PF CHIEF SLAMS OPPORTUNISTS

By GIDEON NYENDWA and KETRA KALUNG ONLY opportunists who did not have the interest of the Patriotic Front (PF) at heart are defecting and blaming me for the election loss, PF secretary general Davies Mwila has said. Mr Mwila said those who were shifting blame on others were opportunists who were seeking favours from the UPND. “They are saying that simply because they want to start dancing with the UPND,” he said. Mr. Mwila said this was not the time to start pointing figures as there was need to reorganize and plan on how the party would move forward. He said the party needs to unite at this point and see to it that it offers proper checks and balances to the incoming government for the benefit of the Zambian people. Mr. Mwila said the President- elect Mr. Hakainde Hichilema promised the country a lot of things that needed to be checked and ensure that they were fulfilled. “Everyone knows that the United Party for National Development (UPND) fraudulently won the election, so there is no one who has the right to stand and point at another person as the reason for the loss,” he said. Mr. Mwila said there was no excitement that could call for one to shift to the UPND because they had not done anything for anyone yet. He said that the party still had a lot of supporters who were still willing to work with the party. “We are willing to continue and move forward,” he said. Mr. Mwila also said that those who were leaving should do so in peace without causing any havoc that would destroy a party that was recovering from a loss. Meanwhile, Mr Mwila said the party would engage with well-wishers to help with repairing the party secretariat which was damaged by UPND supporters. “We will engaging well-wishers to help us with the repairs of our secretariat,” he said. He also said the party would go in large numbers to bury its Northwestern provincial chairman, Jackson Kungo who was brutally murdered on the polling day.  And  Dr. Jonas Chanda, former Mwana Mkubwa MP says he will not be opportunistic by jumping from the PF to UPND, will remain loyal to President Edgar Lungu and the PF . Mr. Chanda who lost the Bwana  Mkubwa constituency parliamentary seat to independent candidate Warren Mwambazi said he would continue with other PF members to rebuild the party just as he did in the opposition under President Michael Chilufya Sata. He said in an interview that he would remain PF and together with others work on the mistakes the party made to rebrand the party and try to regain the confidence of the Zambian people.