By Patson Chilemba
Mafinga member of parliament Robert Chabinga has challenged former president Edgar Lungu to come out in the open and say that he is no longer interested in the presidency rather than speaking through other people.
And Chabinga has urged President Hakainde Hichilema to seriously look into the issue of skyrocketing mealie meal prices, and appealed to the “able and good” ZNS Commander Gen Maliti Solochi to replicate the production of 25 kg bags of mealie meal to the entire country.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Chabinga said if what Brebnar Changala said recently that Lungu was not interested in running as he would want to support a young person to move PF forward, then that would be a better position so that the former president can stay out of politics.
He said in other countries, former heads of states were available for consultations on various national issues, something he said president Lungu must become as a statesman.
“I think he needs to come out in the open, yes, not speaking through people, because you see I am a PF member of parliament and we have had discussions with some of the MPs at Parliament and that statement has not come,” Chabinga said. “All of us would want him to be a statesman. So using different routes like for my elder brother Brebnar Changala that that’s what he wants to develop, it’s not come through the PF.”
Chabinga said as things stand, people have misconceptions about his intentions wherever he goes somewhere even when he means well.
“He needs to come out in the open. Our interest is that you see, using people to communicate will never help us in anyway. So for me to my former head of state I would want him to react to be the older statesman so that all of us we can be going to him,” Chabinga said, saying if what he communicated to Changala is true and he keeps to his word, then it was a good thing.
His fellow colleague in PF Anthony Mumba recently said there was frustration in PF and most members of parliament would have crossed over to the ruling party had it not been for Constitutional impediments, something Chabinga said he agrees with, saying that was the truth of the matter.
“The only thing my brother is that most members of parliament might not have the courage that some of us have. Us we are thick skinned and we call a spade a spade. So I will concur with Honourable Mumba. Minus that Constitutional impediment a lot of people would have resigned (from PF) a long time ago,” Chabinga said. “Because look, most of them my brother are just followers for the sake of maintaining their seats. And the reason is very simple because some of them their adoption process was not even correct because they were using connections. But those who were really truly strong on the ground my brother they have their own mindsets to speak for themselves and one of them is me, because for me it was not the party arrangement. It was myself and how I talk to the people … So what Honourable Mumba said I just want to concur. If there wasn’t this Constitutional impediment I am telling you a lot of people would have resigned.”
He said most people were frustrated but they could not talk, saying among the most frustrating matters was the delay to call for the general conference.
“Secondly, you Patson used to be a reporter (for The Post) if I recall very well covering the late president Michael Chilufya Sata. Yourself and George Chellah. When president Michael Sata lost the election it was just barely one week and he started the campaigns. He started going round. President Hakainde Hichilema immediately he lost the elections, what did he do? Just a month, he started going around the country to start thanking the people that voted for him,” Chabinga said. “(For) us it’s two years down the line, two years down the line, the national committee and it’s leadership they have never ever, not even a single day that they decided to go out. And this is why the frustration because we are doing comparisons. President Sata was giving hope, he loses elections this week, just after two weeks he’s on the run.”
Chabinga said when Sata lost closely contested elections in 2006 and 2008, and when people were burning tires on the streets in protest, he simply told the people to stop and forge ahead.
But he said the current PF leadership have been holding on to positions of power and could not master the same courage, saying they are only seen in places during funerals, saying people being investigated for various offences could not be used as an excuse for failing to reach out to the membership across the country as Sata too faced various challenges with the law enforcement during his time in the opposition.
“That’s what we are missing. We are missing that courage as a party,” Chabinga said, adding that the fact president Lungu has not forcefully come out to state that he was not running is disadvantaging the PF. “People like the Raphael Nakachindas, people who are surrounding him, people who are going to him to kneel down and say can you come back as president, let them leave him alone if they love him. And I want to address him, ‘Your Excellency Edgar Chagwa Lungu, please don’t listen to the people that are saying that you need to come back as president. Don’t entertain. But we need you to be a statesman.’ I think when he plays his role as a statesman some of the problems you see can be managed in a certain and different way of what is happening.”
Chabinga also addressed President Hichilema on the high prices of the staple mealie meal, saying people in the country are complaining about the economy with the biggest issue being the mealie meal.
He said President Hichilema must seat down with his officials and look into the matter holistically.
He said for him the matter “was a temporal measure” as FRA has not finished buying the maize from the farmers to look at what they will have in stock as food security.
He said the President must get his advisors to advise him well as mealie meal always spells trouble for ruling parties in the same manner it put Dr Kenneth Kaunda in trouble after leading the country for 27 years.
“I know we have the able, good (Zambia National Service Commander Lieutenant General Maliti) Solochi who can manage, with his team, can manage to reduce this mealie meal arrangement. We want the mealie meal, the way they have started producing at K185, this must be replicated to the whole entire country because this is a challenge. This is the issue which people are crying for each and everyday and also monitor these unscrupulous millers that just want to exploit the people of Zambia by hiking the prices of mealie meal when they are getting the maize at a reasonable price,” said Chabinga
