M’membe urges voters to look beyond campaign entertainment ahead of August poll
Socialist Party presidential candidate Fred M’membe has urged Zambians to choose leaders based on integrity and competence rather than campaign entertainment, warning voters against being swayed by musicians, dancers and unrealistic political promises ahead of the August 13 general election.
Mufulira, 5 July – Speaking during an interview on Yours FM in Mufulira, Dr M’membe said the upcoming elections were a serious opportunity for citizens to elect leaders capable of addressing the country’s challenges, rather than rewarding those running the loudest or most entertaining campaigns.
He said the election should not be treated as a competition of songs and dancing but as a contest to identify leaders who genuinely care about the welfare of Zambians.
“When selecting leaders, you shouldn’t choose those who are making a lot of noise. Don’t choose the one who has hired a lot of musicians to sing and dance. We are not in a dancing contest. We are not in a song contest. The contest is to select a leader who is wise, loves the people and the country, and will care for the people,” Dr M’membe said.
He added that while musicians and entertainers could also serve in leadership, campaigns should ultimately be judged on the quality of ideas and leadership rather than spectacle.
Dr M’membe also cautioned voters against politicians making promises they have little intention of fulfilling, saying Zambians should evaluate candidates based on their records in public office.
He questioned whether those currently governing had fulfilled the commitments they made before assuming office and urged citizens to critically assess the performance of leaders seeking another mandate.
The Socialist Party leader further argued that some opposition figures who had previously held public office had left poor governance records and should equally be subjected to public scrutiny.
He said Zambia’s leadership challenges would not be resolved by simply replacing one ineffective administration with another.
“You remove this thief and put another thief, and you expect society to be better? The first problem that we have is leadership. We have to constitute leadership that can square up to the problems that people have,” he said.
Dr M’membe also alleged that political competitors, including some opposition parties, were attempting to bribe Socialist Party members and candidates to leave the party or withdraw from the election.
He described the alleged practice as corruption, arguing that political leadership should never be bought through financial inducements.
“When you start buying the country’s leadership, then just know that you have destroyed the country. Even among the opposition, they want to buy candidates and entice them to leave the party. That’s corruption,” he said.
Dr M’membe said his campaign was focused on achieving genuine political and economic change, citing high poverty levels, unemployment among young people and worsening living conditions as some of Zambia’s most pressing challenges.
He said meaningful national transformation would require active participation from citizens, arguing that elected leaders alone could not improve people’s lives without the involvement of the public.
“We are seeking genuine change from the way the country is governed. We can only lead, but the people must also govern through active participation,” he said.
©Nkanionline 2026 #NewsOnDemand
You are having interviews when your friends are busy campaigning? Who listens to interviews this time? If you can’t organize musicians and dancers, let those who have organized and prepared for the campaigns do it. After all you already know that you can’t win. After 13th August, we don’t want any more noise from you, you should even retire from active politics and let SP choose another leader. During the normal campaign period, you fail to campaign and the period is over, that’s when you want to campaign, what kind of a person are you?
Dr. M’membe, you have been given the opportunity to campaign freely but you are hiding in radio stations. The official campaign window is on now.
Don’t start agitating for rallies after the elections. The next campaign window will be May-August 2031.
After August 2026, whoever wins must be given room to implement his manifesto. We want to concentrate on development not political campaigns and agitation.