By Mubanga Mubanga
Citizens First (CF) leader Harry Kalaba says his party shall shame its doubters in the UPND and those in the opposition who want to discredit them by saying they don’t want to work with fellow opposition parties, in the Chawama parliamentary by-election.
Speaking in an interview with Daily Revelation yesterday, Kalaba said Chawama will be a building block on the ward by-election victory CF scored in Northern Province.
”They want to discredit us and our campaign by referring to us that we don’t want to work with fellow opposition. Those in the UPND also underrate us, but they are both doing so at their own peril because clearly the ground is saying we are the new party of choice in Zambia,” Kalaba said.
He said the UPND had lost popularity on account of unfulfilled promises, with the country enduring the highest cost of living now because of high fuel prices, high fertilizer prices, farmers still unpaid and the stop gap measures they were now undertaking to reduce loadshedding motivated by the desire to hoodwink Zambians to win the elections.
He said he was aware that the UPND would try to bribe their way using state resources in Chawama and other by-elections but people were not foolish to be cheated as the ruling party failures were too glaring and visible for all to see.
He urged the electorates in Chawama to get whatever they would be given by the UPND and other parties who had more resources, but keep their vote as a secret for CF.
”This is now donchi kubeba x 2. Our rapid growth is attracting envy not only from the UPND but also those in the opposition who want to discredit us by saying we don’t want to work with fellow opposition. They are doing so simply because they do not have a message for Zambians. Balefwaya ukutufumba mumafi (they want to smear us in dirty) but they won’t manage,” Kalaba said. “Clearly, we are the party of choice for Zambians.”
Kalaba urged Chawama electorates to consider the by-election in view of the coming elections next year, by going with a party that was promising them a better future based upon sound policies as opposed to the lies they were fed by the UPND.
Asked to comment on assertions that his party was fighting against opposition unity by going solo in elections, Kalaba dismissed the same as lies.
He said he was ready to work towards opposition unity but out of respect for each participating party.
”How do you come to me to say we field one candidate but you want to impose that candidate on me, on CF, without us even sitting with to deliberate?” Kalaba said. “And opposition unity must be founded in the desire to improve Zambian lives as opposed to just being motivated with removing UPND from office. Yes, UPND is a failed project that must be removed. But in doing so they need to be replaced by a crop of people that is not tainted or only motivated by the desire of taking over party in order for the ruling party officials and their cronies to continue engaging in tenderpreneurship and feasting on government projects.”
Kalaba said he did not mind being called names, as his only motivation was to see the emancipation of Zambians through proper leadership.
”It’s not just about being opposition and wanting to remove a ruling party from office, when you are literally blank about what you must do for Zambians, just as UPND has proved,” said Kalaba.
