MASEBO ASKS HH TO CLARIFY UPND CANDIDATES IN CHONGWE AMID GROWING SUPPORT FOR INDEPENDENTS
UPND parliamentary candidate for Chongwe East, Hon. Sylvia Masebo, publicly appealed to President Hakainde Hichilema to clarify the ruling party’s official candidates in Chongwe East and Chongwe West during the President’s community engagement rally held in Chongwe on Saturday.
Addressing the gathering before President Hichilema delivered his campaign speech, Masebo said there was growing confusion among some supporters over who the UPND’s adopted candidates were in the two constituencies.
She asked the President to remind party members that Dr. Martin Chasha is the official UPND parliamentary candidate for Chongwe West and not Independent candidate Dr. Alexious Mulemba.
Turning to Chongwe East, Masebo remarked in Nyanja, “Kuno ku Chongwe East kuli kamusikana ka Anita Kamanga. Bonse bakamba ati ndiye bana chitiwa adopt ku UPND,” loosely translated as, “Here in Chongwe East there is a young woman called Anita Kamanga. Everyone is saying she is the one who was adopted by the UPND.”
In response, President Hichilema urged Chongwe residents to vote for officially adopted UPND candidates, emphasizing that supporters should back candidates standing on the ruling party ticket rather than Independent or opposition candidates.
The President’s remarks came against the backdrop of lingering controversy surrounding the UPND adoption process in Chongwe.
During the party’s adoption process, both Independent candidates Anita Kamanga in Chongwe East and Dr. Alexious Mulemba in Chongwe West maintained that they had emerged among the strongest performers during local primary elections but were ultimately not adopted by the party. The UPND instead adopted Hon. Sylvia Masebo for Chongwe East and Dr. Martin Chasha for Chongwe West.
Since then, both Kamanga and Mulemba have continued with their campaigns as Independent candidates, attracting considerable attention on the ground and presenting what many political observers see as some of the most closely watched parliamentary contests in Lusaka Province.
Masebo’s public request for the President to personally reaffirm the party’s adopted candidates underscored the importance the ruling party is placing on consolidating support ahead of the 13 August 2026 General Election.