By Patson Chilemba
Chishimba Kambwili is a sellout who only thinks about himself, and youths must stay far away from him, says his nephew Charles Kabwita.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Kabwita warned opposition leaders against believing Kambwili’s call for them to put aside their egos in order to unite and remove President Hakainde Hichilema in 2026, saying the man is unstable and did not mean what he says.
“I want to add my opinion on the headline that you have carried in your (News)paper titled ‘Let’s put aside egos to kick out HH – Kambwili’,” Kabwita said. “As a person who worked closely with honourable Kambwili, I wish to warn especially the youths who are in many cases the target and they fall victim by politicians because of lies and inconsistency which has led to some of us being dumped, used and all our political ambitions crushed together.”
Kabwita said he started the National Democratic Congress (NDC) with Kambwili, and that he was instrumental in the establishment of party’s structures across the country.
He said he was among the 10 who formed the NDC, and that he felt duty bound to warn the youths to stay away from “such attractive sentiments coming from honourable Chishimba Kambwili.”
“Very good headline. Very good story inside but the man himself if you ask him what he talked about, probably he will not even remember because that was just for news sake,” Kabwita said. “I say so because we were dumped, barely six months before the elections. Some of us had ambitions to stand as MPs, including my own sister Saboi Imboela, including (now Commerce minister) Chipoka Mulenga my brother, who realized earlier and that made Chipoka Mulenga and I to become enemies, because I did not believe Chipoka Mulenga was telling the truth when he said this man is a sell out and he has sold out to the PF. I said Chipoka Mulenga alebepa ubufi (was just lying).”
He said he also quarreled with Menyani Zulu, the current member of parliament for Nyimba, saying even now the two are not in talking terms because he felt he was lying about his misgivings with Kambwili.
“I believed so much in honourable Kambwili and I thought honourable Kambwili was the right person to guide the agenda of NDC. But after what happened it came to my realisation that in fact my brothers were correct or accurate with the information that they rendered to us that honourable Kambwili has sold out,” Kabwita said. “So I don’t want any other youth to pass through what I did, or what I went through under honourable Kambwili and the National Democratic Congress. Mind you, I have lost friends over NDC. I have lost a lot of friends and it will be very difficult for those friends to reconcile with me because what I said injured them.”
He said he thought he did what he did to protect NDC, but little did he know that the man he was defending was “a sellout”, warning the youths to stay away from Kambwili.
“Take a deep reflection over the happenings or what happened in the National Democratic Congress before they follow him because they will be dumped like I was dumped, used like a mop,” Kabwita said, urging senior politicians to take a break from politics sometimes and focus on other matters. “We can’t continue as a country to have leaders who do not mean well. And I repeat who do not mean well for this country but just themselves. We want leaders who are selfless, leaders who think about the masses and not their stomach, their pockets and their children. Mulekwatako uluse kubana babanenu (Feel pity for other people’s children). You should even visit men of God to repent.”
He said it saddened him to read about Kambwili urging other political leaders to set aside their egos in order to remove President Hichilema from office, describing the same as selfishness and jealousy against the President.
“The man just wants to be near the corridors of power so that he can continue with life. It’s not about the people of Zambia or the youths or the other opposition political parties he’s talking about to come and merge so that they can make a strong opposition. It’s all about himself,” Kabwita said. “I want to warn the youths to stay away from him. There are several other leaders who can work with the youths but not honourable Kambwili.”
He said the life of Emmanuel Malite whom he described as a once vibrant media director in the NDC has been ruined and can’t even be heard from now.
“Where is Charles Kabwita today? I have even lost my marriage because of organising this NDC. As if that was not enough, the man dumped me just like that and went to PF where he said PF was poison and if he was going to go to PF, the people of Zambia should refer to him as lunatic,” said Kabwita. “I did not want to say that, those are not my words. Those are his words but I wanted to remind you that he can even go to the extent of calling himself a lunatic for the sake of convincing you that he means well. But we who have worked with him I want to tell you that be steady, remain sober. If you want to indulge in politics there are several other political leaders who can sharpen you, who can mentor you and make you a better politician.”
