Chishimba Kambwili says PF founding President late Michael Sata was right when he referred to educated people as cowards, charging that technocrats now cannot correct the wrongs in government.

And Kambwili says President Edgar Lungu is a captured Head of State, stressing that if he is not captured, then he is part of the rot.

Meanwhile, Kambwili who is leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has insisted that he does not believe that the named suspects in connection to the 51 controversial houses in Lusaka’s Chalala are the true owners of the properties, insisting that the true owners have not been revealed to the public.

Speaking when he featured on Hot FM’s Frank on Hot radio show, Tuesday, Kambwili said the reason why government technocrats and other educated people were not speaking out about corruption was because they were protecting their jobs.

“Mr Sata used to say that ‘all the educated people are cowards’ and I have come to believe that saying. But sometimes I used to say why should my big man speak like this? But the people who are in offices, the technocrats who are in offices today know what is going on, but they are so scared of revealing for fear of losing their jobs. Some people who are not in government know this scourge but they are scared of coming out in the open for fear of being treated the way I am being treated. But for some of us, if there is something that I don’t have in life, I don’t have fear. When something is wrong just say it’s wrong. I believe in calling a spade a spade and not a spoon for the sake of impressions. So I have taken up this fight on behalf of the people of Zambia because I know that I am not the only beneficiary. When you go to Kalingalinga, you go to Roan, Mpatamatu, people are suffering as a result of corruption,” Kambwili said.

“Under this government, you would find a PS who sits on the tender committee and the chairman of the tender committee is the girlfriend to the minister in the same ministry. People have mentioned this but the President cannot take action. Surely under normal circumstances, morally, there is no way that a minister can date a PS in the same ministry and this minister is married and the President is watching. That’s a reason for one to be fired. So I think the President is captured somehow, if he is not captured then he’s part of the rot.

He said those arrested in connection with the ownership of the 51 mysterious houses in Lusaka were just pawns being used by the true owners of the property.

“I don’t believe that the people that were called are the true owners of the 51 houses and I will never believe it. How long did we start investigating as a government these 51 houses? Why should it take over a year for someone to come from Tanzania and say ‘I am the one who sponsored the building of these houses’? That is fake! That is fictitious! That is comedy! The true owner of the 51 houses has not been revealed to the public. All those they are claiming to be owners of these houses are pawns, they are just being used as pawns,” he said.

Kambwili further promised that he would turn this country into heaven on earth once elected as President by promoting industrialisation which the current government was not doing.

“This country is well endowed with natural resources, so what is major is to create industries that are going to employ our people. Once most of the people are employed, some of these challenges which we are having will be a thing of the past. Look at the agricultural sector, Cuba, before the blockade by the US were known to be a very well-structured economy that was doing very well out of one product, Sugar. They used to grow sugarcane and exported sugar to the whole world. We have so much water in Luapula, the Kafue plains, the Barotse plains. If we can do sugar plantations in these areas and start exporting sugar all over the world, this country will not be where it is,” said Kambwili.

“The reason why Mr Sata and us who were in government at that time brought in the IDC was for IDC to start setting up industries, when the industry is set up, you take it to the stock exchange and people can buy shares in it. The whole idea was to set up industry, but that programme is no longer happening. We are hearing that even these little parastatals that have remained like Government Printers, they want to set them off. But why not just sell shares to Zambian people in Government Printers, improve its capital and improve its operations? Let me tell you Zambians, when I become President, this country will become heaven on earth. It is the lack of priorities and lack of knowing what you are supposed to do. You go and borrow $18 billion to make roads and get commissions but who will be moving on those roads if people have no jobs? Today teachers have vehicles but they only drive them three days after their pay day and thereafter park the vehicles because they have no fuel.Watch the space! NDC and Chishimba Kambwili on the way to prosperity.”

Kambwili further insisted that he would never go and kneel to go back to PF no matter how his businesses were squeezed but urged real PF members to be mindful of ba mwisa (foreigners) from MDD posing as PF members.