Patriotic Front challenges Hichilema govt to allow party hold planned rally, test popularity

Former Patriotic Front (PF) Secretary General, Davies Mwila, has challenged President Hakainde Hichilema’s administration to allow them hold their planned strategic meeting if it was still popular.

Police in Lusaka and Kabwe in Central Province had denied the PF permits to hold their planned rallies to launch the party’s 2023-2026 strategic plan citing lack of manpower.

Mwila told Zambia Monitor that it was unfortunate that Hichilema was using the Police to deny the PF a platform to exercise their right to assemble through holding the planned rallies in Lusaka and Kabwe.

“Allow us to hold the rallies in Lusaka if you are still popular, we want to tell the people of Garden, Matero and other areas that the price of mealie meal is now K320 just like you used to do in your opposition days,” he said.

Mwila said stopping the party from holding the rallies was a sign that the new dawn administration had lost its popularity and was now scared to be exposed to the Zambian people.

On the squabbles within the party involving the Matero lawmaker, Miles Sampa, and the issues of holding a general conference, Mwila said the parliamentarian should follow the right procedures and table his issues before the Central Committee meetings.

He, however, supported calls and the petition from Matero PF structures to have Sampa expelled from the party for causing confusion and division.

“When the matter of Miles Sampa is tabled before the Central Committee, I want to assure the Matero PF structures that I will vote for the expulsion of the lawmaker because he is a trouble maker and a trouble maker is an enemy of the party,” Mwila said.

He said Sampa should show loyalty to the party and support certain decisions which are being made such as rebranding and appointment of new people like Raphael Nakacinda as Secretary General and Emmanuel Mwamba as Chairperson for Information and Publicity among others.

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