HH likes talking, should have been lecturer – GBM
By Kombe Chimpinde Mataka
PF presidential aspirant Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba says he would have resigned on moral grounds if he were still in the UPND and serving in President Hakainde Hichilema’s government because he cannot be part of the “team of liars”.
He asks President Hichilema to tone down and be the last one to speak after his ministers.
“In fact he was supposed to be a lecturer not not a president. He would have been a very a good lecturer or orator,” he noted. “My brother should tone down. I know he likes talking. He is an orator but when he is running a government it’s different from running an opposition political party or being in opposition.”
Featuring on Muvi TV on Wednesday, Mwamba said he too had highly believed in President Hichilema but had since lost confidence.
“I was one of those who believed so much in Hakainde Hichilema. I thought what he was saying was true but from what I can see, he has failed the Zambians. My belief in him was so high. I will be honest with you. I had to convince not only the people of Northern Province, Muchinga Province, Luapula Province, even across the country where ever I went. I believed in him. I campaigned for him,” he said. “Today UPND will not write a history about their party leaving me out unless they just want to ignore the facts. In Northern Province, how many numbers were they getting? Copperbelt? Go to Muchinga. Go to Luapula including Lusaka. I had people who believed in me and because they believed in me, they followed Hakainde Hichilema. That is why you see that Northern Province was plain sailing for Hakainde Hichilema. Muchinga was plain sailing for Hakainde Hichilema, Luapula was plain selling. Copperbelt was plain sailing because of what I did for UPND but that is not important.”
Mwamba said Zambians made a decision to vote for UPND because of the lucrative promises.
“I really pity my dear brother. I am sure he is having sleepless nights because what he said and what has happened are two totally different things,” he noted. “I don’t regret having ditched Hakainde Hichilema and his UPND. I can tell you if I had, I was in Hakainde’s government, I would have resigned out of principal because I was not going to absorb the lies we told the people that ‘this is what we are going to do’ and yet we did the opposite. I was not going to be part and parcel of that team of liars.”
Mwamba said it was going to be difficult for the UPND to come out of hard times but that it was not too late.
“They promised mountains. They promised heaven but they had not planned for it. Sometimes my brother HH would say ‘when you swear me in at 10 o’clock, 14 hours the dollar will fall, which did not happen and he bragged that he had so many connections across the world that could help the country revive compared to the previous government, the PF, but this has not been the case,” Mwamba said. “In fact he should apologise to the Zambian people. They are bragging about free education and creating employment. What is 40,000 against the population of Zambia of almost 19 million? We are almost 20 million. That is nothing. That is a drop in the ocean. I don’t know what per cent that is. That is a fraction.”
He said President Hichilema was in more trouble.
“He has to change his tactic. He must believe in the people that surround him. If he thinks they are not capable of serving the Zambian people shove them in foreign service. Let them go and help themselves on tea, coffee and cakes and whatever. Let him bring people that are competent even those outside the party or party structures. Let him bring them if they are competent enough to help him so that they can revive the economy which they claim that we messed it up which I don’t t believe. This economy is more messed up today than in the PF time. People of Zambia can attest to that. There is still time. …there is still time. That is why they are there, let him just find people who are capable to assist him. He should not think that he knows it [all]. There are Zambians not even foreigners who are capable,” Mwamba said. “He always wants to preach the way you see him on the media. Everytime he is with people, it’s him talking. Those that he meets are the ones that are supposed to give advice. That he doesn’t not want to listen. In fact he was supposed to be a lecturer not not a president. He would have been a very a good lecturer or orator.”
He said President Hichilema should be the last to speak after his ministers.
“My brother should tone down. I know he likes talking. He is an orator but when he is running a government it is different from running an opposition political party or being in opposition,” Mwamba said. “…I want to urge government to pull up their socks because Zambians are suffering. It is real. We are suffering.”
Meanwhile, Mwamba, a former defence minister in the Michael Sata’s government, said the government should exempt milling companies from load shedding.
“The government should ensure certain sectors more especially the milling because it involves goods which we all have to eat morning, lunch, supper. They have to make sure these are excluded from load shedding. If they have no idea, let them consult us. We can tell them. In fact former Zesco MD is there, he is not dead. He is alive,” said Mwamba. “My dear if I have to install a Genset, my milling plant is a 10-tonne capacity. I need a Genset of not less than $300,000 dollars…”