The Leadership in Development (LID) and the Association of Zambian Small-Scale Farmers Network (AZSSFN) has expressed disappointment with Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata’s ingratitude over Government’s evacuation of his wife to South Africa for specialist treatment.

And LID has also castigated Mr Sata for attacking Vice-President George Kunda during his public rally in Lusaka’s Matero Township on Sunday.

LID executive director Moses Kalonde said it was becoming Mr Sata’s habit to politicise Government’s good intentions to him and his family.

“This is not the first time Mr Sata has shown the ingratitude of this magnitude . You will recall that Mr Sata was reportedly saying that his evacuation by the late president Levy Mwanawasa to South Africa was a public relations gimmick by Government.

“And again instead of just appreciating what the Government did for his wife he is busy politicking on the issue,” he said.

Mr Kalonde said the PF leader was once minister of Health but that there was nothing he did to improve the sector.

He said contrary to Mr Sata’s attacks on President Rupiah Banda and the Government, the current Head of State was working to improve healthcare delivery in Zambia.

“Like President Banda has said, Mr Sata was once Health minister and what does he have to show for it? We have seen what the current Government of President Banda is doing, we have seen a number of new hospitals and clinics being built across the country,” he said.

He said his organisation was disappointed with Mr Sata’s level of ingratitude.

AZSSFN president Boyd Lyambai said President Banda’s Government had improved health delivery in Zambia and it was unfair for the PF leader to attack it.

“We think that President Banda showed leadership and statesmanship to have evacuated Mrs Sata to South Africa and it is unfortunate that he is now politicising the issue,” he said.

Mr Lyambai said the Government had built a number of hospitals and health centres across Zambia to provide quality healthcare.

Public Health Partnerships Forum spokesperson Isaac Kaputula said the Government had undertaken a number of initiatives to improve healthcare in Zambia.

“It is unfair for anyone to criticise the Government, we have seen what they have done in improving healthcare delivery in Zambia,” he said.

[ Times of Zambia ]

=========== Michael Sata’s Letter======

03rd January 2011
His Excellency Mr Rupiah B Banda
President of the Republic of Zambia
State of House
Independence Avenue
Lusaka
Dear Sir,

RE: DR CHRISTINE KASEBA’S TREATMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA

We returned home from South Africa on Friday 31″ December 2010 after my wife’s medical review on 30th December 2010.

My wife and I would like to take this opportunity to express our profound gratitude to you Your Excellency and the Government including the staff at the Zambian High Commission in South Africa for the consideration, compassion and care extended to my wife during the period of her illness and stay at Milpark Hospital. I am indeed pleased to see that my wife’s life was saved due to the government’s prompt action to evacuate her.

However, I would like to re-state my long held view about access to specialist treatment abroad. I said it after my return from South Africa in April 2008 following my heart condition that our Government must invest in this area both in terms of human capital and equipment so that access to such specialist treatment does not continue to be a preserve of the privileged few in our country.

It is, therefore, my considered view Your Excellency that health care must become a human right by law for our people and not a privilege after 46 years of independence.

Your Excellency, as we enter 2011 which is the year of our presidential and general elections we all must commit ourselves to creating an environment of social justice, peace and reconciliation in order to facilitate a free and fair election process.

As Head of State and Government, I implore you to assure our people that the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) and other related government institutions shall not be allowed to pay lip-service to the principles of democracy and transparency but shall endeavour to win the confidence of all stakeholders and other participants in the 2011 presidential and general elections.

In this respect I wish to bring to your attention the following areas of concern going by the experience of the past elections:

(i) the delay in the printing and verification of the voters’ roll by the ECZ,

(ii) the lack of transparency in the process related to the printing of ballot papers, the tender process and the award thereof,

(iii) the use of suspicious Government institutions or agencies in the transportation of ballot papers to and from some constituencies or districts,

(iv) the lack of constant flow of information from the ECZ to the stakeholders or lack of consultation on issues of common interest,

(v) the short notice given by ECZ for meetings on some crucial matters which require consensus with stakeholders,

(vi) the SECRECY surrounding the announcement of the election date with the intention of catching political parties and other stakeholders unawares,

(vii) the unexplained delay or withholding of results from some constituencies by the ECZ during the process of the announcement of results and,

(viii) the complete disregard of the electoral code of conduct by Government officers and ministers during the elections.

It is my hope and prayer that your Government shall cultivate the spirit and environment in the nation of a democratic and free and fair elections. I wish you and your family God’s blessings.

