UPND a tribal clique

THE United Party for National Development (UPND) has identified itself as a tribal grouping from the time founding president Anderson Mazoka died because its current leader Hakainde Hichilema usurped the party’s leadership using the tribal tag, New Congress Party (CNP)

president Peter Chanda has said.

Pastor Chanda was commenting on Mr Hichilema’s comment that the Patriotic Front (PF) was using tribalism and corruption to perpetuate its rule.

Pastor Chanda said it was surprising that Mr Hichilema would make such utterances when he was deeply entangled in the cobwebs of tribalism.

He said today, Southern Province had become politically isolated because the UPND and Mr Hichilema himself were playing tribal

and regional politics and that the UPND leader should be the last person to talk about tribalism.

He said there were better people ready to take over the UPND leadership after the death of Mr Mazoka, but that they were frustrated to pave way for Mr Hichilema.

“Tribalism is deep-rooted in the UPND, and this is because it is a prescription for who

leads the party. If that was not the case, Mr Hichilema would not have purged or failed to work with people from other provinces,” Pastor Chanda said.

“Look at how many vice presidents he has had since he took over the UPND and how each one of them was either frustrated into resigning or technically fired. Does it mean that these vice presidents

have been faulty and it is only him who has been right?” Mr Chanda asked.

He said the UPND had failed to form government purely for advancing tribal and regional politics.

Had Mr Mazoka not died, the UPND would have been in power because he embraced everyone and allowed people to give him advice.