By Agness Changala
Any responsibility that will come from President Hakainde Hichilema will be a bonus, Kantashi member of Parliament and PF chief whip Anthony Mumba responds after being asked if he would welcome an appointment as minister.
And Mumba said during President Edgar Lungu, people used to get positions through lobbying and PF members think that this is currently happening.
In an interview with Daily Revelation, Mumba said he is not a type that lobbies for anything.
He also said serving the people of Zambia is always a privilege just as he was already in a privileged position as member of parliament.
“On that one I can tell that first of all, I don’t think I am sort of a person who lobbies for anything. I have heard those statements several times but I just want to put it on record you know, calls for national duty as far as serving the people of Zambia is always a privilege just like I am, right now I am a privileged member of parliament. Now in Zambia, we seem to be mixing up when somebody is appointed to the position of minister. It has become a criminal offence in peoples’ minds that one cannot be given those various positions” Mumba said. “Now I am referring to the fact that I have read a story where I have been accused of lobbying whatever it’s being called. I am not even aware of anything that is happening in the government which speaks to a vacancy.”
He said there is already an acting minister who he said might be confirmed in the said position and he believes that President Hakainde Hichilema has got his style of leadership.
Mumba said he does not think that in the two and half years since President Hichilema took over as leader of this country, one can say people go and lobby from him.
“I think the decisions he makes have always clearly been independent but it’s typical of the PF, where they always think that because in the time of President Edgar Lungu, people used to get positions through lobbying, they think that is what is currently happening and sometimes it’s quiet disappointing because authors of these stories are usually from the PF pages, are people that we mingle with and we are found with, but because their main interest is to dent people’s images, this is why PF gets always into unnecessary trouble and as a result, here you are, you are talking about a political party being created from PF you know, something that everybody knows that can weaken PF even further,” Mumba said. “So I think one day in politics is a very long day. Let’s allow the President to do the right thing, let’s allow the President to appoint whoever he feels has the abilities to contribute to his administration.”
He said people should avoid dragging people’s names into things they have no control over, saying none can prevail over President Hichilema’s decisions exactly how he wants his administration to function.
“Just like me as member of parliament, I know exactly how I want my Kantashi Constituency to function. It will not take anybody lobbying from me or others asking me who is going to be next on your CDF committee, and so on. I know who I want to be on my CDF committee and those are reasons that I would keep to myself regardless of how many people would think that they would talk to me and talk about this one, and that is why I am confident to say that the President so far has been magnanimous in his appointments and I don’t think that in any way, anybody influences him,” Mumba said. “I think that he uses his own God given wisdom to arrive at who he feels he can work with. You see the funny thing in PF is that you have double tongued people, one minute, they want you to do a certain thing, the next minute, and they are using your name to propagate something. Well, maybe they know what is going on but for me, my focus is on my constituency and I think the work God has given me is more than enough.”
Asked if he would accept a ministerial position in the UPND administration, given that there was a vacancy at Ministry of Foreign Affairs following the resignation of Stanley Kakubo, Mumba said if more responsibilities come through it will be a bonus.
“Well that’s a bonus. But as it stands right now, I am very confident that the work I am doing in Kantashi will speak for itself and it will also remain an inspiration to our people. I have a constituency to manage which the people of Kantashi voted for me and I am doing the best I can. Any other responsibilities that will come beyond my constituency is a bonus,” said Mumba. “Right now, I am a chief whip for the PF, it’s a bonus that I currently have. Other than the responsibility in the constituency, I now have a responsibility in the National Assembly to assist the Presiding officers to maintain discipline and to ensure the members of parliament are able to contribute in terms of debates in the house and they are able to conduct themselves in the manner that maintains the decorum of the house. So any other responsibilities that will come, whether from President Hakainde or from the party, for me it’s a bonus.”
