FIVE ATTRIBUTES TO LOOK FOR IN AN OPPOSITION PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE THIS AUGUST
By Sean Tembo – PeP President & 2026 Presidential Candidate
1. Absence of UPND Influence:- As part of it’s strategy for divide-and-rule, I believe the ruling UPND party is sponsoring, to different degrees, a number of opposition candidates as their surrogates. I believe that their objectives for this sinister undertaking, vary. In certain instances, they intend to flood the presidential ballot paper with dummy candidates, and create a false perception of the extent of disunity among the opposition.
In furtherance of this plot, they have registered more than ten “friendly” new political parties, since 2021. All of whom, I believe, they intend to sponsor to flood the presidential ballot. Additionally, I believe that the ruling UPND party has infiltrated and are sponsoring multiple portions of the PF party, with the sole objective of splitting votes in perceived opposition strongholds. The main way of determining if a particular opposition political movement is a UPND project or not is, firstly unexplained financial resources to mobilize across the country without any struggle, and secondly, their ability to criss cross the country, undertaking mobilization activities, without being charged with unlawful assembly by the UPND Police.
If they are charged, then they quickly give them a slap on the wrist in terms of a fine, while the rest of us are dragged to court to undergo trial, at a huge financial expense in terms of legal fees, for the same alleged offense of unlawful assembly. As an opposition voter, the worst thing that you can do is to cast your vote for a UPND surrogate opposition presidential candidate. Stay alert. They’re everywhere.
2. Must offer alternative solutions to national problems:- change does not always mean progress, unless you’re replacing a bad President with a better one. We all remember what happened in 2021. The Zambian people replaced a bad PF Government with a worse UPND Government. The mistake of 2021 can still happen this August. If the Zambia people are not careful, it is possible to replace this bad UPND Government with a worse new Government. Therefore, before you seriously consider a particular presidential candidate, ask yourself what alternative solutions to national problems, this person has offered in the past four and half years? Are those alternative solutions documented anywhere? Are they sound? Or is the person merely engaged in the business of condemning, without offering any alternative solutions? This August, please, do not jump from the frying pan to the fire, like you did in 2021.
3. Traceable Background:- how well do you know your potential presidential candidate? Are you able to fully account for their life from the time that they were born, to where they are today? Oh perhaps you only know who they are today? Over the years, what have they stood up for? This is important because a person’s values and principles are shaped by their lifetime.
Values and principles is not something that you can wear and take off, like a jacket. Depending on the weather or occasion. A presidential candidate’s values and principles will go a long way in determining the success or failure of their presidency. A person who spent their entire lifetime putting their pockets first, at the expense of the people, will not suddenly start caring about the people, just because they are now President of Zambia. Behind the scenes, they’ll still put their pockets first.
4. Proximity to the previous PF regime:- we all saw what the previous PF regime was able to do for the nation. They definitely scored far better than the current UPND regime. Their infrastructure development projects are still visible for all of us to see. However, their impunity, abuse of state institutions and lawlessness is something that this country should consider not going back to. In fact, most of the impunity, abuse of state institutions and lawlessness of the current UPND regime is borrowed directly from the PF handbook. My considered view is that this country deserves better. Therefore, anyone who served in a senior role under the PF regime, is unqualified to promise good governance today. That is if we are serious with trying to build a better Zambia.
5. Personal competence, vision and focus:- Unfortunately, whenever a president is directly elected by the people, they become the alpha and omega of Government. Even when they are wrong, their Minister’s or senior Government officials will not tell them that they are wrong, for fear of being seen as disloyal. Of course, it is not supposed to be like that. But it is what it is. What this scenario means is that it is not enough for the President to assemble a competent team, if he himself lacks basic competence, vision and focus.
Therefore, an ideal presidential candidate should be someone who has achieved something in their personal life. Someone who has built something in their personal life. Something that they can point at. Someone who is not just a career politician.
Something sustainable. Not businesses which prosper when they are in Government or close to those in Government, and crumble the moment they lose their proximity to power. Because building a nation is a far more complex undertaking than managing personal life. So, one should have succeeded at the smaller undertaking before offering themselves to pursue the larger undertaking. That is if we are going to make progress, as a nation.
Anyway, the Future is SET ✌🏽
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SET 09.03.2026