Newly appointed UPND Chairperson for Strategy and Mobilisation Sylvia Masebo says Patriotic Front members in the lower structures of the party are calling for regime change because they have realised that President Edgar Lungu has failed and is not giving them hope.

And Masebo has saluted Chishimba Kambwili’s aggression in making the PF unpopular, saying the her UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema could benefit from the split of the ruling party.

Speaking when she featured on Prime Television’s Oxygen of Democracy programme yesterday, Masebo said she felt vindicated because she had warned voters against putting President Lungu in power in 2015

“When you get on the ground today, PF members will tell you that they need change. They are tired of the PF leadership and they want regime change. They don’t care if HH is UPND but they just feel that this man, looking at him as an entrepreneur, he may help them to become entrepreneurs. You have farmers now saying ‘HH is a farmer, he keeps animals and he grows maize’. If you keep a guy who understands village life, he will help them because he understands what they need. But you have people who have no idea whatsoever what it means even to grow a simple cabbage,” Masebo said.

“In 2015, I did tell the people of Zambia that Lungu is not the right person for this position because I worked with him as a Cabinet Minister, I worked with him as a party official in the national executive committee, his performance was totally below par. There was no way I could bring myself to support something that I could tell would destroy the country. I have been vindicated because Lungu has failed. He will not get better because he does not have the capacity to be President of a country, so you are just troubling the guy. Lungu does not have the capacity to run the country as a Head of State, he cannot tell what is wrong and right. When people are screaming about corruption he just sits quietly while the country is going down.

And Masebo said life had become totally hard under the PF administration.

“I think the people of Zambia have seen that the current administration has totally failed and they are not giving any hope. I can tell you that it will not get better under the PF, it can only get worse. Look at simple economics; how many people today are employed? Even the 500 people we were told would be employed by this year have not been employed. Secondly, what is the cost of bread today? What is the cost of education, medicals? Are the people able to afford those basic things today than three to five years ago? And then let’s look at the simple indicators, the leaders themselves when they took office, how were they? What lifestyle did they have and how are they appearing today?” she asked.

“We said we would put more money in individual’s pockets, how much money do the people have now in their pockets compared to that time when they were promised to be given money now? Do you know what’s happening to most families now irrespective of whether you are UPND or PF? It’s very sad, as I speak now, most of the farmers have not received their inputs because the price of inputs now is as high as a donkey. you can’t afford it and most of the people in Zambia are agriculture nurtured and when you destroy agriculture then you destroy the whole country.”

Meanwhile, Masebo urged Zambians to pay attention to the revelations that Kambwili was making since his dismissal from the PF.

“I am grateful that Kambwili has formed his own party and he is doing well by ensuring that he reduces the PF. Look at the revelations which Kambwili is bring out, I can tell you that whatever Kambwili is saying is not just a story, that’s the truth; and hopefully through Kambwili’s direction HH will have a better chance to win because his support base will remain consistent and it’s increasing. We are also making new headways in areas where our numbers were less like in Eastern, Northern, Copperbelt including Lusaka. There is a lot of things that we are doing behind the curtains and I only appeal to Zambians to work with us in mobilising ourselves for the next election.”

She further warned those in government who were looking public resources.

“Let me also appeal to the PF members, what is happening now is not good and it is not what Sata stood for. So people should not sit there and just watch while their leader is doing wrong things. I want to speak to the conscious of those that are remaining in PF that if you cannot leave yet, at least talk to your leader, what is going on is not good for the country. At least be like [Lucky] Mulusa who at least said something than just sitting and pretend that everything is okay,” said Masebo.

“Let me also warn my colleagues; we have been there, at least I am one of the longest serving politicians in this country who is still active. I will tell you that all this wealth by people who had nothing when they joined government and didn’t even know how to drive a car or simply how to dress, will go back to the owners. That’s what happens. So they are wasting their time.”