Why people go to Mundubile’s rallies
1. He makes them feel HEARD
– Talks about mealie meal, fuel, fertilizer — not debt restructure
– We sound like economists. He sounds like an ordinary person
*2. He makes them feel SEEN*
– PF attends funerals, markets, churches. They go door-to-door
– Our structures only wake up near elections. His team works daily
*3. He sells HOPE*
– People remember PF “shared” — even though it caused the debt crisis
– Free education saves families money, but if food is still expensive, that win gets forgotten
*What we’re not doing well*
– *We speak policy, he speaks pain* — We say “macro stability,” he says “food prices”
– *We fixed the economy, but households still struggle* — Voters feel the shop prices, not the debt deal
– *We deliver but don’t showcase it* — 42K teachers hired, but do villages see the new desks?
– *We explain but don’t empathize* — People can accept hard times if they feel leaders share the burden
*Who’s going to his rallies?*
1. *The struggling* — Unemployed youth, marketeers, farmers waiting on inputs. They’re hungry, not loyal to PF
2. *The nostalgic* — Chiefs, small contractors who benefited under PF
3. *The impatient* — Young 2021 voters who expected faster change in their pockets
*What they’re saying about Bally*
– “He has forgotten the people” — They see us as technocrats now
– “PF may lie, but they talk about what we want to hear” — He addresses today’s pain
– “CDF isn’t reaching us” — Local councils fail, but the Presidency gets blamed
*What UPND must do NOW*
1. *Show up* — MPs and Ministers must visit markets and villages to listen, not to lecture
2. *Translate wins* — Don’t say “GDP grew 4.7%”. Say “Your child’s school is now free. That desk came from CDF”
3. *Fix last-mile delivery* — Audit CDF and FISP. Remove bottlenecks. Good policy fails with bad implementation
4. *Acknowledge the pain* — Say it plainly: “Things are hard. We’re sorry. Here’s why and when it will ease”
5. *Revive structures* — We won in 2021 by being everywhere, every day. We can’t govern from Lusaka alone
Bottom line
Mundubile isn’t strong. He’s filling a vacuum we left.
The biggest threat to UPND isn’t PF. It’s becoming comfortable.