PRESIDENT LUNGU MUST ADDRESS THE ‘ELEPHANT’ IN THE ROOM.
By Hon Kasolo Chisenga
I think it is high time the Zambian people were told the full truth, on the political violence the country has experienced over the years.
The narration that it is two political parties namely UPND and PF that are out to destroy each other is far from the truth, as East is from the West.
Let us go to the very beginning of this crisis. Soon after the passing on of President Sata, there was a tag of war on who will take over the PF. There was the Guy Scott team using the police apparatus and the Willie Nsanda team using cadres. It is in this period that names such as Innocent Kalimanshi, got to be known. As he himself Kalimanshi says, they fought hard to have Edgar Lungu bestowed as PF president. He has always said that he worked very hard for PF during the Kabwe convention.
It was from that time that the MISTRUST between the police and PF cadres began. So when Edgar Lungu became president, the cadres took it upon themselves to be offering ‘security’ whenever he is moved from place to place. They did this by clearing the road and escorting him. They openly said that they did not trust the police to do a ‘good’ job.
With Edgar Lungu now as president of Zambia, the cadres then transitioned to PF SECURITY WINGS. There is Delta Force in the Cooperbelt, Kulima Tower branch, Intercity Branch, the “Americans” of Kalimanshi, Northmead Security all in Lusaka. All these offer the so called security for PF. Whenever the PF secretariat needs them, he calls upon them, to carry out whatever duties he assigns them.
The election of Lungu as president meant the police were no longer their enemy. The PF cadres now saw a ‘new enemy’ and that was the UPND.
It was from then onwards that UPND started experiencing atrocities from PF cadres, whilst the police looked on. The police held an inferior role in the eyes of PF cadres due to the history outlined above.
Rallies by UPND were constantly disrupted with impunity by the so called security wings. UPND members suffered severe beatings from these cadres. Sadly UPND members have died at the hands of suspected PF cadres and up to now, the police have not acted on a number of cases.
It became routine for UPND to report on attacks by PF, to a point that they were labelled ‘cry babies’. It was only after UPND began to prepare themselves, to thwart attacks from PF security wings, that they began to have successful rallies or campaigns.
Up to today, UPND still faces attacks from PF cadres whenever they go about their work. Recently they had their presidential roadshow blocked by PF cadres, who came armed with machetes, stones and knives.
IN CONCLUSION, PRESIDENT LUNGU, DISBAND YOUR PF SECURITY WINGS! THAT IS THE ‘ELEPHANT’ IN THE ROOM. AND PEACE WILL RETURN TO ZAMBIA. ANYTHING ELSE IS BEING DISINGENUOUS!