Yours faithfully,

C. Sata PARTY PRESIDENT

============Rupiah Banda’s Response=====

SECRET 14th January,2011
Mr. Michael Sata
President Patriotic Front
P. O. Box 33965
LUSAKA
Dear Mr. Sata,

DR. CHRISTINE KASEBA’S TREATMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA

I acknowledge, with thanks, your letter dated 3rd January, 2011.

I am grateful for the words of profound gratitude that you expressed in your letter. It is my belief that the good values of humanity should rise above political belief and persuasion when we are faced with matters of human life.

I have noted that you have raised the issue of the state of our health care system in Zambia. In the first place, I must say I have found it rather disappointing that you have decided to mix the issue of gratitude and the shortfalls of our health care system in Zambia.

In my view the issue surrounding the evacuation of your wife to South Africa was an emergency which should ordinarily not be confused with the issue of the poor state of our health system in Zambia.

In my entire political career, I have not had the privilege which you had of serving as Minister of Health. The question is what did you and many others that have held that portfolio done to improve health care provision in Zambia? My record of what I have done and what I will continue to do for the improvement of healthcare in Zambia is there for every objective citizen of Zambia to see and appreciate.

Let me assure you that as long as I continue to have the mandate of the Zambian people, I shall continue to improve on the successes that I have achieved in this short period that I have been in office.

I have noted the various issues that you have raised regarding this year’s presidential and general elections. All the eight issues that you have raised are matters that fall under the exclusive mandate and jurisdiction of the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ). The ECZ is an independent body created by the Constitution and regulated by the provisions of the Electoral Act, Chapter 13 of the Laws of Zambia and the respective regulations made there under.

I therefore exercise no control on the operations of the ECZ, as such I cannot comment on the issues that you have raised. However, I would implore you to take up the matters with the Chairperson of the ECZ as they are the correct constitutional body that is charged with the responsibility of dealing with electoral matters.

Yours sincerely,

Rupiah Bwezani Banda
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA
c. c. His Honour Mr. George Kunda, SC, MP
Vice-President of the Republic of Zambia and Minister of Justice
Cabinet Office
LUSAKA
c. c. Dr. Joshua L. Kanganja Secretary to the Cabinet Cabinet Office
LUSAKA
c. c. Honourable Madam Justice F. N. Mumba Chairperson
Electoral Commission of Zambia
LUSAKA
c. c. Dr. Peter Mwaba Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health LUSAKA

There is nothing unusual over the meeting held with some stakeholders in Mongu over the recent demonstrations in the district, Community Development Minister, Michael Kaingu has said.

Mr Kaingu is the Cabinet Minister who had a meeting which has been reported by a public Newspaper to have been clandestine.

But he has told ZNBC news today, Monday, that his meeting was in good faith.

He said the meeting was aimed at convincing people to give chance to dialogue that is currently going on between government and the Barotse Royal Establishment-BRE.

Mr Kaingu said he decided to remain behind after ministers from Western Province were called by the Litunga, to engage into dialogue with some stakeholders and encourage them to desist from violence.

Mr. Kaingu has appealed to every Lozi to always engage in dialogue as opposed to taking the law into their own hands.

He said the use of force is not a sustainable way of resolving issues.

The Zambia Daily Mail on Monday 17th January 2011 carried a story saying a cabinet minister had been named in an alleged covert mission to frustrate dialogue between Government and the Barotse Royal Establishment (BRE) over the Barotseland Agreement of 1964.

The Paper indicated that Clandestine activities have enraged the BRE which had questioned the motive of the named minister accused of holding a postmortem meeting of the activities of the Linyungandambo, Barotse Patriotic Front (BPF) and Barotseland Freedom Movement (BFM).

ZNBC

President Rupiah Banda says the MMD is ready for battle during this year’s tripartite elections.

President Banda said the ruling party will not take Zambians for granted but will instead campaign hard to emerge victorious in the forthcoming general elections.

He said the MMD will embark on a vigorous campaign to win the support of the electorates’ ahead of the general elections later this year.

President Banda said the ruling party would fight to the bitter end to ensure that victory in the tripartite elections is attained.

The President was speaking this afternoon upon arrival at Kasama Airport to a warm welcome by government officials and scores of local residents.

President Banda said the MMD will focus on real issues in its campaigns in order to promote love, peace and unity in the country.

He charged that the opposition political parties in the country were busy spreading messages of hate and disunity among Zambians in a bid to win political mileage.

