Chimwemwe constituency wrangle deepens
By ROGERS KALERO and KALOBWE BWALYA PATRIOTIC Front (PF) cadres and Chimwemwe independent Member of Parliament, Mwila Mutale have engaged in a war of words with each party accusing the other of not being loyal to President Edgar Lungu.
And PF Kitwe district chairman Christopher Kang'ombe says he is disappointed that he has been involved in Mr Mutale’s personal battles.
Mr Kang’ombe said he demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt his ability to reorganise Chimwemwe constituency structures and that the current members were loyal to President Lungu and PF Government.
Mr Kang’ombe said the interim PF executive of the constituency was done after wide consultations and names were approved by both the provincial leadership and secretary-general of the party, therefore the structures are not answerable to an independent MP but to the PF leadership.
Mr Kang’ombe has since advised Mr Mutale to avoid attacking people in the media.
“Previously the structures were disorganised so the PF SG approved our recommendation to dissolve the old structures. Let me put it on record that the constituency and ward structures attended the national day of prayers in Kitwe on a voluntary basis like anyone else because that was not a political function and for Independence celebrations, the structures attended the function at KPF,” said Mr Kang’ombe.
Cadres from Buntungwa ward in Chimwemwe constituency in Kitwe have accused Mr Mutale of destabilising the ruling party in the constituency because he has side-lined the constituency executive committee.
But Mr Mutale has rubbished the accusations and instead blamed the PF Kitwe district chairman Christopher Kang'ombe of failing to discipline members of the interim constituency executive committee for not being loyal to the party and President Lungu.
The PF cadres led by Sunday Kaluba, who is the PF youth secretary for Buntungwa ward said Mr Mutale was destabilising the party by working with his own executive, instead of working with the interim executive committee which was put in place by Mr Kang'ombe.
Mr Kaluba said President Edgar Lungu had embraced the Independent MP and urged party members to work with him, but it was sad that he had decided to work with his own executive.
He said, apart from refusing to attend National Day of Prayers, the executive committee also refused to attend the Independence celebrations at Kitwe Playing Fields (KPF).