By Patson Chilemba
Saboi is offside, I am very disappointed with her, says PF presidential aspirant Chishimba Kambwili.
And Kambwili said “there is no any two ways about it, the PF convention must happen in June, 2022”, saying “you can’t run a party with no substantive head eight months after losing…unless they want to kill the party.”
But PF member of central committee and Lupososhi member of parliament Emmanuel Mpankata despite saying that there were no plans to postpone the holding of the general conference, said challenges may arise which may force the party to reschedule the event.
Speaking with Daily Revelation on NDC leader Saboi Imboela’s statement to Daily Revelation that the grace period she had given to Kambwili to come back and take over as NDC leader was shrinking, Kambwili said he did not understand that grace period Imboela was referring to.
“Tell her that why should she give me a grace period? And I think if she has said that it’s offside. If Saboi has said that I can only say I am very disappointed for her to go to the press and issue that kind of statement,” Kambwili said. “I am PF, I am not NDC. So I don’t even understand that grace period to begin with. I don’t understand it. Did I ever go to her and tell her give me a grace period? Did I ever say to her I am coming back to take over? That’s not right. Don’t go to the press and just be careless. You don’t do that. You don’t do that. I don’t think it’s right. I don’t think this is right.”
Asked on the PF convention and assertions that there were plans to postpone it, Kambwili said the party must stick to set schedule.
“I have said and I want to say it again, there is authority that has been appointed to superintendent over the holding of the general conference. There was a committee that was appointed. A date was given to say that the convention would be in June (2022). There is not any two ways about it, the convention must happen in June. It is as simple as that. We are just waiting for the authority to give us the date but the convention must go on in June,” Kambwili said. “You can’t run a political party, eight months after losing there is no substantive head and you extend the dates. It doesn’t work out that way. Unless they want to kill the party. The convention must be on. In fact it’s late. Eight months on the line, I don’t think it’s correct. But I can only advise, I am not the authority. I can only advise. It is up to the authority to evaluate what they are doing whether it’s in the best interest of the party or it’s not in the best interest of the party.”
Asked why he felt there were assertions to postpone the convention, and if he felt there were plans against him or any other presidential candidate, Kambwili said: “I don’t know (what’s holding the authority from holding the convention). I am not in their meetings. How would I know? I don’t know I am not in their meetings, when they meet I am not there. So how do I know. I can’t say that. I don’t think there is anybody trying to stop me or anybody else. No!”
But Mpankata dismissed assertions from some party members of former president Edgar Lungu holding on to things in order to put in his people, saying the former president was not interested and that was why he had even appointed an acting president in Given Lubinda.
He said those who are led in the party must accept to be guided, denying there were plans to postpone the holding of the conference, but that in any preparation challenges could not be avoided.
“And if you have challenges there might be genuine challenges to postpone. You didn’t cancel you only put it forward. We may put it forward that if it was to be on 1st June then you can have it on June 30th,” Mpankata said.
But asked on Kambwili’s observations, Mpankata said Kambwili was an interested party and must accept that the due process of the law must be followed.
“I feel for him, but as an interested party he must be patient…so long as he’s eligible he will be allowed to stand,” said Kambwili.
