assertions that he has been removed because of tribe, Kabimba said people must not be simplistic about such issues, saying his reading was that President Hichilema had a lot of confidence in Bwalya.
“HH is not a person who would pretend. That is not his character. If he didn’t want Anthony Bwalya, just like he did with Mubita Nawa. You saw that in the opposition the pair was Mubita Nawa and Anthony. And when HH won Mubita Nawa was sidelined and Anthony was taken on board. So I would disagree with that school of thought. There is something deeper that has happened at State House between HH and Anthony Bwalya,” Kabimba said. “Anthony must have crossed the red lines. He crossed the Rubicon and I think he must have taken it for granted and he had the ear of the President, the confidence of the President and thought he had become invincible and he has become untouchable.”
Kabimba described the assertions that he was fired because of ethnicity as speculation which he said was being pushed in part because of the silence from State House.
“When you allow people to speculate you force them into all sorts of contexture. And our social media is very speculative. It’s a platform of gossip. And sometimes really unfounded gossip. And it can veer away from the real issues … Anthony Bwalya was a confidant of HH and he would be in my view be the last person to part company with the President, and I think the last person the President would let go,” said Kabimba. “But obviously if you don’t have the information and you want to be simplistic is to try to explain it by way of ethnicity and that kind of thing. I take a very different view myself.”
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