I’M CAMPAIGNING FOR LUNGU TO STOP HAKAINDE – NAWAKWI
Edith Nawakwi says she did not contest the presidency, but is instead campaigning for President Edgar Lungu to make sure that opposition UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema doesn’t become Republican president.
And Nawakwi has described as self-inflicted wounds the attacks Hichilema is receiving over tribalism and other issues.
Nawakwi vowed to campaign for President Lungu to ensure that remains in State House.
Asked why she did not contest the presidency as FDD leader, Nawakwi said: “Because I want to make sure that Hakainde doesn’t become president.”
“So you mean you couldn’t campaign on your own for him (HH) not to be in that position, you had to go the PF?” the author asked.
“Mwana Pheluna Hatembo is still missing, yes and the problem that Hakainde has created he has created a lot of injuries in many people with the fall out of Pheluna. And I want to be able to talk freely without being summoned to Electoral Commission,” Nawakwi responded. “Like look PF is banned from campaigning, UPND is banned. Me I can go freely. I can go to a church meeting, to an orphanage I can do anything I want. I am not in a group. For this one I want ECL to win.
And he’s winning, and he has won. Hakainde has no story, he says I will fix it but he doesn’t even have spanners not even a garage. How can you say you are going to retrench…that’s what Hakainde wants to bring back, retrenchment.”
Put across to her that the President she was backing has presided over a crumbling economy, with the Kwacha now at K22.85 to $1 as opposed to K7 to $1 when President Lungu was taking over power.
It was also out across to Nawakwi that the country was growing at an average 7 percent, with very minimal debts, and prices of essential goods like cooking oil and mealie meal were hovering below K50, but Nawakwi said 10 years ago when she would travel from Mungwi to Isoka there used to be no road, but it was there now.
“If you say blanket wise to say that he (President Lungu) has overseen the collapse of the economy is to ignore where the money has gone. Today when you go to UTH, in 2011 when I went to UTH every heart patient had to be flown out, now if I have a heart attack there laboratory at UTH,” Nawakwi said. “We used to have the same surgical ward but now there is a tall building which is a new surgical ward..The person in Matero no longer goes to UTH they go to Matero Level 1 Hospital.”
“But do you agree that in this country we can be buying a fire tender at $1 million each?” this author asked, but Nawakwi said that matter had been discussed already and that she was very vocal about it, quickly pivoting towards Hichilema.
“We discussed those issues…but do you also agree that in this country one politician should collect pension funds from miners? Right now if you want you go with me, I am going to meet ex KCM employees they are at Garden House, they have come, they were paid part of the payment, the balance was left with AFLIFE Benefit Consulting, a company belonging to Hakainde,” Nawakwi said. “They were told take this money to SANLAM, SANLAM is Hakainde’s company. Do you agree that you should collect pension from people and abuse them and sit on them…I have hallowing stories of Hakainde…because of these things I got upset I said look this man gets the property of a dead man, the grave is there, he goes and stands on that grave and tells the deceased person’s family I don’t care, nifwe bachende bakashala.
We are the bulls that have remained. He has annexed two farms belonging to two brothers, 4400 hectares, everyone of the relatives is on the fringes of Kalomo living in shanty compounds is that correct?”
Nawakwi claimed that Hichilema’s impudent behavior was too much that “it doesn’t matter what you say. I have made up my mind.”
“You can say economy chani na chani I will go and explain to the people why the economy is like this. We are not the only ones. Are you telling me that America is doing well? Are you telling me that South Africa is doing well?” she asked.
“Then why do we elect leaders if you are going to be comparing our country to the other countries?” asked the author, but Nawakwi said: “Hakainde himself has externalised a lot of pension funds. This money is supposed to be used for stabilizing the economy. If you take pension funds from KCM and send $32 million to Asia, what does it do to your balance and exchange rate?”
And Nawakwi said she did not agree with PF central committee member Paul Moonga that the Tonga people are tribal. Moonga told Daily Revelation that Kanyama was the only place were it would be 50-50 between PF and UPND because the area was inhabited mostly by Tongas, Lozis and Luvales who voted on tribal lines.
“It’s the leaders who want to present the image like that. And this started after Mazoka died when because Hakainde had no other pathway to to being a leader they started peddling the story that the only one who could succeed Mazoka was a Tonga, and they chased Sakwiba Sikota and any other person,” Nawakwi said. “When it came to who was going to lead UDA (alliance) I was supposed to lead UDA, they said that I was woman and I was not Tonga. So that talk has stuck on them, and they use it only to benefit the leaders…they say ichi chesu just taking advantage of innocent people. They say ichi chesu, income yesu.”
Nawakwi insisted that “for me Tongas are not tribal.”
“Hakainde says the cost of living is high, but he knows the cost of living throughout the whole world has gone up…he’s exploiting it, that’s the way he has exploited the Tonga tribe. The people in southern province are not tribal,” Nawakwi said. “First of all you have to address Hakainde himself has to come out in the open and address violence and his foul mouth that’s all. When he said you are not going to be a leader because you are a woman and you are not Tonga why would he be talking to me like this? Who is the originator of that discussion?
She said Moonga was aggrieved and was probably hitting back after a “fake recording” where it was alleged that he was saying that PF would lose.
“For me they say I have apologized to Hakainde. How can I apologise to that boy? How, where would I even start from? When the people answer back and hit back then they start running around,” Nawakwi said
Asked if she felt good pronouncing to a grown man as a boy, and if she felt politicians should be respectful to each other, Nawakwi said she referred to Hichilema as a boy because of his behavior.
“May His Soul Rest In Peace Michael Sata, I think his description of the level of politics Hakainde plays was apt. What kind of an adult would sit down and start manufacturing a story, that Edith Nawakwi has apologised to us?” said Nawakwi. “What kind of an adult would sit down with a boy like Chellah Tukuta and he’s insulting other people and you are a husband and you are a parent? You understand that? So some of these are self inflicted wounds that he is suffering from. Yes. If he respects others we also respect him, we are all adults, Hakainde is two years younger than me.”