Edgar Lungu is just a dramatist who has been going round the country using Michael Sata’s name to gain political mileage and must be retired in national interest, UPND vice president Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba has said.

In a statement, GBM said it was shameless for President Lungu who has embraced dictatorship to claim that he was fulfilling president Sata’s vision.

“As UPND, we are disturbed with lies perpetuated by the Patriotic Front and Edgar Lungu that he is fulfilling late president Michael Chilufya Sata’s legacy when he has betrayed it completely. It is very shameful and disrespectful for Edgar, who has embraced dictatorship, plunged the country into debt and poverty to shamelessly claim that he is fulfilling late president Sata’s vision. How can someone claim to uphold the legacy of Sata when he has relegated all those who were close to him such as Honourable Harry Kalaba, Dr. Chishimba Kambwili, Mwenya Musenge as well as sidelining the late Head of State’s close associates such as Kelvin Bwalya Fube (KBF) whom he has subjected to a lot of persecution for merely reviewing his poor leadership?” GBM wondered.

He charged that President Lungu had failed to live upto the expectations of the poor.

“Edgar Lungu has failed to abide by pro-poor policies and this is evident with the poverty levels among the Zambian people. Does Edgar think late President could have increased his salary leaving the civil service wallowing in abject poverty with their valueless salaries? Vincent Mwale who called us names while in the MMD has today been given the front row while all Mr.Sata’s appointees have been recalled by Edgar Lungu Who claims to know the founding fathers’ vision but opts to do the complete opposite,” he stated.

“It is a fact that Edgar has betrayed the vision of the man who founded the Patriotic Front by even going to an extent of embracing those that ridiculed bashi Chilufya to his death bed such as Dora Siliya who I recall using all sorts of demeaning names against him. But today Dora is in ‘Sata’s Cabinet’. Kaizer Zulu was fired by late President Sata but he is at State House with Edgar today while Bowman Lusambo, who marshalled a tireless and a brutal crusade against Mr Sata prior to 2011 whilst he served in the portfolio of MMD National Youth Chairman is today the darling of the PF. Is all this iwe Edgar Sata’s vision? ‘kanshi waba shani wila bepa ubufi (what kind of man are you and stop lying,” GBM further stated.”

GBM accused President Lungu of having erected thicker walls of segregation and impunity as opposed to what Sata stood for.

“Sata’s vision of a stable society anchored on equality before the law has been trampled underfoot by Lungu who has chosen to erect thicker walls of segregation, injustice, lawlessness, impunity and dictatorship, a thing that Sata wouldn’t allow when he was alive. It is not so long ago that we saw someone together with his clueless political partner, Rupiah Banda brought divisive ways of tearing the country apart such as “wako ni wako”, a feat which Mr Sata would not have condoned. The embattled Lungu’s blatant lies that he has not deviated from the virtues that Mr Sata stood for, makes the autocratic leader the biggest deceiver that Zambia has had since independence,” GBM charged.

“While Sata loved the grassroots of the country to an extent of allowing vendors to trade freely on the streets, Lungu, unleashed a battalion of defence forces to sweep the streets off the helpless street vendors and robbed them of their source of income and livelihood. Minister of Higher Education Minister Nkandu Luo am sure recalls that late President Sata vehemently rejected her request as Minister of Local Government and Housing by then to send the street vendors away from the streets. I said it and I will say it again and again that late President Sata’s soul is turning and twisting in his grave following the poverty and lack of attention of the people from the Party he founded. Edgar has failed even a young child knows and if he thinks he can gain mileage over a dead person’s name, that won’t work because his performance has been monitored and reviewed and it’s a matter of time,” he stated.

GBM demanded that the PF stops using Sata’s name.

“It is shameful and inhuman for Edgar and his Party to embark on using Sata’s name during the campaigns as was the case in Mangango. Indeed Edgar is a dramatist and Zambians have known and are waiting for 2021 when they will fire him this time truly in National interest. I am appealing to Edgar and his new Patriotic Front to stop using late President Sata’s name for political mileage. Those that loved and followed him are hurting especially when they see that those who were hurting and denouncing their father are now the ones enjoying his fruits” stated GBM.