Ruling PF youths in Lusaka have risen against former provincial chairman Kennedy Kamba, accusing him of chewing proceeds from a commuter business which President Edgar Lungu initiated for them.
Kamba is part of the dissolved committee ahead of the fresh provincial elections, but he has maintained close ties with the party general secretary Davies Mwila whom he flanks at press conferences; a development that has unsettled followers.
The aggrieved youths started a movement against Kamba in a WhatsApp group called “PF Countrywide”, accusing their former leader of using them to engage in violence, while he was enjoying the party resources alone.
Former Big Brother Africa Housemate Maxwell Chongu, who is now a renowned PF cadre started the debate, asking the youths to be courageous and tell Kamba why they were not supporting him.
Chongu warned youths against supporting a new provincial chairman who would be under Kamba’s control, stressing that the former would use his influence to deny the youths some benefits of belonging to the ruling party.
“Youths should stop being cowards, you are the people that are killing the party. Speak out, say the truth so that our leaders should make well informed decisions. Those who are supporting Kennedy Kamba, just a small click, are those he sends to go and beat people after giving them money. And then you want to sit quiet and say ‘no Kalembe for youth chairman’ what will Kalembe do if Kennedy Kamba is the boss there? He won’t do anything because Kennedy Kamba will be controlling him. Kennedy Kamba should just find something else to do,” Chongu said in a voice note posted in the group.
“The president gave us busses for youths, some of us don’t even have degrees or master’s degrees, those busses were our hope. The youths are so many, what is it that you did for them? And you want to come on the blog saying [this should be] youth chairman, those are jokes. There is nothing [you did] even business opportunities you only gave your people, a small click of people that are close to you. They have built on plots, three plots each and I can even point at them because I even know where they are. Then you want to come today as a provincial chairman, for what? You were doing things to enrich yourselves. For me personally if I wanted to do things that would have benefitted me, I would have supported you. But I am not supporting you because I want people to benefit. I want every PF member that worked hard for the party to at least afford three meals in a day. You Kennedy Kamba you were supposed to be our mouth between the leadership and the us on the grassroots. You failed lamentably. The only empowerment we got from you Kennedy Kamba is to be intimidated, to be beaten and threatened. You have failed to unite the grassroots.”
He said Kamba must be sent into foreign service or appointed District Commissioner in order to separate him from the party structures.
“So Kennedy Kamba should be moved from the top, he should be moved to DC level or in foreign service or even as board chairman somewhere so that Kalembe can unite the party on the grass root nicely without any interference. The reason why the province was dissolved was gross incompetence. So all those who genuinely love Daniel Kalembe, let us remove Kennedy Kamba, he should not even stand on that position,” said Chongu.
Another PF youth Ibrahim Mwamba also added, saying Kamba had failed to perform.
“We have got a very hard working national youth chairman in the name of one Honourable Stephen Kampyongo. This is a man who has shown his full support for the youths. I will give an example of myself, I travelled to Rwanda with his support concerning his leadership of the welfare of the youths, he supported me full bouquet to Rwanda. This is the kind of leadership that we should be preaching about in the patriotic front where there is no selfishness. This is the leader who has managed and he can point [at some people] to say I helped this one join ZRA, Honourable Stephen Kampyongo sir, continue with that energy for the youths. Your leadership clearly is something which we cannot insult or go against,” Mwamba said.
“When it comes to our elder brother comrade Kennedy Kamba, if I remember two years ago, you were in the fore front pressuring this president for those Higer buses Majuru and we thought that you were with us the youths of Lusaka. But after you were given those buses, you went quiet as if there were no buses. We don’t know how those buses are helping the needs of youths today. what have you done for the youths? Tell us. It’s not about insulting leaders no, we want to provide checks and balances. We need to help the President in this but you the top leaders want to pocket everything, that is wrong. Some of us we still want to enjoy power in the Patriotic Front, the Patriotic Front is the only capital we have.”
Munir Zulu added: “The Higer busses which were meant to benefit many youths when Kennedy Kamba was youth chairman, he never assisted anyone. And today he wants to be at the helm of Lusaka Province. So as youths that are not in the party structures, we are saying let him hang his boots because he only made money for himself and his family. We prefer Chumbwe to stand as provincial chairman than Kennedy Kamba.
Another youths called Thandiwe Kabali said Lusaka PF needed a leader with an entrepreneurial mind.
“We need to have people that have got an entrepreneurial mind, people that can take risks, not people that are not even educated who even just grade twelve they only passed two subjects. And how to you entrust such people with big projects like busses honestly? They don’t even know how to generate capital or make profits. The only thing they think of is just to have so many riches to themselves,” she said.
Phil Chikuwa charged that Kamba’s leadership was about himself and his family.
“All of you holding positions you should be remembering others. When they released those busses, you enriched yourselves with the monies which were realised from them. You channelled the money to your families and relatives. You should pay back the money they are owing for those buses. You used the money for youths to build mansions while us youths are wallowing in poverty. Mr Kamba answer us. What you did was very bad,” charged Chikuwa.