Stop tribal politics, Mukuni told
THE Church and diplomatic community in Zambia should lecture UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema against promoting violent behaviour through his statements ahead of the upcoming Lusaka Mayoral elections, says Patriotic Front media director, Sunday Chanda.
Mr Chanda said the ruling party was concerned with tribal remarks from Chief Mukuni of the TokaLeya people of Southern Province as reported in one of the tabloid newspapers on Monday.
He said it was sad that Chief Mukuni, a close ally of Mr Hichilema had chosen to see tribalism in everything.
The PF leader predicted that the UPND would lose the mayoral elections because the opposition party had no future or a sense of direction.
In a statement issued yesterday, Mr Chanda said the PF was also aware that Mr Hichilema was under intense pressure because he would lose the upcoming Lusaka Mayoral election and opted to justify remarks attributed to his deputy for administration Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba (GBM) who was calling for violence through the ‘ panga for panga formula’.
“Over the past week, we have read worrying statements coming from the UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema instructing his members to act violently under the disguise of self-defence,” he said.
He said statements by Mr Hichilema and other leaders in the UPND calling for violence and self-defence when no provocation whatsoever existed, were potentially explosive and might ignite violence in the not so distant future.
Mr Chanda prodded the UPND leadership to emulate the tone taken by President Edgar Lungu to call for nonviolence and restraint.
He said hate speech has fuelled violence in many parts of the world such as in Rwanda where about 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus died.
Chief Mukuni alleged that Zambia National Service (ZNS) officers who recently graduated were picked on tribal lines.