Lungu’s selective developmental strategy is bullsh**t – Mwashingwele

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Katuba UPND member of parliament Patricia Mwashingwele says it is “bullsh**t” for President Edgar Lungu to attach conditions to his national mandate of developing all corners of the country.

And Mwashingwele has argued that Zambians were better off voting for the opposition seeing that the ruling party had not done anything to improve the lives of people in areas where people have been voting for the Patriotic Front.

In an interview with News Diggers! Mwashingwele charged that President Lungu’s excuse of not developing opposition strongholds on grounds that the opposition was not willing to work with the ruling party had stopped making sense because it was just mere propaganda of its worst kind.

The Head of State told Sesheke voters, Monday, that if they voted for the opposition UPND candidate in Tuesday’s by-election, the PF government would not develop the area because the parliamentarian would have no access to the President.

“That statement is always given to the illiterate people in Zambia who don’t understand that even those buying a box of match sticks are also tax payers. When someone is given Executive power, it does not mean that they are Alpha and Omega, no! They are just given an opportunity at that time to pass the decisions on behalf of the people but not to take away development. Every tax payer, whether you are in the opposition, ruling party, according to the tenants of democracy, development must go everywhere, so that (what the President said) is just propaganda at it’s worst. In fact, I don’t care but I would call it bullsh**t,” Mwashingwele charged.

“They are trying to hijack development to the people. If they really want to take development to the people, they must not be corrupt! They must not be stealing from the people, then the money will go to the people. But when there is a by-election, they want to go and hijack the people because they don’t have the knowledge. I wish my voice could be heard in Sesheke right now, that people should not believe Lungu. What he’s saying is all lies! When it comes to Constituency Development Fund (CDF), we all receive equally. Whether you are PF, you are UPND, you are independent or FDD, nobody can take away that developmental right from anyone. So, what Edgar is telling the people is all lies! And they have used that card for a long time, but it does not work anymore. Let them just tell the people what they are supposed to do.”

And Mwashingwele mocked the PF strongholds for having voting for the ruling party even when there was nothing they were receiving from government.

“Imagine, what gain does it give to the people who vote for PF? PF should be more straight and truthful to the people instead of lying. If the people in Sesheke have decided that there is no development because they don’t vote for PF, they should know that development will go to Sesheke regardless of whoever they vote for. In fact, I would even want to laugh at the areas that vote for PF. I have travelled all over the country, I have been to Northern Province; I have been to Luapula; I have been to Muchinga. You see, when you want to describe poverty, go to these areas of the country. But they vote PF, so what development is he (President Lungu) talking about? If even his own areas that vote for him are not developed, what guarantee can he give the opposition areas that he’s going to develop them? The road network, power, water, schools, health are in a deplorable state in Northern Province; Muchinga, Luapula even Eastern Province where he comes from, he’s own people are still drinking with animals in the rivers! So, what can he boast about? What can Edgar boast about that he can go and assure the people of Sesheke?” Mwashingwele wondered.

She argued that Zambians were better off voting for the opposition because UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema was an honest man.

“The people in Sesheke are even better off preparing for change of government than being told that he (President Lungu) won’t take development there! If he hasn’t taken development to his own areas where they have given him a vote, what assurance can he give the people of Sesheke that he will take development there? Those of us who voted for Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND are even better off because we have a ray of hope. I have hope because I can see what Hakainde is promising, and everything he speaks about in government has come to pass. He spoke about the debt crisis and it has come to pass. These are the leaders that we want; people that are able to project the future. Edgar said he had no vision and, surely, we have seen that he has no vision and that’s why we are in a crisis,” said Mwashingwele.