I Endorse VJ’s 2011 Election Result Analysis, Sakwiba Sikota
UNITED Liberal Party (ULP) president Sakwiba Sikota has said MMD Parliamentary chief whip Vernon Mwaanga’s analysis on the most possible outcome of the 2011
presidential elections indicating that President Rupiah Banda will win the presidency with a wide margin reflects his
accuracy in the previous elections. Mr Sikota said Mr Mwaanga’s
statement should be taken seriously and that people who had followed his analysis in
the past would agree that all his projections had come to pass.
Mr Mwaanga, during a media briefing at his residence on Thursday said President Banda was set to win with a higher
margin than in the previous election on account of the gains he had made in Lusaka and Copperbelt provinces that had resulted from the positive MMD Government’s poverty alleviation policies. Mr Sikota said the analysis should serve as a wake-up call to the opposition parties to work extra hard although it was too late.
He said Mr Mwaanga’s honest opinion stems from the fact that he made it clear that some areas would be scooped by the opposition unlike other analysis which make blanket statements that a particular
party would lead everywhere in the country.
“Zambians should look at the past record of Mr Mwaanga in producing these analyses. It would be folly to ignore and dismiss Mr Mwaanga’s predictions.
“What is refreshing is that he does it honestly by admitting where his party will lose,” Mr Sikota said.
He said experience in politics and his track record as a political analyst made Mr
Mwaanga one of the best people to give guidance in terms of how the political
parties were performing in their campaigns.
Mr Mwaanga, in his analysis,
said United Party for National
Development (UPND) was likely
to retain Southern Province
with President Banda emerging
in second position just like in
Lusaka and the Copperbelt
provinces which would be won
by Patriotic Front (PF)
president Michael Sata with Mr
Banda coming on a strong
second.
The veteran politician said he
had always produced analyses
before elections and that all
the final results of his
statements had been in line
with his predictions while the
ones produced by The Post
Newspaper had always been
wrong, including the one done
in 2006.
He said President Banda would
win with run-away margins in
Eastern, Western, North-
Western and Central provinces
where Mr Sata would come in a
distant third, to make him a
big loser.
He predicted that Mr Sata
would only come second in
Eastern Province.
Mr Mwaanga said on the
Copperbelt, President Banda
would be second only in the
urban areas but would win in
the rural parts of the province.
He said in the Bemba-speaking
areas of Northern Province, Mr
Sata was expected to win but
would lose in all non-Bemba
speaking areas such as
Chimbamilonga, Senga Hill,
Isoka East and West, Nakonde,
Mpulungu, Kaputa and
surrounding areas.
Mr Sata would win in Luapula
Province by a small margin but
the race would be tight against
President Banda because of
the gains he had recorded in
the area.
He said President Banda’s rise
in popularity had resulted from
the schools, hospitals, clinics
and roads which were being
ignored by opposition politicians
and yet people in the rural
areas were able to see them.
Mr Mwaanga said Mr Hichilema
would emerge second to
President Banda in Western
and North-Western provinces.
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