CHIEF Cooma of Choma district in Southern province has threatened to dethrone headmen that were voted into UPND local leadership positions in the just ended intraparty elections.
In an interview, Cooma expressed displeasure that some headmen had openly taken a partisan stance which had potential to destruct development in their places.
“I will not hesitate to ask their clans to give me other names. I can appoint headmen because I can’t work with political cadres in my traditional council. I’m aware that some headmen in Namuswa area in Masuku were voted into UPND party leadership positions, where one is a chairman and the other is information and publicity secretary,” he said.
Cooma called for the named headmen to relinquish their positions or be dethroned from traditional leadership.
“The moment us in the traditional leadership start taking political party positions and become active in politics we threaten development in chiefdoms because NGOs and government will not wish to work with us in our areas and by that we would be depriving our people of development,” he said. Cooma urged headmen to work with the government of the day unlike identifying themselves as opposition political party members “holding even positions”.
“For example, we have NGOs like ZOCS which is building schools in rural areas in my chiefdom and if my headmen turn themselves into politicians, it will be difficult for them to work with such headmen who have turned themselves into UPND party functionaries,” he said. “As traditional leaders it’s important to be drivers of development and remain non-partisan. Be neutral and work with anyone. It’s okay for headmen to attend political party meetings of their choice but being voted into a position is wrong. So as chief, I have asked their clans to submit other names to be appointed as headmen replacing those now UPND officials.”
Cooma said development can only be actualised in the chiefdom if traditional leadership worked with the government of the day and not with the opposition.
He argued that it would be difficult for him as a chief to mingle with such headmen for fear of being accused of championing opposition agenda.
“It can also happen that when I as a chief want to see them they will be having their party meetings,” said Cooma.