HH must keep Nalumango as running mate, Alliance Partners will betray the party
ONE of the most dreaded problems that Mr Hakainde Hichilema faces in every election is back knocking at his door. The choice of vice-president, or rather, running mate. The UPND has struggled to maintain order on this party position. In the past 10 years, the UPND has had five different vice presidents.
After Michael Sata appointed Mr Francis Simenda as Ambassador to Ethiopia, the party elevated Mr Richard Kapita who also defected after being given a job by President Edgar Lungu. Then came Dr Canisius Banda and Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba who went through the same way others did, leaving the party to settle for its first female vice-president in Mutale Nalumango.
One of the reasons why the UPND has suffered betrayal on this position is because it seems to be a socket that has been reserved for an alliance partner to plug in. Until Madam Nalumango’s appointment, the vice-president position in the UPND was kept for an outsider who had something ‘good’ to offer. That is why after Pilgrim left, the party did not make a replacement, as if there was nobody qualified to hold the position. After GBM went back to PF, again the UPND did not make a replacement for a long time.
But that is not how a political party should operate… – News Diggers