By Kamuti Muyambela
Harry Kalaba’s Democratic Party (DP) has charged that the “so-called PF rebranding is just total madness” as the former ruling party is now beyond redemption in the eyes of the Zambian people.
But opposition PF national youth chairperson Antonio Mwanza said the former ruling party was amused with Kalaba’s claim that his party was now the biggest opposition in the country, saying they do not even have a single member of parliament.
Reacting to Mwanza’s reaction to Kalaba’s earlier statement to Daily Revelation that his party was now the main opposition as the PF was now completely finished owing to what he said its tattered image in the eyes of Zambians, DP national youth chairperson Mashindi Ntambu said the facts from the elections were clear that his party was a rising force, while the PF was collapsing, saying even corruption and electoral malpractice could not sustain them in power, due to the overwhelming rejection from Zambians.
Mwanza in justifying his argument also reminded that as opposed to Kalaba’s claims that he came out third behind President Hakainde Hichilema and former president Edgar Lungu, it was actually spoiled ballots which were third at 126,569 as compared to Kalaba’s 25,231. He also said president Lungu managed to amass 1, 870, 750 votes with 63 members of parliament, thousands of councilors and hundreds of mayors.
But Ntambu reminded that a huge political figure like late president Michael Sata, who had been on the political scene for decades, managed to obtain less than two percent of the votes when he first contested in 2001, and only managed to win one parliamentary seat.
He added that the same Sata who was a distant 6th in the elections in 2001, managed to build his party in five years and was second to Levy Mwanawasa in 2006, with over 43 members of parliament and thousands of councilors and hundreds of mayors, and in the process surpassing the UPND as the main opposition in the country.
But others have argued that instead of Kalaba, Highvie Hamududu’s Party for National Unity should be considered as the party with serious ambitions after they emerged from the elections with a member of parliament, Ntambu said he was happy for PNUP, as their vote was an opposition win, but that things should be looked at in their correct perspective saying they won that seat on account of the individual parliamentary candidate being more popular, saying it was ironic that while the MP won in Nalolo, Hamududu himself lost heavily to President Hichilema and even Lungu in the same area.
“We wish to regard Mr Antonio Mwanza’s recent remarks on DP President as nothing but cries of a grieving person…We deeply sympathies with the punch-drunk and widely rejected former ruling party…We further advise Mr. Mwanza to get his facts right on Democratic Party municipal representation and should also look out for multiple parliamentary election petitions,” said Ntambu. “We won several council seats including in Nalolo itself.”
Ntambu said the fact that Mwanza was still showing the same arrogance showed that the former ruling party had learnt nothing from the humiliating loss, saying no matter Mwanza’s arguments, PF was on its way to the grave in the same manner as MMD and UNIP.
“And they are talking about rebranding, rebranding comes with a new vision, but they are still holding on to the same CEO (secretary general). They are holding on to the same president caught between running the party and losing his presidential benefits. They are failing to transition,” said Ntambu. “At the same time you have Miles Sampa throwing barbs. In fact how will they even transition when they will be busy in the courts answering to various corruption charges?”
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