Mixing truths and lies; on It was publicly stated in 2006 that no non-Tonga would succeed Anderson Mazoka as president of the UPND. Hakainde Hichilema and others listened to all such tribal utterances and said or did nothing about it. They actually tried to find ways to justify it the truth is that in 2006 UPND president Mr Hakainde Hichilema or HH did not entertain the now PF member on Minister EC Lungus campaign team called Dr/Mr Syacheye Madyenkuku to remain in UPND and that is how the man moved on to MMD and now PF: Elizabeth Molobeka has asked the electorate in Northern Province not to vote for any candidate who is not Bemba. “You should be like the Tongas, who would never vote for a Bemba or any other person apart from their own. So why should we vote for them here in the Bembaland? When there is an election, the Tongas would give their candidate a lot of votes and nothing for the Bembas, so we should do the same to them,” Molobeka told Nevers Mumba’s election campaign rally in Kasama on Sunday. “Why should Hakainde and the UPND come to solicit for your votes here when he and his people do not consider you? Don’t vote for him. That is why we have brought Nevers Mumba, who is your very own son. We should also be happy and enjoy voting for our own like the Tongas feel when voting for their fellow Tonga.” This is very serious tribalism and regionalism. And it is in total conflict with our Constitution. It is shocking that Nevers could be listening to such things and say nothing or do nothing about it. But Nevers is not alone in that type of behaviour. Launching his 2008 presidential campaign, Rupiah Banda told the people of Eastern Province not to entertain anyone from other regions of our country and tell them to go back where they come from if they went there to campaign. We strongly and repeatedly criticised and denounced Rupiah’s tribal politics. We have equally criticised the Tonga-based politics of the UPND. It was publicly stated in 2006 that no non-Tonga would succeed Anderson Mazoka as president of the UPND. Hakainde Hichilema and others listened to all such tribal utterances and said or did nothing about it. They actually tried to find ways to justify it. We are one country, one people regardless of the many tribes, the 73 or so tribes we hail from. None of us should be discriminated against on account of their tribe or area of origin. And we must ensure that tribe becomes only a God-given gift to each one of us and not an indelible mark or attribute that accords a special political status to any of us. If Molobeka’s thinking, which is similar to the thinking of many elements in the UPND, is followed, this country will be turned into a confederation of Bantustans. There should be no no-go areas for any of our politicians. If Hakainde merits being voted for, it should not only be the Tonga people voting for him. His merit should be seen by all our people. If it is only Tongas who are seeing merit in Hakainde and others don’t see it, then there is a problem. If a politician is only voted for in his home town or region and only by fellow tribesmen and women, then there is a big problem, and that politician is not likely to win a national election unless there is serious fragmentation of votes. The Bemba-speaking people should not vote for Nevers if Hakainde or any other candidate is more meritorious than him. If Hakainde is a better candidate than Nevers, let the Bemba-speaking people give him their votes. But of course, the voting patterns of our regions need to be analysed and understood clearly. If a region always only votes for a candidate who hails from there, there is a problem of tribalism and regionalism that needs to be addressed. If a tribe or a region does not see merit in others and only sees it in its own tribesmen and women, then what Molobeka is saying, undesirable as it may be, needs to be paid attention to. We will never have the good leaders we desire if we keep canvassing for votes on the basis of tribe or region. Tribalism is a barbaric thing, regardless of where it comes from. And NGOCC is right in denouncing, without respite, the highly tribal statement made by Molobeka in Kasama. But there are others who don’t make such statements publicly but are doing it in more subtle ways. These too deserve to be exposed and denounced in the same way. Tribalism is tribalism regardless of the way it is being exhibited. Tribalism is as dangerous as any dangerous virus because it pollutes the relations of people in a country, in a nation and poisons the minds of the backward, the bigoted and the prejudiced. Our struggle is to erase the tribal line that often determines who is voted for and who wins an election. It is intolerable and unacceptable that after 50 years of independence, we have politicians like Molobeka who can publicly and with all the brazenness utter such tribal sentiments without shame. We should never allow our