PF’s Confusion Is Self-Inflicted, Not UPND’s Burden
By; Tobbius C Hamunkoyo-LLB
Hon. Greyford Monde should be the last person to point fingers at UPND. It is undisputed fact that the confusion tearing the Patriotic Front (PF) apart is not UPND’s creation, but a direct result of PF’s arrogance, poor leadership, and disregard for its own constitution. Monde’s attempt to shift blame is pure political dishonesty.
Let us be factual here. Was it UPND that caused Miles Sampa to declare himself PF president against other factions? Was it UPND that made the late Edgar Lungu handpick Given Lubinda as Acting President without following procedure? Was it UPND that forced PF members to pay large sums of money for a convention that never happened? Was it UPND that allowed Davies Mwila to preside over a party drowning in illegality? Clearly not. PF’s wounds are self-inflicted, full stop,and the majority of Zambians know about this.
Look at the circus within PF, Chishimba Kambwili a strong man in PF was suspended and reinstated like a yo-yo. Harry Kalaba stormed out, citing corruption. Stephen Kampyongo and others openly fought over succession. And today, Robert Chabinga, who once pledged loyalty, now declares PF is confused and positions himself as an alternative leader. This chaos is not engineered by UPND, it is a consequence of PF’s failure to resolve its own disputes mwebantu.
We all know and it is a notorious fact that conflicts and disputes will always exist wherever human beings gather for a common purpose, in music groups, churches, workplaces, or political parties. What differentiates strong institutions or teams from weak ones is not the absence of conflict, but the capacity to resolve it.
Mr. Monde should not accuse HH and the UPND administration of creating conflicts in PF. What matters is how those conflicts are managed. And that is where UPND has always excelled.
President Hakainde Hichilema managed conflict in UPND for over 15 years in opposition with wisdom and determination,you may recall that most people joined and left UPND, HH’s leadership ability kept the party strong. That is why UPND remained intact until a landslide victory in 2021.
And to be clear, Mr. Monde, you yourself are not a stranger to political shifts. You once stood with UPND but chose to abandon the party. You contributed in your time, yes, but when the going got tough, you walked away instead of enduring the long struggle. That is the difference between you and Hakainde Hichilema, you lacked the discipline and resilience to stay the course, while HH kept UPND intact for over 15 years until victory. So you of all people should be the last to accuse UPND of “stomach politics” or protectionism, when your own political journey is littered with inconsistencies and opportunism.
If PF is as “intact” as Monde claims, then why do they have three factions, one backing Miles Sampa, one clinging to Edgar Lungu, another orbiting around Lubinda, while Chabinga positions himself as a rebel president? Why are PF’s future and legitimacy being decided in courtrooms instead of democratic conventions? PF is a broken party, crippled by its own greed and confusion.
PF’s crisis is PF’s burden. Monde must stop exporting that chaos to UPND, because Zambians know that PF’s fall is the work of PF leaders themselves, not anyone else.