UPND SPLIT IN PARLEY

Now, the senior UPND members will be under the supervision of Mr Ngowani who has no experience whatsoever. Now as it is, there are divisions…may you call them factions because the senior MPs are not in support of the appointment,” the source said.

But Mr Mulusa said the UPND MPs were united and happy with the appointment of Mr Ngowani and accused the PF of attempting to cause divisions among the ruling party legislators.

Mr Mulusa said in an interview that it was wrong to insinuate that senior UPND MPs were revolting because of the appointment of Mr Ngowani.

According to Mr Mulusa, none of the UPND lawmakers was against the appointment of Mr Ngowani and that it was the Patriotic Front that was allegedly sowing seeds of division in the ruling party.

“No one in the UPND is against the appointment of Mr Ngowani. There is a letter to that effect…he has been appointed and is working very well. It is the PF who are sowing divisions but let me tell you that there is nothing that is going to divide us.

We as UPND are united and it is the PF that is pushing for that. We have a new deputy government Chief Whip and all the MPs have accepted him. So please do not divide us,” Mr Mulusa said.

But Mumir Zulu when contacted said he was aware of the faction but that it was not shocking that there was a faction within the UPND law makers following the appointment of Mr Ngowani because according to him, senior legislators had rejected the appointment. Mr Zulu said he had been interacting with some of the UPND parliamentarians who have complained and strongly objected to the appointment of Mr Ngowani as their supervisor in the House.

There is something you can never take away from seasoned MPs in terms of decorum, etiquette and experience. Even I cannot accept to be Chief Whip ahead of the senior MPs,” Mr Zulu said.