President Banda, however, urged Zambians not to listen to such disgruntled politicians who have nothing to offer to the nation apart from attacking him on a daily basis.

President Banda also accused Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata of fast losing support in the country due to his failure to distinguish between development politics and mere-politicking.

He charged that Mr. Sata should be ashamed of himself for trying to win votes in this elections using falsehood.

President Banda said Mr. Sata together with his party would not win the forthcoming elections because people cannot entrust power in them, hence the massive defections taking place in the PF.

President Banda also charged that Mr. Sata hates former President Frederick Chiluba because he no longer supports his party.

He said when Dr. Chiluba supported him in the 2006 general elections, the Former President was a good man to Mr. Sata.

President Banda however, said since Dr. Chiluba chose to support the MMD, Mr. Sata has developed incessant hatred for the Former President, which was not a health thing to practice.

President Banda has since pledged to always respect his predecessors because they had done a lot for the nation during their tenure of office.

He further said that no one would stop him from associating with Dr. Chiluba and First Republican President Dr. Kenneth Kaunda because they are both true Statesmen.

President Rupiah Banda says the country will not hold its tripartite elections on April 1 which is a fools’ day.

President Banda also said he will release to the public a reply letter written in response to Mr. Sata ‘s politicizing of government’s decision to evacuate his wife, Dr. Catherine Kaseba, to South Africa for specialist treatment recently.

The President said this year’s polls will not take place on April 1 saying it is, “only foolish people who vote on that day.”

Recently PF leader Michael Sata claimed that he had information that this year’s elections will be held on April 1.

Mr. Banda said the MMD was approaching this year’s elections with full determination and scientific approach to understand where the party has been, where it is today and where it is going.

“The MMD is a ruling party that has remained in office for sometime not by accident but by being methodical and getting all systems in place including renewing of the party leadership through Provincial conferences being held across the country,” the President said.

The President was speaking when he opened the fifth -5th Luapula Province MMD party conference held at Mansa College of Education.

Meanwhile, the President says he will release to the public a reply letter written in response to Patriotic Front leader Michael Sata who has politicized government decision to have his wife, Dr. Catherine Kaseba evacuated to South Africa for treatment recently.

The President said when Mr. Sata’s wife fell ill, he and his colleagues in government quickly agreed to transfer Mrs. Sata to South Africa for treatment.

He said to show gratitude, Mr. Sata wrote to him a letter to thank government for rushing his wife to South Africa for treatment. Mrs. Sata has since recovered from the illness.

However, in the same letter, President Banda said Mr. Sata went beyond by becoming argumentative and bringing in politics saying it is a shame for Zambia in this day and age to send its sick people to South Africa for treatment.

The President said Mr. Sata has decided to release the same letter written to him to the media and was published in the Post newspaper of yesterday, January , 16, 2011.

Mr. Banda told MMD cadres from across Luapula that he had responded to Mr. Sata’s letter, and he was going to make available the letter to the public so that the Zambian people could read for themselves what he said about Mr. Sata’s way of showing gratitude.

The President said he normally does not release his presidential correspondences with citizens to the general public, but added that he was going to do so this time in order that citizens could understand government position on Mr. Sata.

“In this letter I said to this man that anyone can be faced with health difficulties and your wife, unfortunately, had this problem and we all agreed quickly to help her but unfortunately you are now bringing in politics saying in this time and age it is a shame for Zambia to send sick people to South Africa,” President Banda said.

The President has also challenged Mr Sata to tell the nation why the health services are in their current state if Mr. Sata who was Health Minister for a long time had made any improvement to the health sector of this country.

“I have not been Minister of health, but since you were minister of health for a long time why is it that our health services in this country are in this state?”

President Banda said he hopes people across the country will read the government letter that will be released so that everybody could hear what government thinks about the PF leader.

The President charged that Mr. Sata waffles about a lot of things in this country. “He talks about elections that he hopes these elections will be free and fair; he waffles about a lot of things in this country.”

President Banda said Mr. Sata is not new to the Zambian people, as he was the National Secretary of the MMD, Minister of health and Minister without Portifolio.

The President said the only thing he remembers Mr. Sata to have done as minister of health was to buy uniforms that comprised a trousers for the nurses and nothing much.

But President Banda said government under his leadership has done much more than what Mr. Sata and his friends had done to the health sector.

And President Banda has questioned the PF leader’s cleverness who he said caused the problems which Second Republican President Frederick Chiluba faced over the third term.

He charged that Mr Sata was advising Dr Chiluba to have a third term, knowing too well that the people of Zambia did not favour the idea for the third term.

