By Staff Reporter
Over judging a new government is tantamount to destabilising them, says Party for National Unity (PNUP) leader Highvie Hamududu.
And Hamududu said Zambians must not close their minds but debate the merits and demerits of the UPND administration’s plan to restructure Zesco into three main components.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Hamududu said it is too early to judge the new UPND administration.
“I know the intricacies of government it’s too early. I think any new government over judging them is tantamount to destabilising. And I think government is a complex thing. It’s a different beast, it’s not like running a company,” Hamududu said. “You can settle down in one week but you run a country with a lot of facets, economic, political, social religious facets and cultural facets and so on it’s not easy.”
Asked that he served in the then opposition UPND which did not give the PF time to settle before they launched attacks on them spearheaded by the current President Hakainde Hichilema, Hamududu said that was using a wrong standard to addressing issues.
“But a wrong standard should not be used, there are also politics and there is a normal standard. The normal standard differs from politics…There is politics and there is checks and balances that are issue based. We have commented in general…every one appreciates we all wanted money coming down there (through CDF) but the real detail could be in the mechanics…those mechanics will only be seen after one fiscal year.”
Hamududu said they key when addressing matters such as empowerment funds required addressing the institutional frameworks, as the empowerment funds under the MMD and the PF have not yielded any results, and he did not see them yielding any results now.
“What we need right now for delivering some of these funds are mechanics for loan system that are concessional and people pay back and money is given according to the viability of projects on the ground,” he said.
He said Zambians must be open minded to some of the proposals that government had put on the table.
“We need a cost of service study to inform the rate of tariffs that must be there because it’s the right tariffs that must attract investment in the energy sub sector, because government does not have enough money to put up infrastructure especially now with the fiscal issue,” Hamududu said. “The way state owned enterprises have been run we need a discussion, you will be shocked we are not getting a real deal.”
Asked if he would support the privatization of Zesco if it ever came to that, Hamududu said “not really”, but that there were many ways of bringing private capital in power generation.
“The tariffs should be cost reflective to attract investment in this sector. By the way UNIP began the privatization proposal. It was not MMD just to take you backwards. Do you know the first company that was to be partially privatised? It was Zesco and Zambia Railways. People don’t read, I have the report,” Hamududu said. “They were supposed to offload 40 percent shareholding to the locals to buy in. Privatisation does not mean you sell to foreigners. You can privatise to Zambians through the stock exchange, so you still own it but through private hands.”
He said he supported 50-50 equity partnerships between government and private players in state parastatals, as there was too much patronage in companies that were 100 percent owned by the government, and that economic issues must not be addressed through political but technical lenses.
“Most of these parastatals people will say don’t sell it, don’t privatise it. But what are you getting from it apart from paying high salaries to these executives? No benefit to the local Zambians. So some of these things are just semantics and I think government must be very clear,” Hamududu said. “Put the numbers on the dash boards for people to see ‘okay we are not benefiting’. But if government is not explaining, people will think that they are benefiting on some of these shell companies, no dividends to the government but Zambians through government putting so much money in investment.”
Hamududu also said the fight against corruption must be nonpartisan.
“A PF member joining UPND or supporting UPND now does not exonerate him or her from the corruption. That’s what Musa Mwenye is saying (over his tweet that changes in government herald other changes) that can we break the cycle. On the balance of probability they (PF officials) were in government so they are more prone, but don’t tell me that corrupt people were only in PF,” Hamududu said. “Corruption is not through party membership. What about those who were in PF and now in UPND? What about those who were in MMD? You know MMD was removed because of corruption? Have they become cleaner now? I think to that the immediate past government, of course there will be more people because things are still fresh but corruption must be corruption.”
He praised people like Mwenye, Dr Sishuwa Sishuwa and state counsel John Sangwa as people who were principled and must be listened to, saying they have not changed their tune even when people viewed them to belong to the UPND before the general elections.
“They are people who have crossed the line and I am happy now we are having a breed of professionals who are not lining up for jobs. Some of them of course have become sycophants. We thought they were fighting a system…but there hope now. You see a Sishuwa Sishuwa, you see a Musa Mwenye, you see John Sangwa then you see that there is hope in the future,” Hamududu said. “Then you see Daily Revelation, I hope you will not be bought. When I read your story then I will know whether you have also been bought.”
Hamududu said politicians must be able to scrutinise whether people joining them were supporting them for the country or they were supporting them to get jobs, saying “those who were looking like they were holding the former government accountable, some of them have turned into sycophants and people are wondering.”
“The challenge for our friends in government is to set up a completely new start that it doesn’t become the UNIP, MMD harassment. The UNIP people were harassed…the way Kaunda was harassed. As younger students we went to meet him there in Kudu road when he was in Kabulonga. Lonely man. I couldn’t believe it,” Hamududu said. All the things he did to create a Zambia that has international stature by fighting for liberation was lost and then Zambia today is just a kawayawaya country. We are such a country to reckon with in the region together with Tanzania…our foreign relations must be at that level. We sacrificed our economy because of the liberation struggle.”
Hamududu said those in leadership must be able to say that “yes there was oppression but I will not do it. Then you are breaking the cycle.”
He said he was happy those in the UPND quickly silenced William Banda following his recent threats, saying they were reminding people of what he was doing under the MMD.
“I think they talked to him to say can you stay away? That’s breaking the cycle. Not where someone talks and they are even encouraged,” said Hamududu.
