HON KAMPYONGO IS A POLITICAL HEAVYWEIGHT
….. following the dispatching of five cabinet ministers for a simple ward by-election in Shiwang’andu, says PF official
Shiwang’andu District…. Saturday January 20, 2024 (SMART EAGLES)
Shiwang’andu Member of Parliament Hon Stephen Kampyongo is a political heavyweight as seen with the dispatching of five cabinet ministers for a simple ward by-election in Shiwang’andu District, charges Shiwang’andu Constituency PF Chairman James Mulenga.
Mr Mulenga says he has never seen a political party in power dispatching such a huge number of cabinet ministers for a simple ward by-election.
He says Education Minister Hon Douglas Syakalima, Water Development and Sanitation Minister Hon Mike Mposha, Small and Medium Enterprises Minister Hon Elias Mubanga, Sports Minister Hon Elvis Nkandu and Technology and Science Minister Hon Felix Mutati are in Shiwang’andu district for the Mayembe ward by – election.
He alleges that even District Commissioners in Muchinga Province have joined the campaigns and have removed number plates from their official vehicles which he says is against the law.
“This goes to show that Hon Kampyongo is not a simple politician. Since I started politics and covering elections, I have never seen such a huge number of cabinet ministers going to campaign in a ward by-election. They have abandoned their Ministerial duties just to come and witness a loss in Mayembe ward by-election,” he told Smart Eagles.
“It will be interesting to see how they will exit the district after loosing next week’s Mayembe ward by-election. The people on the ground are saying we will eat whatever they are giving us but we won’t vote for them. And we have constantly encouraged our people to get the same handouts they are giving them during the campaigns but they know what to do in the ballot box.”
Mr Mulenga indicated that the UPND are desperate to penetrate Muchinga Province saying it is not going to be easy as the people have regretted voting for them.
“A lot of people have regretted having voted for the UPND in 2021. Even the handful people that are cheering them have not received the full farming inputs, they are hungry but once they (ministers) go, they will come back to reality of hunger,” he added.
“If you can see, even in their campaigns, they are attracting children who do not even have voters cards. The real voters know what is at stake. It is clear that their coming here is in vain.”
Politics are like football, there are no heavyweights or underdogs because anything can happen. Already feared teams like Egypt, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, SouthAfrica are not doing well at the ongoing Afcon but underdogs like Cape Verde are shining. So whether UPND wins or loses in Shiwang’andu, it has nothing to do with Kampyongo being a political heavyweight, we regard Shiwang’andu as an un entered area for UPND, you know the savagery which was happening there both in 2015 and 2021 with the full blessings of Kampyongo. I doubt if even HH has ever campaigned there. Imagine a helicopter is preparing, people are busy making fire on the ground to prevent it from landing. So it’s good that some Ministers are there this time otherwise you can’t claim to be a heavyweight when you are fighting alone, you are a heavyweight to who?
Actually it was in 2015, 2016 and 2021
Its this kind of shallow narrative that has led us to be a mediocre people that have wrecked institutions that should provide public services to people and glorify individuals.
Its mediocre thinking that makes us fail to pick up after our selves and throw rubbish in bins, that clog the drains and sewer ways and feacal matter ends up in our open drains and we have cholera.
Its this mediocre thinking that deflects us from thinking about leaders that seek law and order to the ndime ndime nineo nineo kimina kimina culture, that suggest that an individual or politician is the king instead of a steward serving their electorate.