However, the President said that when Dr Chiluba got into problems over the third term, Mr. Sata jumped out of the MMD and went off to form his own political party.

“What kind of cleverness is this? Everybody knows the record of this man, Sata,” President Banda said.

The President said it was good that the elections were coming, and the MMD was going to tell the people what it knows about Mr. Sata so that he stops being clever.

United Party for National Development (UPND) leader Hakainde Hichilema has said the PF/UPND pact is currently experiencing some political squabbles because the two parties cannot agree on one aspect of how it will drive the country’s economy forward.

Mr Hichilema said the pact was formed to reduce fragmentation among opposition parties and initiated some policies that needed to be followed and agreed before announcing its leader but that its partners the PF seemed to have ignored what was agreed and wanted to just go ahead and announce the pact president.

Mr Hichilema said this in Lusaka yesterday in response to many questions from people when he officiated at the Zambia Media Forum at Chita Lodge.

Meanwhile, PF leader Michael Sata has said former President Frederick Chiluba was part of the eight member committee who in 1993 recommended that the Barotse Agreement had expired.

At a rally at Muchinga grounds in Matero, Lusaka yesterday, Mr Sata who spoke in Bemba said Government should reveal everything that was said in the committee and not selectively release information.

He accused the State of having arrested him on tramped-up charges of motor vehicle theft and that Government were also trying to make a case out of the US$100, 000 which he said he had been accused of giving Father Frank Bwalya.

Mr Sata also accused Matero Member of Parliament Faustina Sinyangwe of pocketing some money .

Former MMD official Judith Kapijimpanga resigned from the ruling party to join the PF.
[ Times of Zambia ]

A CABINET minister has been named in an alleged covert mission to frustrate dialogue between Government and the Barotse Royal Establishment (BRE) over the Barotseland Agreement of 1964.

Clandestine activities have enraged the BRE which has questioned the motive of the named minister accused of holding a postmortem meeting of the activities of the Linyungandambo, Barotse Patriotic Front (BPF) and Barotseland Freedom Movement (BFM).

And police on January 15 seized machetes, knives, catapults and an assortment of fetishes meant to be used in the disturbances arising from the cancellation of a meeting of secessionists on january 14. The owners of the weapons have been arrested.

Sources have revealed that the Cabinet minister organised a group of people to discuss the violence which rocked Mongu and Limulunga.

Sources from Limulunga told the Daily Mail that the Litunga is angry with the minister and has asked relevant authorities within the BRE to establish the motive of such activities.

The source said during the meeting called to discuss the violence, some senior citizens openly attacked Government and demanded that Western Province should secede.

The minister has also angered other Government ministers who wondered what was being discussed on a community radio station whose equipment has since been seized by police.

“The Litunga is shocked by what one of the ministers is doing here. He (Litunga) was listening to the radio and what was being broadcast was confusing because on one hand, Government is talking about dialogue and on the other, a government minister seems to be inciting the people to continue advocating violence and secession,” the source said.

And police have seized an assortment of home-made weapons which included machetes, knives and some animal skins.

The home-made arsenal was meant to be used in attacks on people, who were going to resist secession at the planned meeting of the Linyungandambo, BPF and the BFM.

Western Province police commanding officer Peacewell Mweemba confirmed that the weapons were confiscated from supporters of the Linyungandambo, BPF and BFM.

Mr Mweemba said police will continue with their normal operations and denied allegations that his men had started raiding communities and beating up people.

Mr Mweemba has also confirmed the arrest of the top leader of the three groups, a Mr Maxwell Mututwa, who has been behind a spate of violent activities in Mongu and Limulunga.

Mr Mututwa was arrested along the Mongu-Limulunga road when he attempted to switch taxis a few kilometres from Limulunga. The 92-year-old has been the commander of the Linyungandambo, BPF and the BFM.

Mr Mututwa was the BRE prime minister (Ngambela) and is former member of Parliament during the Kenneth Kaunda administration.

Meanwhile, over 200 paratroopers arrived in Mongu yesterday to enhance security in Mongu and along the Mongu-Lusaka road.

Deputy commissioner of police Solomon Jere said more police officers have been deployed in Mongu to beef up security operations.

A check in Limulunga late yesterday revealed that several youths who are being used in the violence are regrouping to cause more confusion.

The youths, who had fled to the plains, are said to be in Mombo in Limulunga but police said they are ready to counter them.

[Zambia Daily Mail]