LET’S SPEAK OUT AGAINST UPND WRONGS - MPUNDU

BINWELL Mpundu has raised alarm over the deafening silence among Zambians in the face of injustices, including brazen constitutional breaches, shrinking democratic space, electoral misconducts, ethnic cleansing from government and unbridled tribalism, human rights abuses and the complete breakdown of the rule of law being committed by the UPND government

Mr Mpundu, the Independent Nkana Member of Parliament is deeply concerned that Zambians had continued to remain silent while the UPND has with impunity continued to violate the country’s governing laws while its zealots have continued to sing praises and creating demagogues from their leaders.

Mr Mpundu is particularly concerned that the UPND had appointed its cadres to head the Electoral Commission of

Zambia who had continued to wantonly violate the electoral laws to the extent of barring candidates from participating in the electoral process even after the courts of law had declared their eligibility.

He has also expressed worry that the UPND government in total disregard of the country’s supreme law of the land hounded out of office Lilian Siyunyi, the former Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and Thandiwe Mhende-Phiri, the former Registrar of Societies who was fired for refusing to make illegal changes to the list of office bearers for the former ruling Patriotic Front (PF).

“Dear Zambians, a lot of you have continued to be silent while a number of you have continued praising the UPND over the wrongs they are committing. When those in leadership starts committing wrongs and citizens remain silent, one day they will do worse things and you will wish you had stood up when wrongs were being committed,” Mr Mpundu said.

“Look at this: Are you not aware that the UPND appointed cadres to head the ECZ and in the end the cadres at the commission have been misbehaving to an extent of stopping citizens such as Joseph Malanji and Bowman Lusambo from contesting elections even after the Constitutional Court had declared that they were eligible? You all kept quiet while others praised them,” he said.

Mr Mpundu stated that during the mayoral elections in Kabwe, and the deputy mayoral in Kitwe and Ndola, the police, (with approval from the powers-that-be) misconducted themselves to the extent of going to arrest councillors and a mayor just to make sure the deputy mayoral elections were won by the ruling party.

He said it was frightening that Zambians had remained silent in the face of police brutality and the UPND mingalato while those supporting the

UPND government were clapping. “Two very professional women were unceremoniously removed from the office of DPP and Registrar of Society and Zambians have kept quiet while some of the citizens have been singing praises,” he said.

“Parliament has now been reduced to a circus to an extent that the guiding rules of parliament are being changed by one person to give themselves all the powers they need, illegally changing the leaders of opposition and supported by the state as if they were changing underwear, MPs are being suspended for the simplest of issues. MPs are even stopped from laughing, they are shut down from debating but we are all silent while some of you are clapping for them,” Mr Mpundu said.

He said a lot of Zambians were being victimised and had lost their jobs in government institutions on account of tribe and on the perception that they were sympathisers of other political groups.