I’M SORRY
…for injury caused to UPND – Kakoma
LONG time UPND spokesperson Charles Kakoma says he is sorry for the injury that he caused to the party prior to the August 12, 2021 elections.
In an interview yesterday, Kakoma, who ditched the UPND on April 24 for the then ruling PF, pleaded with Zambians and UPND symphathisers to move on now that time for elections is over.
“I have gone through the comments especially on my Facebook page, and others on Mwebantu. Majority of them, in my estimation, are saying I have made a good decision to leave the PF. Of course, some are still angry about my defection from UPND but we should get over it as a country. I understand the anger,” he said.
On Thursday, Kakoma announced his resignation from the PF central committee and subsequently renounced his party membership.
But this has attracted sharp criticism on various social media platforms from both UPND sympathisers and independent stakeholders, with some describing him as a sellout.
“I understand the anger and I’m sorry for the injury that I could have caused to my colleagues by my decision to leave the UPND. Leaving the UPND was not an easy decision. It was painful but I still went with it,” he said.
“Sometimes in life you have to take difficult decisions. At that time, after the convention in UPND, there were a lot of things happening which caused frustrations in some of us. I was not the only one who was frustrated. A number of people were frustrated. Others even went to stand as independent candidates and so on. All those were frustrations arising from that process but, of course, things could have been done differently. But it happened that way and it is now water under the bridge.”
And Kakoma said he was amazed by President Hakainde Hichilema’s magnanimity even after he left the party.
“When he won, we spoke. I called to congratulate him, and of course, he was magnanimous to answer my call. I also appreciated that he could answer my call. I know there are people that have done worse things to him and he has forgiven them, including those that incarcerated him in Mukobeko [Maximum Prison],” he said.
“When he came out, many people thought he would revenge. Of course, beyond politics they are families. I know some people are saying I said bad things about HH or insulted him when I was leaving which, to the best of my recollection, I did not. I did not. Not even under my high frustrations and emotions.”
Kakoma said he did not believe that the fight against corruption was personal.
He said if people wronged society the law called for their punishment.
“…And even this fight against corruption which he (President Hichilema) has started, I don’t think he is trying to get at people. By coincidence, some people are getting caught in the net. I think there are certain things in the fight against corruption. If people do something wrong, you will end up being questioned,” he said.
“The question is basically to find out if you did something wrong or not, or whether you committed an offence or not. So, in that sense, he is not wrong to pursue that line of fighting corruption and criminality in this country. If they caught the people that were gassing, for instance, I would be happy that those people are arrested and prosecuted.”
Kakoma said in such circumstances, there would be no need of accusing President Hichilema of taking revenge on anyone.
“But are we going to blame HH to say ‘why is he arresting gassers?’ Is he trying to revenge? In that event I will support that he continues doing the correct thing,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kakoma said he and his wife Ruth were on Friday woken to a video taken last year and has gone viral where she was chanting PF slogans prior to last year’s elections.
“Yeah, she came to me in the morning to tell me that ‘there is a page on Facebook where a video of her was trending and that it had 14,000 views; it’s not a laughing matter’. That is what is trending but it is not a case of 30 pieces of silver. The things that were being roasted in the video are from a piggery farm which I acquired a long time before I joined PF – while I was in the opposition,” Kakoma explained.
“So, she just went to the farm and got something and started roasting. So, the aspect of 30 pieces of silver is neither here nor there. People thought we were given a lot of money and that we were bought. People said I was given 12 billion when I left the UPND. But if you give someone that kind of money, you can even see a change in their lifestyle. We will just accept them and grow a thick skin. I know that if by any chance I joined UPND again, people will say I have come to eat again with UPND.”
And asked if he resigned to avoid being caught up in the fight against corruption embarked on by the UPND government, Kakoma said he never had a position in the PF government.
“Yes, I joined PF, I think I was just in the ruling party for three to two months. And I never held any government position in the PF. So I cannot fear about abuse of office. I never had that opportunity to serve, so that cannot be the reason why I resigned,” said Kakoma as he laughed.
“A political party is like a club and even the membership and recruitment are based on rules and regulations. If the majority of people in that club feel that you are welcome, then you can comfortably go and join them. If they reject you, you cannot impose yourself. Otherwise, you’ll find it difficult to function. So, acceptability becomes a serious criterion in deciding whether to join or not.”