By Chinoyi Chipulu
Information permanent secretary Thabo Kawana says the opposition are disparaging the image of the UPND government before the international community because they are lost and cannot believe that they are no longer in power.
Speaking on Mafken Radio on a program dubbed express Chitchat review on Wednesday, Kawana said PF could still not believe that they were no longer in office that is why they were all over like headless chickens.
Kawana said the PF were trying to paint the government because they wanted to have power back.
“They are lost because they can’t believe that they are no longer in office. What they want is power but they forget that power belongs to the people. They can’t believe it, that is why they are all over like headless chickens trying to paint the country and government black, but it will not work,” he said.
Kawana said instead of focusing on re-organising their party, the PF were wasting time on issues which they were concentrating on painting the government black.
He said the UN special rapporteur Irene Khan was going to understand what was going on as she was on the ground on a fact finding mission in the country.
“The opposition can rant but it’s just hot air and it goes nowhere because there is no evidence that human rights are being abused,” he said.
Asked to respond to Mpika member of parliament Francis Kapyanga’s accusations that the government was illegally taking over the former ruling party and planting stooges to cause confusion in PF, Kawana said it was nonsense.
“It’s a laughable thing, actually that’s a whole lot of nonsense. So you mean UPND is the one who told … not to choose a leader, not to go to a convention and not to put their party in order? It doesn’t make sense. And this is what I’m saying, time is running out and they will be in the same position, without a leader,” he said.
“Then they will turn around to say it’s UPND which has done that. They will shrink, bury themselves and completely disappear from the political scene.”
Asked to respond to civil rights activist Brebner Changala’s assertions that UPND was using the office of the inspector general of police and the judiciary as an annex to cause and perpetuate gross violation of human rights, Kawana challenged Changala to produce evidence.
“Again that’s total nonsense, because for you to make assertions, you must produce evidence. Bring the citizens and say these are the ones the police abused. This world is about evidence, you can’t just make assertions,” he said.
He said people were free to appear before Khan but should produce evidence because their submissions would not go anywhere.
And when Kawana was asked if it was true that the government was running torture chambers to silence their critics, giving an example of Francis Kapwepwe popularly known as ‘ Why Me’, he said it was not true.
He said UPND was not running a torture chamber as no body had been tortured in the country.
