Chipili Independent member of parliament Javis Chawi says if the MMD treated PF the way the opposition is treated in the politics of today, PF wouldn’t have formed government.

Speaking when he featured on a live radio programme in Mansa, Chawi refused to be part of the PF’s bad leadership.

“Today’s PF government, and I want to say it with my head high, former president Rupiah Banda, I give him credit for one thing, today I am able to say of all the weaknesses which Mr Rupiah Banda had, he allowed the opposition to freely do their politics. We are not seeing that today. What PF is doing today, if the MMD had done the same thing on them when they were in opposition, they wouldn’t have formed government. Today when [PF] just sees four-five people seated, they send police to arrest them for illegal gathering. They even put Public Order Act in force. Now if this is how PF was treated by MMD, they wouldn’t have formed government. This is bad governance, that is bad leadership and I cannot be part of that bad leadership. I can’t because I believe that a great leader is somebody with the ability to protect the rights of even those people who are opposed to his views. That is a mark of a great leader,” Chawi said.

He wondered why the cost of implementing projects in Zambia was too expensive than in other countries.

“Digital Migration, do you know how much Zambia has paid for that? US$273 million . do you know how much Botswana paid over the same thing? US$20 million, Namibia, US$25 million. Obviously you will say it is the population difference. Okay forget about Namibia and Botswana because their population might be lower than ours. South Africa which has more population than Zambia, they are almost 50 to 60 million South Africans [and] do you know how much they paid for the same project $120 million. Now you ask yourself this question, why is it that in Zambia things are expensive? This Ndola-Lusaka dual carriageway road project, when they started it was US$1.2 billion. People stood up and criticised the figure, then it dropped to US$900 [and] I am told that now they have reduced it further to US$700,” said Chawi.

“Why are things here so expensive? Elsewhere they are purchasing fire tenders at US$250 thousand, us in Zambia its US$1 million and you want me to be part of that? Not me. Ambulances: and I want my brother Honourable Minister for Health to explain to the people why the ambulances have not been supplied till now. Why hasn’t Savenda supplied the ambulances? Have you ever seen any of those ambulances which they said we are buying at US$288 thousand per unit? And the people of Zambia are quiet because it’s now a culture in Zambia to glorify wrong doers. What kind of people are we? And the minister had the guts to even stand in Parliament and say that they are Benz ambulances. Just on that one, do you know how much a Benz costs for service? If I had a chance to advise President Lungu I would tell him that ‘sir, you are better off leaving the State House when people are clapping for you’ because it is not right for him to even start talking about 2021.”