I ADMIRED MAZOKA…he’s a nationalist, a complete opposite of HH – Changala

I ADMIRED MAZOKA…he’s a nationalist, a complete opposite of HH – Changala

By Fanny Kalonda(The Mast)

MAZOKA is a complete opposite of the current UPND president, complete opposite, says good governance activist Brebner Changala.

Changala said President Hakainde Hichilema does not accept to be led, “and that is his first failure”.

“I must say it and put it on record the President assured me, just like he assured everybody out there, that he is coming to unite this country and I believed him,” he said.

Speaking when he featured on the Conversation Programme, Changala said on a scale of zero to 10, President Hichilema might have scored one, being the least because he has made no changes.

“If Anderson Mazoka had lived longer, UPND would not have remained in opposition for 23 years. He knew how to mobilise. Anderson Mazoka was outgoing and he knew how to tap into human resource. And he knew how to relate and maintain friendship. And he knew how to harness and use the criticism that would be thrown at him. He never used to get angry but most importantly Anderson Mazoka never fronted a tribe. Anderson Mazoka was a nationalist. He was such a father figure that was accepted on either divide. He was brilliant. I get something that I repeat so often from Anderson Mazoka because I followed him closely and I admired him…” he said. “But I’ll tell you something, Mr Hakainde Hichilema does not accept to be led. He must be a leader at all times and at all levels and that’s his failure number one. I want to tell you here now which everybody knows in this country, Mr Hakainde Hichilema never and still doesn’t recognise ECL (Edgar Chagwa Lungu) as president. He never accepted him when he was president. He has never accepted him as a former president, even today.”

Changala said in his private conversation with President Hichilema, before he won the election, he asked him to do better than president Mwanawasa in terms of good governance, integrity and national building but “he over credits himself”.

He accused President Hichilema of driving an agenda of division.

“But I can tell you here now, on a scale of zero to 10, the President might have scored one being the least because he has made no changes to the way the PF ran this country. In fact, it is a replica of the Patriotic Front and many of us are wondering as to why did we change. We should have just panel beated Mr Edgar Chagwa Lungu to remove the cadres from the streets because on that, we give him credit although he over credits himself. But we give him credit because he can’t finish a sentence without the Patriotic Front because it’s one animal that haunts him day in and day out. But our expectation when we supported Mr Hakainde and the UPND is change and the restoration of the rule of law,” Changala said. “He (President Hichilema) said ‘I have done all I could have done. I have offered you a job, I know your agenda. You want to start attacking me’. He told me that, the President. We have a very unusual situation which I have noticed at my age. I have attacked all administrations without exception. This is the first administration that I’ve seen which is highly sensitive to criticism and whenever you criticise it’s because you never wanted a Tonga to become President and it irritates me.”

Changala added that he finds it challenging that whatever platform President Hichilema finds himself, it becomes topical of him to talk about tribe and the challenges he faced in opposition.

“I supported him, he was president. HH is my friend. For your information we have never discussed a tribe before he became President but it has become a topical issue. And the President is driving this agenda of division. I must say it and put it on record the President assured me, just like he assured everybody out there, that he is coming to unite this country and I believed him. But I don’t like it and I wish he would watch me that every platform that he is given, the tribe and the challenges that he faced in the opposition becomes the central topic issue. Whatever forum, whether he’s talking to the permanent secretaries, whether he’s talking to ordinary citizens. I find it challenging,” said Changala. “If only I wanted to benefit I should have been very comfortable with Hakainde, that’s my friend but when it comes to national matters, it doesn’t work.”