ZAMBIANS WORSE OFF UNDER HICHILEMA, SAYS PF MEDIA DIRECTOR
Lusaka… Wednesday April 9, 2025
Patriotic Front (PF) Media Director Edwin Lifwekelo has said Zambia is in a significantly worse state under the leadership of President Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND.
Mr Lifwekelo stated that the new dawn government had taken the country’s economy from “bad to worse,” and asserted there was no longer any hope for ordinary Zambians under the current administration.
In a statement, he cited President Hichilema for systematically dismantling Zambia’s democracy, warning that a re-election of the Head of State in 2026 would spell disaster for the nation.
Mr Lifwekelo further alleged that many of the issues Hichilema had criticized the former PF government for had worsened under his rule.
Citing specific examples, he pointed to the volatility of the exchange rate, noting that the kwacha had depreciated from K17 to a dollar at the time UPND took office to K29 and rising.
He added that the price of mealie meal had increased from K120 to K400, while foreign debt had risen from $11.9 billion to $15.4 billion.
Similarly, domestic debt had grown from K178 billion to K236 billion, and the cost of living basket had jumped from K8,512 to K11,599.
Mr Lifwekelo also criticized President Hichilema’s international travel record, saying the Head of State had surpassed his predecessor in overseas trips, having made nearly 70 international visits in just three and a half years.
“To suggest that President Hichilema and UPND have achieved what PF failed to do in 10 years is being economical with the truth,” he said.
He went on to describe claims of economic progress under the UPND government as “deception of the highest order.”
He also dismissed government narratives linking economic improvement to lowered inflation rates.
Mr Lifwekelo argued that while inflation may have decreased, essential commodities had become more expensive than they were under the PF government, labeling the claims as “blue lies.”
Turning to governance and democracy, the PF Media Director stated that President Hichilema’s administration had become dysfunctional and had abandoned the plight of ordinary citizens.
He called out the UPND for manipulating internal affairs within the PF using the Registrar of Societies, which operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security.
According to Lifwekelo, the recent leadership changes within the PF, particularly the installation of Robert Chabinga, amounted to an adulteration of the rule of law.
He also raised concerns over what he described as the stalling of PF-related court matters and accused the Speaker of the National Assembly of bias, arguing that opposition MPs were being unfairly targeted and silenced in Parliament.
Mr Lifwekelo concluded his statement by paying tribute to the late Edith Nawakwi, whom he described as a woman who had defied all odds in her pursuit of justice.
He asserted that she had d|ed “a humiliating d£ath at the hands of her oppressors.”