UPND president Hakainde Hichilema says Zambia is in a crisis caused by PF leadership failure.
During the launch of the UPND Manifesto 2021-2026 on Friday, Hichilema said lack of political will on many fronts showed that the nation needed a change of leadership this year.
He said a government that was preoccupied with winning elections as opposed to providing answers to the many challenges the country was facing needs to be changed.
“Today the 9th of April 2021 marks an important day in the life of our country. Everyone agrees that Zambia needs change. Not just change for the sake of change but change that is actually going to make a difference. 2021 presents Zambians a chance to experience real change for the better. We have done it before and we will do it again,” Hichilema said.
He further said if anyone doubts whether Zambia needs change, they should just look around themselves to see the pointers.
“Unemployment. Poverty. Rising Prices. Hunger. Falling education standards. Hospitals and clinics without medicine and many more problems. Patients are going to hospitals which have no medical staff and most importantly no medicine. Children are not going to school because parents cannot afford to pay school fees. Parents are struggling with putting food on the table. This needs to change for the better,” he said.
“We cannot imagine how Zambia will look like in another five years with the same party in office. This country will no longer be recognisable. It therefore should not be lost on anyone that the decision we make on 12th August 2021 will either make this country worse than it is, or give it a new lease of life towards prosperity and peace.”
Hichilema said in a nation like Zambia that was fertile and had plenty resources, nobody should be poor.
He said all that needed to be done to change the country for the better was included in the UPND Manifesto 2021-26.
“The highlights in this transformation plan include the following; create jobs for our young people; lower prices of fuel; lower food prices for all Zambians; empower our small businesses to succeed and grow; build a health system that serves all the people of Zambia; build an education system that is robust and prepares our young people to be the leaders and job creators of tomorrow; change a government that steals from the people, to a government that works for the people and bring real change, meaningful change,” Hichilema said.
Hichilema further said the manifesto explains how UPND would address the areas listed above.
He said at the top of the list was job creation, noting that while the country had capable and qualified young people, there were no jobs.
Further, he noted that the country’s small businesses which would also create employment need financing, business support and market linkages, so that they not only survive but thrive for sustainable job creation.
“We intend to support private sector so that it’s easy for them to do business. This will happen through policy consistency and law reforms that will support private sector to thrive and create jobs. We are also going to invest heavily into the agriculture sector. This will be done by increasing production and productivity as well as connect producers to profitable markets. Agribusiness, which is value addition, will also be supported for purposes of creating jobs. We will not rest until food is affordable and every Zambian has three meals or more a day,” he said.
The UPND leader added that education remained a top priority for the UPND.
He said UPND shall not rest until every child who needs to be in school is in the classroom and learning.
“Many of us, including myself, are products of an education system that served both the rich and the poor. We are also making an undertaking in this manifesto to reform the education system to a two-track system that is vocational and academic,” he said. “Under this system, there will be no failures as seen today. This is the same education system we would like to create. Until that happens, we are not resting. Until there is medicine in hospitals, we will not rest. Our government will work ceaselessly until the hospitals have healthcare personnel and ensure that a functional healthcare system is created for all Zambians.”
Hichilema also reiterated that UPND would fight corruption with everything at its disposal, adding that the vice was stealing from the public.
“People pay taxes, fees and fines, but they end up in pockets of individuals. Currently there is no medicine in hospitals because of corruption. People were supplied with faulty condoms and expired drugs because of corruption. New roads only last for one year instead of the recommended 10 years because of corruption. We cannot move forward as a nation without rooting out this cancer that is fast consuming our nation,” Hichilema said.
He maintained that the aforementioned were not just promises but commitment and social contract the UPND was signing with Zambians.
“This is a strategic document backed by a solid plan of actions and reforms, such that from the day we set foot in office, the people of Zambia will feel the difference. This election is not about the candidates contesting elections. These elections are about the people. God bless you and may He bless our country,” said Hichilema.