THE Patriots for Economic Progress says the August 12 general elections present a unique opportunity for real change and not artificial change.
PeP leader Sean Tembo said real change is when the country moves from bad to good whereas artificial change is when the country moves from bad to worse.
“As Patriots for Economic Progress (PeP) we feel duty bound to warn the Zambian people that the 12th August general elections present a unique opportunity for real change and not artificial change. In 2011, the country experienced artificial change because we moved from a bad MMD government to a worse PF government. The Zambian people should not make a similar mistake this time around,” Tembo said, in a statement.
He specifically cautioned Zambians who might be under the illusion that voting for UPND and its leader Hakainde Hichilema would bring about real change and national progress.
Tembo said there was nothing in such a change and that the signs are written on the wall.
“But just for the sake of those who might be adamant about the reality that the UPND and its leader are incapable of bringing about the much needed real change and national progress, here are a few facts to prove this assertion,” he said.
Tembo said one of the main reasons why people want to remove the PF and its government is that they have failed to properly manage the national economy thereby resulting in high levels of unemployment, poverty and squalor.
He noted that the PF solution to Zambia’s ailing economy is to get an IMF loan, which they have been working on for some time now.
“Just like the PF government, the UPND and its leader Mr Hakainde Hichilema are proposing to get an IMF loan as a solution to the ailing Zambian economy, should they be voted into office on 12th August 2021,” Tembo said. “This means that there will be no change in economic management approaches between the current PF government and a potential UPND government. Mr Hakainde Hichilema intends to continue on the current PF government path of borrowing, despite himself acknowledging on several occasions that our current national debt levels are too high and not sustainable as evidenced by our recent two defaults. To put it simply, a Hakainde Hichilema presidency will not bring about anything new in terms of how the Zambian economy is being run, and the existing levels of unemployment, poverty and squalor will continue unfazed.”
He argued that the UPND and its leader Hichilema represent artificial change similar to what the country got in 2011.
Tembo said another reason why Zambians would like to replace the PF government was their high levels of incompetence and failure to properly manage the general affairs of the nation.
He however said there was no evidence on record that indicates that a potential UPND government would properly manage the affairs of the nation in a competent manner.
Tembo said available evidence suggests that a UPND government would just be as incompetent and corrupt as the current PF government.
“For example, UPND-run local authorities (councils) in Southern, Western and North-Western provinces are just as dilapidated and financially unsound as PF run local authorities, with huge salary arrears to their employees,” he said. “This is despite the large revenue-earning potential that a local authority has, with revenue streams such as land rates, billboard advertising, personal levy, trade licensing, garbage collection etcetera.”
Tembo said opposition political parties in other countries are able to demonstrate that they are more competent than the ruling party.
“A case in point is South Africa where the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) run Western Cape Province outshines all other ruling ANC run provinces in terms of facilities, cleanliness, financial soundness, etcetera,” he said. “The excuses which the UPND and its leader Mr Hakainde Hichilema are making today for failure to competently run UPND controlled local authorities in Southern, Western and North-Western provinces are the same excuses that they will be making to the Zambian people for failure to turnaround the ailing Zambian economy three years from now should Zambians make the mistake that they made in 2011 to vote for artificial change.”
Tembo said people would like to replace the PF government because of high levels of political violence perpetrated by its cadres.
“Similarly, the UPND’s appetite for political violence is well documented and evidenced by the Mapatizya formula as well as the decision by the UPND leader to appoint a well-documented political thug in the UNIP and MMD era, Mr William Tekere Banda as a senior UPND party executive official,” he said. “This means that at the earliest opportunity, a Hakainde Hichilema presidency intends to use political violence as a tool for succumbing his political opponents. Instead of real change, the Zambian people would simply be substituting the current green clad PF cadres for red clad UPND cadres in the perpetuation of political violence.”
Tembo said the fact that Hichilema would rather appoint ailing senior citizens in their late 80s such as Dr Guy Scott and William Banda to his party’s executive committee, at the expense of young vibrant youths who are the future of the nation, means that he has no real regard for youths and is only romancing them for purposes of enticing their vote on August 12.
He hopes the youths are smart enough to see through the irony of Hichilema’s contradictions and “not buy into his lie of pro-youth and its facade of Bally”.
“Only a youthful Republican president can ably and sincerely advance the interests of youths in this nation,” said Tembo.