CHIRUNDU UPND member of parliament Douglas Syakalima says the people of Zambia are tired of the ruling Patriotic Front.

Last week, Patriotic Front media director Sunday Chanda said there was wind of change blowing in UPND strongholds, which would lead to the re-election and consolidation of PF after the 2021 general elections.

However, in an interview, Syakalima said the ruling party would get a rude shock of their life.

“We can also claim that we are doing fine in their strongholds even if we lost in Mwansabombwe and Lukashya. This is how the ruling party behaves towards an election, they want to show off that they are winning. They will get a rude shock of their lives. Zambians are hurting, they read through the PF’s manoeuvres. They must come to terms with reality, the PF is gone. Where is the PF getting the hope that they would win a general election? When God’s providence is with the people, no matter what you do, you will fail,” he said.

“You think people are happy with the amount of corruption? In fact, I call on Zambians to brace themselves for harder times where we are going. Look at the budget, it is empty! These are a bunch of thieves who should not be allowed back in government. We are tired of them, Zambians are tired of them, and corruption has hit the highest levels in this land. How can you pride yourself when your currency is rated as the second worst performing currency in the world? Why can’t they be ashamed? Even them, thinking that they still want to lead a country, you start to ask if they are normal. They are living in their own stupid imaginations. They think Zambians are happy with a rundown economy?”

Syakalima charged that the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) was aiding the ruling Patriotic Front to win next year’s general elections.

“The way ECZ is behaving, you can see that they want to aid the PF to win the elections. How can a normal institution like ECZ think of de-registering everybody and starting afresh? Electoral commissions in Africa have caused wars because of being manipulative. [ECZ chief electoral officer Patrick] Nshindano is a young man and I am quite sure he has a pretty young family, so where does he want to take his family if there is chaos out of the way they are dealing with the election? [Justice Esau] Chulu, as the chairman of the Commission, has got a family, he has grandchildren, so where does he want them to go if there is chaos in this country?” wondered Syakalima.

Speaking when he featured on Hot FM’s the Hot seat radio programme last week, Chanda said there was a wind of change blowing in favour of PF in UPND strongholds.

“Clearly, you can see the trend that UPND strongholds are giving up. And if at all there is a wind of change happening, it is a wind of change that is turning former red provinces to green. North-Western Province is one of them, Copperbelt rural is one of them and there is no other way unless our colleagues wish to live in denial. Clearly, there is no other way to explain why UPND is losing in Western Province, in North-Western Province, clearly, there is something that is wrong,” said Chanda.

“And I am glad that my elder brother, Gary (Nkombo) did not really go deeper…there are serious problems in the UPND! There is a sense of fatigue in the UPND. The UPND membership is fatigued and they are looking for development. What they have seen coming from President Edgar Lungu is the heart of a leader interested in taking development to all parts of the country without leaving anyone behind. The wind of change is the wind of change sweeping former UPND strongholds. The PF is still a very popular party on the ground.”