PRESIDENT Banda has said that he had failed to trust Chongwe member of Parliament (MP) Sylvia Masebo because he knew that she was a mole in the MMD.

And President Banda has wished former deputy minister of Works and Supply Lameck Mangani good luck with his newfound love in the Patriotic Front (PF).

President Banda said Ms Masebo, who recently resigned from the MMD and joined the PF, had remained in the ruling party after the death of President Mwanawasa as an agent of the opposition political party.

The President said in an interview at Lusaka International Airport yesterday shortly before departure for South Sudan that he had always doubted Ms Masebo’s loyalty to the MMD.

He said he had always been aware of Ms Masebo’s political mischievousness and that is why he could not trust her.

President Banda said he had reminded Ms Masebo about her schemes but being what she is, she continued maligning him and smuggling information from the MMD to the PF.

President Banda said when President Mwanawasa died in 2008, Ms Masebo waged a vicious hate campaign against him because she wanted former Minister of Finance and National Planning Ng’andu Magande to succeed the late Head of State.

President Banda said Ms Masebo launched a malicious and smear campaign against him just because he was the favourite to succeed the late President Mwanawasa.

The President stated that while he has never said anything against Ms Masebo, the Chongwe MP has always abused the Head of State without justifiable reasons.

President Banda said Ms Masebo continued abusing him even after the 2008 Presidential elections.

“It is an open secret that Masebo was a mole in the MMD and I did not think I could trust her. When President Mwanawasa died, she launched a hate and malicious campaign against me because she thought Magande would be president. She verbally abused me but I have never said anything against her. So let the people judge between me and her who has hatred against the other,” President Banda said.

Mr Banda said since Ms Masebo is claiming to be the most popular in Chongwe, the MMD is ready to meet her on the campaign battle field.

The President said he is waiting to see how popular Ms Masebo is in Chongwe adding that the elections will dictate who is going to have the last laugh.

And President Banda has said Mr Mangani has exercised his democratic right by resigning from the MMD and joining the PF.

Mr Banda said while he is sorry that Mr Mangani decided to resign when the MMD was considering adopting him to re-contest the Chipata central seat, he wished him good luck in his new party.

“He has chosen to go and when the MMD was formed way back in 1991, it was on the basis of giving people the right to freely associate themselves with their preferred parties. He has made his choice and has chosen to go. I am sorry that he has left at a time the party was considering adopting him as a candidate,” President Banda said.

And WALLEN SIMWAKA reports that the MMD in Eastern Province has described Mr Mangani as an egotistical, greedy and ungrateful person who has always wanted everything to himself.

MMD Eastern Province chairman Kennedy Zulu said Mr Mangani has been fighting President Banda for a long time now and that the party is happy that he has finally left the party

Mr Zulu said in an interview yesterday that the MMD in Eastern Province will always consider the resignation of Mr Mangani as good riddance.

“For the first time, the ruling party will breathe fresh air. Mr Mangani has been fighting the President and he has always wanted everything good for himself. He is a selfish, greedy and ungrateful man. The MMD in Eastern Province had sacrificed so much just for him but he has never appreciated. Time has come for us now to show him that he has never been a factor in Eastern Province and Chipata in particular,” Mr Zulu said.

Mr Zulu said when President Mwanawasa appointed President Banda as Vice-President, Mr Mangani was not happy because he (Mr Mangani) had wanted the position.

He said that Mr Mangani has always thought that he is better than President Banda and that is why he has always exhibited traits of insolence.

Meanwhile, YANDE SYAMPEYO reports that Southern Province MMD chairperson Edgar Keembe has said that Mr Mangani’s resignation from the party will have no impact on the MMD.

Mr Keembe said this is so because the party has gained ground and popularity in most parts of the country, describing Mr Mangani’s resignation as a “drop in the ocean”.

He said the MMD is bigger than any individual member adding that the party will remain intact.

[Zambia Daily Mail]

 

PATRICK Mwanawasa has described President Rupiah Banda’s leadership as meaningless and unreasonable.

In an interview on Thursday in Ndola, where he was meeting some PF officials, Patrick said he did not know what President Banda was trying to achieve and could not resonate with what was happening in the nation.

“I am very happy with the decision I made of joining the Patriotic Front because I have been welcomed with open arms. I know that some people are happy about it, while others are not but it’s my decision. I can clearly say so far, so good,” he said.

He said he had no feeling for President Banda’s leadership but respected him because he was the President of the country.

Patrick also said President Banda was going to be ashamed because he was going to win the Kafulafuta parliamentary seat with a landslide.

He said he was confident of winning the seat because his late father (president Levy Mwanawasa) built a strong foundation on the Copperbelt where he was highly respected.

Patrick said he had been vindicated by Chongwe member of parliament Sylvia Masebo’s resignation for those that said that he was immature.

He said Masebo was a true woman with national identity but had resigned from the MMD, which was a very big loss to the ruling party.

Patrick said with Masebo’s resignation from the MMD, the ruling party would not have easy elections because more people were going to defect to the opposition PF.

“Those showing disrespect to my father are those not mentioning his name or the developments he made, but I am confident of winning the Kafulafuta seat and no one will take it away from me,” he said.

Patrick said change was inevitable and that it was time for MMD to leave room for other parties to rule as well because Zambia was a democratic country.