KEY POINTS FROM THE PRESS BRIEFING HELD BY THE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND CHIEF GOVERNMENT SPOKEPERSON HON. CORNELIUS MWEETWA
The Minister of Information and Media and Chief Government Spokesperson Hon. Cornelius Mweetwa,MP, this afternoon held a press briefing in Mongu, Western Province where he stated the following:
✅Government has unearthed a scheme by some opposition political parties in which they intend to tarnish the good name of the country by flooding alleged complaints of huan rights abuses through emails.
✅ In this scheme the opposition intend to incite young people, women and other groups of unsuspecting citizens to send as many emails as possible for the attention of the international community alleging that their rights have been abused in one way or the other by the UPND government.
✅A number of people have been recruited to act as victims of the alleged abuses of human rights.
✅Government has since advised citizens to be on high alert and guard against falling prey to the scheme and its sponsors.
✅ Government notes that the scheme is not only dirty but has potential to take away from the many successes the country has scored in the last three years.
✅Government also reminds the opposition, Patriotic Front, in particular, that citizens have not forgotten the rampant abuse of their rights they were sujected to in the last five years of the former ruling party.
✅The atrocities committed in the prevoius Government had never been seen before in the history of the country.
✅ A number of citizens lost their lives arising police brutality and political violence ochestrated by the then ruling party.
✅Challenged the former ruling party and the opposition to name any one citizen who has lost their life as a result of the alleged abuse of their human rights.
✅Government advises the international community not to pay attention to the alleged abuse of human rights being peddled by the opposition because their claims do not in anyway depict the reality.
✅Stated that the PF in particular must the last ones to talk about human rights abuses because their leadership was the first of its kind in the history of the country where rampant plunder of national resources, theft, corruption, injustices against citizens and several other crimes are concerned.
✅Zambians have moved on and are only interested in the development od their country which they are happy with and are appreciative of.
✅Zambia is now on an economic recovery trajectory and will continue doing.
✅ Because of maladministration in the prevoius Government, the country lost the support of the international community and partners such as the European Union who recently announced resumption of their buget support due to the good record of the new dawn administration.
✅ Government, stresses that there is no citizen in prison or in police custody without any offence.
✅All those appearing before courts of law or law enforcement agencies are doing so for crimes they have commited or those they are alleged to have committed.
✅Upon being sworn in, President Hakainde Hichilema made it very clear that he would preside over the affairs of the nation with strict application and adherence to the rule of law, a situation that never existed in the Patriotic Front regime.
✅The scheme by the opposition is, therefore, not only mischievous and misguided but also a failed and desperate attempt to mislead citizens and the international community and ultimately dent the image of the UPND government and its leadership.
✅Government urges citizens to continue supporting President Hakainde Hichilema and his efforts meant to uplift their lives.