HH is wearing a jacket of hypocrisy from head to bottom – Nakacinda

HH is wearing a jacket of hypocrisy from head to bottom – Nakacinda

By Rhoda Nthara( The Mast)

THIS President is so insecure that he is suspicious of everybody, says PF secretary general Raphael Nakacinda.

He accused President Hakainde Hichilema of wearing a jacket of hypocrisy from head to bottom.

“He’s suspicious of everyone and you can’t have a president who is insecure the way this one is because he is dangerous. A president must be relaxed, settled, look at his citizens as his brothers and sisters,” Nakacinda says. “You know the mistake that Mr Hakainde Hichilema is making is that he is using everything as a reward process. There are certain institutions that you don’t have to appoint people as a way of rewarding them for what they did in politics. The police is one of them. You have to have people rise to higher ranks on merit and applaud them and honour them for being professional.”

He said former inspector general of police Lemmy Kajoba tried to be professional but that after him they “went and brought now a grandfather from ancient days”.

“He (IG Graphel Musamba) has even forgotten the code of conduct and everything. He was just a pure farmer and politician, now he can even go to the media proudly and tell us ‘we will not allow the opposition to have any rally because the UPND are ready to attack!’ A very nonsensical statement and we are here celebrating and the President comes instead of dealing with that situation now says now ‘I am going to [bring] the army’. He now wants to finish the army the way he has finished the police?” wondered Nakacinda when he featured on KBN Television recently.

Nakacinda stressed the importance of professionalism in running institutions.

“And I want to encourage everybody running these institutions remain professional. …You have somebody charged with the responsibility of being DG (Director General) but your aides are going to ask whether that DG is meeting the opposition or the former president. What kind of nonsense is that? Why can’t President Hakainde Hichilema go and consult others [on] the role of that institution? That institution is supposed to interact with every Zambian for the benefit of the President. I know there’s no interaction between that DG they are trying to maliciously accuse with anybody. Not even the former president but in principle those who have occupied that office they allow that institution to operate freely so that every detail of what’s happening in the country the President is aware and it will require that they are able to interact with everybody including the enemies of the President. But because of lack of understanding on how government operates, they are suspicious of everyone,” he said. “This President is so insecure that he is suspicious of everybody. He is suspicious of his Vice-President. He’s suspicious of his aides that’s how come they are desperate now and getting involved in things because they want to be relevant. He’s suspicious of everyone and you can’t have a president who is insecure the way this one is because he is dangerous. Look at everybody as stakeholders, even those that are highly critical. You must have your ear open, listen to them. Interact with them where you can, you may just benefit. The Office of President is the epitome, the symbol of our sovereignty. Those who occupy it must be mature enough like [Levy] Mwanawasa said he had developed a thick skin to absorb all manner of criticism even from those who were so critical that even when they are talking about you you are shifting in your chair but you must rise up… Let me tell you if we have a very strong, robust justice system in the country, we have a strong judicial system, you can even have a mad president they will be regulated because they won’t be allowed to abrogate the law.”

Nakacinda said President Hichilema has abrogated the law “every now and then and he is not being held accountable”.

“Matters have gone before court to challenge hate speech by officers in government, by the President, he has not even been held accountable. No pronouncements has been made to call him to order. That’s why the President can go to Southern Province and say ‘Tongas you vote for me, your own, because you remember when you spoke Tonga in Intercity Bus Terminals, you were beaten’. That is hate speech, that’s tribal talk. There’s no Tonga speaking person that was beaten in Intercity. We do admit as Patriotic Front [that] there may have been cadres there that misconducted themselves politically at Intercity and other places. We have said sorry to the Zambian people for those actions but there is no Zambian that was harassed at Intercity or anywhere else because they spoke Tonga. That’s a lie,” said Nakacinda. “But that propaganda has been sponsored to a point where for the first time in the history of this country tribal talk has been heightened under this government. [Dr Kenneth] Kaunda’s action when tribalism emerged was not for him to start punishing people. Kaunda… decided to wash his hands if this country is going to degenerate into tribalism – ‘I am not going to be part of it’. But not this government. Youths, leaders of UPND, are making tribal pronouncements declaring that certain provinces like mine Southern Province they will make it difficult for other politicians to go there. They are let scot free. Another person responds in Munir Zulu to say if that’s what you are going to do then just be sure that we are also going to retaliate you arrest Munir, you leave the proposer. That’s hypocrisy. Mr Hakainde Hichilema is wearing a jacket of hypocrisy from head to bottom and it’s a shame. The things that he was complaining about in opposition, the things that he promised to deal with in opposition, he has actually done worse than what he found at the time. 2026 is coming and the Zambian people you have compared. You have seen what Mr Fixer has done. He has fixed you. You may not like my vibrance, you may not like my robust way of engagement, but I mean well. This is who I am. I am passionate about what I believe in. I say it with passion and I will say it as straight forward as it is and I go to sleep peacefully because I have no hidden agenda or malice.”