politics to play host to tribalism nor should our voices be stifled if we hear that one of us is engaging in tribal politics or is a victim of it. There is too much hypocrisy on the issue of tribalism and regionalism. There are many who are privately condoning and promoting it, but in the open, they try to pretend to be opposed to it. Tribalism must be consciously combated and not discreetly tolerated by any of us. We have denounced tribalism regardless of where it is coming from. We have spoken against Bemba tribalism inasmuch as we have opposed Tonga, Lozi or Nyanja tribalism. Of what value is tribalism to the Zambia of today and that of tomorrow? Strictly speaking, what does it benefit you to have your tribesman as president of the Republic? What will the tribe benefit from all that? Yes, as we have experienced, a few politicians from one tribe may gang up to steal public funds and abuse public resources for themselves. But they will not be able to share that with the whole tribe. We saw it with Frederick Chiluba and his tandem of thieves predominantly from Luapula Province. What did the people of Luapula benefit from Chiluba’s presidency and its corruption? Yes, a few people from Luapula benefitted who were as corrupt and as rotten as he was. Equally, a few people from Eastern Province benefitted from Rupiah’s government and the corruption that characterised it. But did those benefits percolate to the humble people of Eastern Province? Even in the Patriotic Front government of Michael Sata, there have been corrupt Bemba elements who formed a cartel to share government contracts and steal public funds in all sorts of ways. Have they shared their loot with the humble Bemba-speaking people? Most of them don’t even go to the regions where the poor and humble Bemba-speaking live. They are here in Lusaka, and they keep some of their loot in foreign countries. So, this whole thing of voting for one’s tribesman or woman in order to get more benefits is an illusion, a falsehood, a deception. It doesn’t make sense at all. It is actually a stupid act and practice. - See more at: postzambia/news.php?id=4775#sthash.QjCXxn8u.dpuf Note: Before the 2006 UPND general assembly or convention, the UPND had a party constitution which provided for a regional quarter rotation system of the presidency of UPND in light of Zambias kind of 4 regions: northern, southern, eastern and western. At that time UPND president was late Mr AK Mazoka a Tonga man by tribe. In 2006 around April Mr AK Mazoka died and he had to be succeeded by someone. In June 2006, the UPND under the interim leadership of Mr Sakwiba Sikota who was vice-president of the party, for administration, or say 1st veep, had a convention at which he ran for the president position against HH and a Mr Mweemba. During the funeral of the late Mazoka and all the time to the convention election time, some UPND supporters including Mr Syacheye Madyenkuku and Mr Ngande Mwananjiti (if I remember correctly) vehemently came out telling the UPND members and the nation that the regional quarter system must be respected and only a person from the Tonga region or southern region of UPND structures was supposed to take up the UPND president position through an election to complete the UPND president term for the late Tonga Mazoka. However, the convention allowed the UPND presidency to be competed for by even non-southerners like Mr Sakwiba Sikota. Mrs Mutinta Mazoka declined to stand for election as UPND president to succed her late husband even though many called her to go for it. Mr Hakainde Hichilema, Mr Mweemba and then UPND (1st or 2nd) vice president Mr Sakwiba Sikota compete for the position. I think just before late Mazokas death, then UPND vice president, I think for politics, or say 2nd veep, Mr Bob Sichinga who is a PF member now left the UPND or became dormant following his earlier calls to replace late Mazoka when the late Mazoka was still alive but sick or recovering from poisoning by an unknown element believed to have been sent by government operatives/ions. HH was elected UPND president after scoring about 950 plus or so votes followed by Mr Sakwiba Sikota who obtained about 300 votes while Mr Mweemba seemingly voted for himself as he edged out with 1 vote. At the time of that UPND convention todate, HH sidelined Mr Syacheye Madyenkuku and/or Mr Ngande Mwananjiti who left the UPND to find solace where their behaviour of tribal politics is seemingly accepted with Dr/Mr S Madyenkuku finding a politics rest in PF. Some two weeks ago, the same Dr/Mr S Madyenkuku issued a statement saying PF is not a Bemba party. I hope this rests this case of accusing HH and UPND for something they did not support although I implore the UPND leadership to clear this issue as I have done here to the public.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 14:15:32 +0000
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