GBM Tells Lungu To Think Twice Over Foreign Protests Against Him

GEOFFREY Bwalya Mwamba has urged President Edgar Lungu to think twice and minimise his hatred for Hakainde Hichilema because it is embarrassing to have foreigners protesting against a head of state.

And GBM, the UPND vice-president, says President Lungu has betrayed Zambians by refusing to halt the electricity tariff hike.

Zambians based in South Africa, together with some South Africans, last Thursday protested outside Durban’s Hilton Hotel, where President Lungu was lodged, against his government’s continued incarceration of Hakainde Hichilema over treason allegations.

As President Lungu, African leaders and others were attending the World Economic Forum, dozens of protesters demanded that the Head of State immediately and unconditionally releases Hichilema, who remains incarcerated over a treason charge.

Commenting on the protest by Zambians in South Africa, GBM said President Lungu had greatly embarrassed the nation because of the continued incarceration of Hichilema.

He commended South Africans for their continued support in the political struggles Zambia was faced with and asked the Head of State to redeem himself by adhering to people’s calls to free Hichilema.

“I think what the South Africans did is in order, it is democracy, this is what democracy is all about. They [South Africans] don’t believe in authoritarian rulers, which Edger has become. So for them to see someone who is running a dictatorship, someone who is using the police in the country against those he oppresses, it’s weird because they are used to democracy, they are used to exercising their democratic rights. So in as far as South Africans are concerned, if they see someone who doesn’t respect democracy, he is an enemy of South Africa. It is important for African leaders to respect democratic freedoms. He [President Lungu] is a great embarrassment to this country, Zambia. It is a great embarrassment to have people in a foreign country protest against you as a Head of State. Such things happening against a Head of State in a foreign country, that is unacceptable. I think Edgar Lungu has to reposition himself and he must think twice. He should release Hakainde Hichilema because HH has not committed any crime. I was there, I was in that entourage and nothing offensive was committed, nothing whatsoever,” Mwamba said in an interview.

Maybe the only offence that HH committed was that he stole the limelight at that [Kuomboka] ceremony; that is the only offence that Hakainde Hichilema committed. It must by now be known to the PF that Western Province is the UPND’s stronghold, so what they saw there was just a tip of the iceberg. Lungu must know that he currently has no stronghold, his hatred for HH and the UPND has hurt a lot of people and so he should be very careful. He should not unleash the police on innocent people like ourselves, because one day, the same police that he is using will be unleashed on him and his people.

He asked the judiciary to be fair in handling the Hichilema treason matter as the whole world was looking up to their final judgment in the case.

“I want to appeal to the judiciary that they shouldn’t take sides because the only place an innocent person will run to is the judiciary and that is where we expect free and fair judgment. So, I who witnessed what transpired in Mongu, I expect the judiciary to be fair in their judgment. If we are not careful as Zambians and if we don’t speak for our lives, we continue being docile, it is very unfortunate, we will find ourselves in the Cha Cha Cha situation, which a lot of Zambians, I think, now do not understand. They do not know what Cha Cha Cha really means. People don’t understand what Zambian went through in the times of Cha Cha Cha. I think these are things that we really have to start explaining to people, they should be able to ask those politicians who were there. The time and situation that Zambia is heading into is unacceptable and for Zambians now, it will be even worse than some of our friends,” GBM said.

And GBM said President Lungu had betrayed Zambians by refusing to stop the hiking electricity tariffs.

“…A head of State is the one who is supposed to ensure that there are reasonable economic tariffs. In fact, if we the UPND were in power, we would have not allowed the price increase of electricity because we know that most Zambians, if not all, are wallowing in abject poverty because things are not okay economically. But they [PF government] are putting more economic pressure on Zambians, which is very unfortunate. Those who voted for him voted for him on the pretext that things like electricity tariffs would be reduced and this is a promise that he gave during the campaigns. He said he would look after the Zambian people but he has failed the Zambian people,” he added.

“Instead of fighting now for the poor Zambians who are suffering, including businessmen who are highly affected, but now because he has reached an apex, he thinks that he doesn’t need them anymore. He has even got the guts and audacity to say that ‘even if they do not vote for me in 2021’, he doesn’t care. First of all, what makes him think that he is eligible to contest in 2021? In as far as the law is concerned, it’s very clear that he is not going to contest in 2021. Now that he is not comfortable, he doesn’t need the Zambian people in as far as he is concerned and believes so. This is Zambia for the Zambian people. We told the Zambian people, Hakainde Hichilema, myself, the UPND members and officials, we preached to the people, we advised the people that once you vote PF in power, you will see what [happen] and this is basically what is happening; every Zambian, whether from the rural areas, remote areas or urban areas, we are all suffering.”

GBM called on Zambians to wake up and fight the tyranny President Lungu and the PF had imposed on the nation.

“It is time for Zambians to wake up and when they are told, they should listen to those who are in politics because if they had listened to us in the UPND, they would not have been where they are today, they would have not been a part of the country’s current economy, which is in the intensive care. The only few people that are enjoying today are those that are in power and those who are hero-worshiping Edgar. If you hero-worship Edgar, then definitely you are smiling. But if you stand for what is right, you become an enemy of Edgar Lungu and you will end up languishing in prison like president Hakainde Hichilema, for no apparent reason,” said GBM