By Patson Chilemba
Chishimba Kambwili has asked President Hakainde Hichilema to call for a press conference and apologise to Zambians for having told them lies.
And Kambwili said he never told people to urinate into Lake Kariba Dam, when the county was experiencing severe load shedding during his time as information minister under Edgar Lungu, describing that as propaganda to draw the people’s attention away from hiked fuel prices by UPND.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Kambwili said this was the time President Hichilema should avail himself more before the media as he said he would when coming into office.
“It is the right time so that he can explain to the people of Zambia why the change of heart,” Kambwili said, saying he warned Zambians that it was a lie if anyone was promising them to reduce prices for essential commodities.
Kambwili wondered where the President had kept his spread sheet where he promised people a reduction in fuel, electricity and prices for other commodities.
“Now today that he has done the exact opposite the best my dear brother can do is apologise to the people of Zambia and not let his ministers exhibit arrogance by saying the poor people and the retirees are happy,” Kambwili said. “Which poor people did (Finance minister Dr Situmbeko) Musokotwane consult and they told him they are happy with removal of subsidies? He’s happy because he is not affected. He’s got a good salary and allowances.”
Kambwili said Dr Musokotwane should instead be urging his fellow colleagues in government to tighten their belts in the same manner they have tightened Zambian people’s belts, saying that will make government leaders be reasonable when increasing prices as they will be feeling the pinch in their pockets also.
“When there is need to tighten up the belts, the leaders must be in the forefront to even say okay, now that there is this hardship coming because of our engagement with IMF, where we have to have austerity measures,” Kambwili said, “for the next three years they can say no, we are giving away our housing allowance, or traveling allowance or sitting allowance. That’s a reasonable thing to do but how many people will do such a thing?”
Kambwili described current happening as a reflection of how people can tell lies and oppose for the sake of opposing, but do the exact same thing when they are in government. He said PF also considered removing the subsidies but “as a pro-poor party” they looked at the interest of the people.
“You see there is nothing wrong in one addressing the country and saying countrymen and women I think when I promised that we were going to reinstate subsidies, when I promised that we were going to reduce fuel I did not understand what governance was all about,” Kambwili said. “Now I understand the dynamics and that removing the subsidies is important to try to get money to other needs. You must find plan b to cushion the effect it will have. Today Musokotwane is exhibiting the same kind of arrogance.”
Asked why he was accusing the UPND of dishonesty when he is said to have told people to go and urinate in the lake when asked questions on the load shedding that was happening at the time, Kambwili described that as propaganda as he could not have made such a “stupid statement.” He said at no point did he tell people to urinate in the lake and in their car tanks.
“When I was minister of information some private media house wrote that article I had never said it. You never saw that article in The Post newspaper that time. You never saw that article in any of the usual newspapers, it only came out from a publication that was not even known,” Kambwili said. “That was propaganda of the UPND. I have never issued that statement in my life. Me I don’t answer to propaganda because propaganda if you answer you are giving it legitimacy. But I want to take advance of your question today to tell you that I have never issued that statement. Never!”
He said the “statement first and foremost is insulting, its unreasonable and I don’t think I am a person who can issue that kind of statement.”
“Me you know that when I make a mistake and I realise that I have made a mistake I am not shy from saying sorry forgive me. But that statement that is going on social media is all lies and people are trying to justify the unreasonableness or what they have done today by bringing me in the picture. I never issued that statement,” Kambwili said. “Someone who says something that he knows is not true and is not correct and knows it will never happened, is referred to by a certain term that I will leave to you…if I say I am going to Chingola tomorrow and I don’t go I will be called a liar.
“It will not be in the best interest of anybody to start calling the President a liar. But if these things persist, people will take off their gloves and try and call a spade a spade and not a spade a pick for the sake of impression.”
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