NDC leader Chishimba Kambwili says government must immediately pay diplomats their three-month salary arrears because it is cruel to make innocent people suffer over the debt crisis.

And Kambwili says Health Minister Chitalu Chilufya will be jailed for theft when he forms government.

Meanwhile,Kambwili has wondered why Zambians are still subjected to load shedding when several projects were initiated whilst he was still in government to stop it.

Speaking to journalists at the Lusaka Magistrates’ Court, Monday, Kambwili urged government to pay diplomats their salaries.

“Why should you keep our people in the foreign service for three months without being paid? When we were telling you that this debt you are contracting is unsustainable, you were telling us ‘its sustainable’. Today, our High Commissioners, staff at the Zambian Embassies throughout the world, have not been paid for three months, how can you be so cruel to your own people? Efo ndandila ati bushe Lesa Lungu wamufumishe kwi, ushakwata uluse ku bantu (That’s why I ask God where he picked Lungu from, he has no compassion for the people). If you don’t want to pay these people, recall them, let them come back home rather than them suffering in foreign countries,” Kambwili said.

And Kambwili said it was deceitful for Dr Chilufya to launch construction of some health centres in areas where there were by-elections when over 200 health facilities were incomplete around the country.

“And you Chitalu Chilufya, ulechita fye ukwaba by-election waya mukubepa abantu ‘ground breaking for a hospital’. Iwe mwaiche Chilufya nabukabolala ubo wakwata tukesa kukaka (whenever there’s a by-election you go and lie to people that there will be ground breaking for a hospital, we will come and arrest you with your thievery). Stop misleading the people with ground breaking ceremony for hospitals, when we have over 200 hospitals that you have not completed,” Kambwili said.

Kambwili also condemned the Ndola City Council for grabbing land from Zambians and giving it to the Chinese, saying President Lungu was acting like he was elected by foreigners.

“I want to urge government to respect the Zambians. There is no way you can treat our own people as second class citizens in their own country. What is happening at Dola Hill in Ndola should not be encouraged and should be stopped forthwith. The behaviour of the Ndola City Council in respect of the Dola Hill land should be condemned by all well meaning Zambians. This land was given to Zambians and letters of offer were given to them. Some of them have even built up to window level but they rescinded the decision and given this land to a Chinese developer,” Kambwili said.

“Let me warn the mayor at Ndola City Council and the town clerk that should you dare demolish the houses of Zambians who you gave land legally, just know that 2021, you will go to prison. I want to warn the Chinese developer that you are developing that land at your own risk because we cannot give land to a Chinese against the Zambians. Don’t go on that land, leave it to the Zambians to build their houses. To you my brother President Edgar Lungu, stop behaving as if Chinese are the ones who elected you. Can you intervene and give the land back to the Zambians. Otherwise, when I come in 2021, you, Chinese and the mayor, Chimbokaila. The way you bring me here (court), efyo nkamitwala (will be the same way I will take you to prison). Nomba imwe pantu nimwe ba pompwe, muka kakwa (because you are thieves, you will be jailed).”

Kambwili urged President Lungu to act on the Financial Intelligence Centre report, charging that the Head of State was also one of those mentioned.

“Elo ba Lungu, you were saying at airport that ‘FIC report is speculative because there are no names mentioned’. Amos Chanda was saying that ‘no I have been told that the report that goes to the President has mentioned me as having received 3.3…’. We all know that the FIC has given you a copy where there are names. Just act because we know that you also in that report, you are part of the report Lungu stop pretending,” Kambwili said.

Meanwhile, Kambwili wondered what happened to the projects that were supposed to make load shedding a thing of the past.

“This load shedding that has started is becoming a nuisance. When I was in government, we had 24 projects that were supposed to come on board by May this year to end load shedding for good and to add an extra 650 Mega Watts to the grid. Meaning that whether there’s no rain or there’s rain, we were going to have electricity through out the year. What have you done to these projects?” asked Kambwili.

“I’m challenging Matthew Nkuwa, two months ago you said ‘load shedding will never happen in this country’ because those projects were scheduled, meaning by now we should not be having load shedding. But where has load shedding come from again? What has happened to those projects that we should go back to load shedding? This will adversely affect the economy and no investor would want to come in a country where they are not assured of electricity. So can we wake up instead of dancing every time, at the airport ‘mfwiti mfwiti’.”

Kambwili’s forgery case yesterday failed to take off as the presiding magistrate, David Simusamba was unwell.

He appeared before Lusaka magistrate Sylvia Munyinya where his matter was adjourned to July 4, this year, for a mention and possible fixing of trial dates.

In this matter, Kambwili is charged with forgery, uttering a false document and giving false information to a public officer.