THE UPND says it is strange that a woman like Vice-President Inonge Wina, who is supposed to be a role model for young female politicians in the country, can stand in the people’s Parliament to lie, “with her eyes wide open.”
During the Vice-President’s Question Time in Parliament last Friday, Vice-President Wina accused the opposition UPND of being intolerant.
Responding to a question from Lubansenshi PF member of parliament George Mwamba, who wanted to know why so many councillors were resigning from the opposition party to join the PF, Vice-President Wina said the reasons were many.
“Mr Speaker, there’re many factors contributing to this exodus of councillors from UPND. And one of these is the high levels of intolerance in UPND. And the newcomers to the party are finding this very uncomfortable. And that’s why some of them are leaving. And some are leaving because they cannot operate under a very undemocratic party where councillors are forbidden from interacting with government officials,” said Vice-President Wina. “Councillors want to see development in their wards…”
But Lusaka Central Constituency UPND information and publicity secretary Ngombo Ngombo countered that Vice-President Wina: “will never stop lying.”
Ngombo, in a statement, said reading Vice-President Wina’s “lies” on the lack of tolerance in the UPND as reasons for councillors’ defections left those in the opposition party with no choice but to believe Cornelius Mweetwa’s description of her.
Mweetwa is the Choma Central UPND member of parliament who recently asked why a “liar” in Vice-President Wina should be let scot-free in Parliament, while he is told to apologise for pointing out her lies.
“Shallow and shameful fully describes madam Wina’s reasoning and is a danger to our once thriving national democracy which was a marvel in the region but has since been eroded by her party,” Ngombo stated.
“We find it strange that a woman who is supposed to be a role model for young female politicians in the country would stand in the people’s Parliament and assembly to lie with her eyes wide open that UPND councillors were resigning because of intolerance.”
He stated that councillors who were rescinding their decisions made confessions on how they were coerced to resign with promises of money and jobs by named and known PF cadres and officials.
Ngombo recalled that not long ago, the media was awash with a voice recording of a PF official in Sioma offering a job in the Zambia Intelligence Services to a UPND councillor in Sioma if he resigned from his position.
“We also have a councillor from Nalikwanda on record who was offered K35,000 to resign from his position by a known chola boy (right hand-man) for madam Wina, Spuki Mulemwa,” he said.
“Should we also remind madam Wina, our elderly female Republican Vice-President of a female councillor in Luampa who turned down a teaching job offered by Western Province permanent secretary Danny Bukali as well as several other incidents that have been recorded of councillors that have gone to be firemen, guards and cleaners in government departments after their resignations?”
Ngombo added that Zambia’s treasury could barely support any social services while debt levels, both foreign and domestic, were unbearable.
“The Patriotic Front, led by Inonge Wina in its greedy style, has continued to starve local authorities through inadequate funding while all sources of income have been taken over by party cadres, leaving councillors and other council workers desperate and vulnerable. These are high levels of immorality and intolerance,” stated Ngombo. “In as much as all days might belong to the dog, one day belongs to the owner and the day of reckoning is fast approaching for the Patriotic Front and madam Wina. Zambians are not gullible! They are seeing and watching and will soon act on the PF’s high intolerance and lack of morals.”