Give PF back to Lungu, prods M’membe

By BARNABAS ZULU

FRED M’membe has demanded that the UPND government must hand back the Patriotic Front (PF) to its true and legitimate leadership under former President Edgar Lungu and has accused the new dawn administration of actively working to destroy and annihilate the opposition party.
In a statement, yesterday, Dr M’membe, the leader of the Socialist Party (SP) accused President Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND of plotting the downfall of the PF and undermining the country’s multiparty democracy.
“It is no longer in doubt that Mr. Hichilema and the UPND have been working determinedly to destroy the PF,” Dr M’membe said. “They have not hidden their evil intentions. They have been brazen about it.”
Dr M’membe insists that the current situation was not about Mr. Miles Sampa, who has been associated with holding onto the PF, but rather a calculated effort by President Hichilema and the UPND to maintain control through the Registrar of Societies.
“The truth is, it is not Mr. Sampa who is holding on to the PF. It’s Mr. Hichilema through the Registrar of Societies. They planned things this way, and they would want to maintain the status quo and inconvenience the PF,” Dr M’membe said.
He questioned the democratic principles of the UPND, urging them to reflect on the consequences of suppressing a rival political party.
“If indeed Mr. Hichilema and the UPND are true democrats as they claim, let them ask themselves if destroying the PF is good for our multiparty democracy,” he said. “How will the killing or destruction of PF benefit our democracy and the country?”
Dr. M’membe said political competition should focus on service to the people, rather than seeking to eliminate opponents.
Dr. M’membe called on Zambians who value democracy to stand against what he described as the UPND’s effort to destroy the PF or any other political party.
“Whether they hate the PF or like it, the fact is, whether good or bad, it’s not in the place of the UPND to kill the PF. They have no moral or legal right to do so,” he declared.
He demanded that the PF be handed back to its legitimate leaders, particularly former President Lungu.
“Let them give back the PF to its authentic leadership of Mr. Edgar Lungu and his team,” Dr. M’membe urged. “These are really the authentic leaders of the party and not Mr. Sampa and his league.
Dr. M’membe also called on the PF to take decisive action to reclaim its party from what he described as an intolerant regime determined to expand authoritarian control.
“The PF must also put in a lot of effort and sacrifice to claim their party back. They must realise that we are dealing with a desperate and intolerant regime that is determined to expand authoritarianism.
They’re like hungry hyenas on a carcass. They won’t let go easily, but with a lot of effort and pressure, it can be done,” Dr M’membe advised.
Dr. M’membe expressed a strong desire for the PF to continue its role in Zambia’s political landscape, under its true leadership.