By Isaac Zulu
The Patriotic Front regime considered and embraced grand corruption as a ritual, says former Luapula Province permanent secretary Major Ben Phiri.
And Maj Phiri says he is dumbfounded that the former ruling party leadership is intending to write to the United States Embassy for being labeled as a corrupt regime
In a press statement to Daily Revelation, Maj Phiri charged that the PF administration lamentably failed to be responsive to the aspirations and expectations of the people in the last seven years, stating that this could be largely attributed to the way the fallen regime idolised corruption.
“How does one account for such frightening amounts of money when the rural populace is enduring excruciating emotional pain for lack of very basic clinical medicines in health centres, learning in squalid educational facilities among other things? I have always stated that the provision of free education, for instance, is a very tenable prospect when government prioritises service delivery to it’s citizens,” Maj Phiri stated. “But under the disastrous seven years of Mr Edgar Lungu, there was just no way the citizens welfare was going to be given the requisite attention when grand corruption was considered and embraced as a ritual.”
He further charged that the PF was a group of people who were driven by greed, selfishness and with no empathy for ordinary citizens.
“In concurring with what President [Hakainde] Hichilema has repeatedly said, yes indeed, Zambia is not poor except that it was led by a group of people who were driven by greed, selfishness and zero empathy for the people they purported to represent from 2015 until the landmark August 12th elections that sent the Pillagers Front (PF) packing,” Major Phiri stated.
He expressed optimism that the UPND, under the leadership of President Hakainde Hichilema.
“President Hakainde Hichilema ought to be lauded for offloading the PF inclined former senior government officials at inter alia Permanent Secretary and Ambassador levels respectively. Never again, shall we have people masquerading as leaders when their only role was pillaging of our public resources and that’s why l remain confident that once President Hichilema names his senior government officials, Zambia will be on a pragmatic economic boom with all the available raw materials at our disposal as a country,” Major Phiri stated. “With the zeal and determination exhibited by the newly elected President, Zambia will certainly be on a higher performance pedestal particularly that he (HH) has publicly stated that the watchdog investigative institutions like the Anti Corruption Commission, the Drug Enforcement Commission, the Financial Intelligence Centre etc will function freely and professionally devoid of any tinge of political interference of influence and that is the panacea to our present economic woes brought about by the corruption prone Pillagers Front in the last seven years”.
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And Maj Phiri wondered why former Justice Minister Given Lubinda was exhibiting what he termed unbelievable levels of political dementia.
“I am yet again dumbfounded by the inordinate albeit fruitless efforts by the former “injustice” who was reportedly quoted as saying his withering Pillagers Front [PF] intends to writing to the US Embassy over the reported reference to the ruling party as having been corrupt by the globally respected American President Joe Biden,” Maj Phiri said. “This man with a paprika and lettuce growing qualification never ceases to maze me with his incessant penchant for publicly exhibiting unbelievable levels of political dementia. Firstly, the defeated Paya Farmer glaringly prioritised grand corruption of unimaginable proportions given the multiple cases that continue being reported in various sections of the media.
“Secondly, the USA, like many other developed countries, have interest in how public resources are expended in countries such as our, particularly that these monies are largely gleaned from benevolent institutions with strong Western influence. Besides that, they keep abreast of all the occurrences in foreign countries through State Department and issues like over priced fire tenders, procurement of expired condoms, the superfluous new Ndola airport, the inflated cost of of ambulances, etc; are routinely brought to the attention of the White House through scheduled reports and those we refer to as sit-reps [situational reports] as and when need arises.”
Major Phiri stressed that the Patriotic Front will never form government again, further asking the former Kabwata lawmaker to accept that sad reality.
“I really fail to comprehend where and how [Given] Lubinda is finding difficulties in accepting that Paya Farmer [Patriotic Front] is deceased with an element of finality. The quicker Lubinda comes to terms with the fact that Paya Farmer is gone and gone for good, the better,” stated Maj Phiri.
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