FORMER Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo says it is unfortunate that people complaining about the uneven playing field during campaigns are the ones who leave a trail of destruction and violence wherever they go.

Commenting on last week’s incidences in which the police blocked Hakainde Hichilema and other UPND Alliance partners from conducting most campaign activities in an interview, Kampyongo said opposition leaders should not compare themselves to President Edgar Lungu.

He added that the Head of State had to show the people the works that he had done.

“People must be realistic, you cannot fool people all the time. People are able to see through this. It has been difficult for all of us, this campaign has been the most difficult campaign, it is unique in its own way. We are doing it amidst the Corona pandemic, so we have to find means and ways to ensure that whilst we engage our people, our people are protected and we are also protected. We have had to do virtual rallies which normally could not have been the case. We would have wanted to engage people in huge numbers, that has not been the case,” Kampyongo said.

“Now, if you say you are going to compare yourself to the President who is going to commission landmark projects, then you miss the point. Because this person has to show what he has done to the people of Zambia, that is what he is doing. But ultimately if you are a peaceful person and you are moving peacefully, who can stop you? The one who is complaining is the one who has had a trail of destruction, a trail of criminality wherever he is. It is not a secret, wherever you go people, remain injured. Who is going to tolerate you to continue injuring people? What kind of society are we going to have? So those who are complaining are the ones who have a trail of criminality wherever they go.”

Kampyongo further said law enforcement agencies had no apologies to make for stopping people who had intentions of causing violence.

“The police have a responsibility to protect people. You go to Isoka, people are injured. You pass through Mandevu, people’s property is destroyed, who is going to tolerate you? So, there is no apology and I am sure the law enforcement agencies are well premised, they have no apologies to make by stopping those that are moving with the intention to destabilize people’s lives, to threaten people’s lives. We commend the President because there was need for our law enforcement agencies to be supplemented by their counterparts in other security wings, that is why they are created. Peace is a commodity that should be protected at all costs,” he said.

“Any Commander-in-Chief must do whatever it takes within that Commander-in-Chief’s means to guarantee people’s security at all times. You see, we have large numbers as PF. Can you imagine that if the person who is going with people who are on a rampage is allowed, people will then choose to defend themselves, then what will that end into? Bloodshed! No one wants bloodshed on their hands. So, people should not complain and if they were doing that to gain sympathy, they won’t certainly have it. We have a duty as Zambians to manage our own destiny.”

And Kampyongo insisted that Zambians had confidence in the PF because the party had delivered beyond people’s expectations.

“What people will expect from the PF in the next five years is contained in the manifesto. We are not building castles in the air; our agenda will be anchored on our current 2021 to 2026 manifesto. All the sectors are covered there starting with the preamble which speaks to our values as a Christian nation and all the sectors that drive the nation. So, it is not about one individual wanting to do this. There will be no miracles to be expected in abracadabra fashion but we shall go with the manifesto that will be the guiding document for all policies that will be formulated,” said Kampyongo.

“This has helped us to a larger extent because had it [not] been for some manifestos, we could have lost direction after losing president Michael Sata. That is why you have heard the President speaking that he himself had no personal vision, it was a collective vision that he was going to drive when we lost president Sata. Indeed, that is why we are able to be here and point at things that we have delivered and of course, we acknowledge the challenges that we have had. In those areas that we have not succeeded in, we have to make sure that we look at them and approach them differently. But by and large, we have delivered to the expectations of the people and we expect them to continue having confidence in us as we go in the next five years.”