WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE, HH?

THE nation is still waiting for United Party for National Development (UPND) leader Hakainde Hichilema to produce evidence to prove his claims that President Lungu wanted to assassinate him during the by-elections in Sesheke. It is now almost a month since he made the serious allegations against the Head of State and up to now, he and his opposition alliance partners have not produced an iota of evidence to justify the widely-publicised allegations. Mr Hichilema has failed to bring forward any person who was hit by the bullets he claimed were fired during campaigns for the February 12 Sesheke parliamentary by- elections. Surely, if bullets were indeed fired as Mr Hichilema claims, someone must have sustained bullet wounds or injured. But no-one has come forward, thus, far. Yet Mr Hichilema and his alliance partners have the audacity to inform the nation and the world that they will take President Lungu to the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the alleged assassination attempt. The nation is aware that this is not the first time Mr Hichilema has made such allegations against the President and the Government. Apparently, he has not produced evidence in all his claims including the controversial Mongu Presidential motorcade saga which led to his incarceration. However, if indeed the UPND leader has solid evidence that an attempt on his life was made in Sesheke, why is he delaying to present his evidence to the police and other wings of Government for further action? But no, as is the Hichilema and UPND style, he and his cohorts just want the ICC to probe and prosecute those he perceives want to eliminate him, without exhausting the local justice system. Unless, they produce concrete evidence of the assassination allegations, the best the UPND leader can do is to apologise to the President and the nation. We, therefore, can’t help but agree with PF deputy media director Antonio Mwanza that the fact that the UPND leader has failed to take responsibility over his claims, has created doubts in the minds of citizens as to whether he could be trusted as a leader. For any person aspiring to become the President of this country, it is only proper that he owns up for his allegations or people have no reason to trust him to lead the nation. Leaders, more so those vying to occupy the highest office in the land should be trustworthy and of great integrity to earn the confidence and respect of citizens as opposed to using underhand political gimmicks to woo sympathy from the electorate. Running to the international community for sympathy and to discredit government is not the best way to win the electorate over. The best is to focus on issue-based politics where polices that will develop the country and uplift the lives of people are propounded. So for as long as the UPND continues rushing to cry to the international community, people will continue doubting the party and that it is behind the peddling of misinformation against the nation through foreign media as Mr Mwanza has stated. Engaging in a competition of good governance ideas and not lies is the panacea to winning elections instead of making wild allegations, whining and forever discrediting the ruling government in foreign media. Simply put Mr Hichilema should prove his assassination allegations or apologize to the President and the nation, enough is enough.