MMD president Nevers Mumba says his party has resolved to forge a partnership with the UPND based on a set of common values.

And Mumba says any delays in dealing with the mafias will cost this country’s destiny.

At a briefing, Thursday, Mumba, however, said the partnership was not an entry into the UPND Alliance.

“The New Hope MMD has resolved to forge a partnership with the UPND based on a set of common values. We shall support every effort by the new government to deliver on these fundamental policy positions. These are policy positions we will have employed had Zambia given us the mandate to govern this country at this time. President Hichilema and I have discussed this partnership based on our shared values. So before sharing them with you, President Hakainde and myself have sat down to discuss these matters and we are in total agreement, this is not an entry into the UPND Alliance as that is a separate process. This is a partnership to support what we believe is a positive program for the Zambian people. The UPND has so far demonstrated a clear determination to pursue the following policies which agree with ours and on these policies, we agree and form the basis of our partnership,” Mumba said.

He outlined some of the shared policy issues between the two parties; among them the Public Order Act, rule of law and zero tolerance against corruption.

“Number one, the rule of law, bringing order to this country. You know this has already come into place in market places and at bus stops. This is one thing we were going to do immediately when we got into government. There is no need for me to be angry that President Hakainde has decided to do it. We must support this because it reflects what we promised the Zambian people, that is civility and morality in politics. The second point we shall agree and support each other is on the fight against corruption. You are aware that when I was vice-president under Levy Mwanawasa, our flagship zero tolerance against corruption. We shall work with our colleagues in the UPND both in word and in deed to stand solidly behind ensuring that the fight against corruption succeeds,” he said.

“The only thing we are telling our colleagues is please the agencies responsible for this speed up your actions before criminals hide evidence don’t be too slow because you are dealing with a desperate crowd given that one day they are going to do amazing things by trying to hide evidence from the security wings. The third thing we agreed on is the repeal of the Public Order Act. Zambia’s democracy will never amount to anything until the POA is repealed. President Hichilema has pledged that he is going to look into this matter of POA. On this basis, we stand solidly with him until it’s done. So the Zambian people can believe in us that we will stand until this thing is done. I have been in power, sometimes we forget some of the most critical things that we promised but with us there supporting the President on these issues, we shall start to sing or compose songs that remind them about these matters which matter to us.”

And Mumba said corruption must be fought mercilessly and that any slowness in dealing with the mafia network would cost the destiny of this country.

“Corruption must be fought and it must be fought mercilessly. The corrupt people have money and this is the advice we are giving to our colleagues the UPND, that the corrupt people still have contacts in the civil service, the have contacts in ACC, DEC, FIC, contacts abroad, the have a strange mafia network and with money in their hands, they make a dangerous force that can impede any prospects for progress and development in our country. Any slowness in dealing with this mafia group will cost the destiny of this country by frustrating any effort to democratize this nation for all of us. So we ask our colleagues to act with speed in dealing with the fight against corruption,” he said.

“There must be zero tolerance to this type of behavior. Let us not transfer corruption from the last regime to the new regime. There must be courage on the part of President Hichilema to expose any one of his ministers who falls in the corruption trap. Because these men and women who are now about to face jail, they are going to start to bribe the new dawn ministers so that they can protect them from prosecution and we warn our colleagues in the UPND, do not fall into that trap. If you receive money from these people with a promise of protecting them from prosecution, you will not last. Zambians are not tolerant of corruption anymore.”

Mumba said the MMD to PF transition was the most barbaric transition the country had gone through.

“The MMD /PF transition was the most barbaric transition of our nation that the nation has ever gone through. This barbarism was the true mirror of the style of leadership the new PF government was going to perpetuate. The ultimate reason was the destruction of both democracy and the economy. The politics of terror, limited the democratic space of other political players. The politics of terror brought the economy to its knees,” Mumba said.

“In the PF/UPND transition, the PF are freely wearing their party regalia. You can go to any market and you are going to find that PF people are proudly wearing their PF t-shirts, it never happened in 2011 because PF was brutal and they wanted to diminish the very prospects of MMD. The vehicles of PF and other properties have not been grabbed from them, they still have their properties and they were not hounded out of their offices. Hardly any arbitrary arrests have taken place and those who have been arrested have been treated with respect by being granted bail and appearing in court within the prescribed 48 hours. Constitution office holders have not been hounded out like dogs like in the last regime in 2011.”

Meanwhile, Mumba said PF had no moral right to complain about being mistreated.

“PF members you are Zambians like all of us but it is your arrogance that got you voted out of power. Your complaints therefore against alleged mistreatment is the extension of your arrogance and unrepentant attitude. You have no moral right to complain right now. Compared to how you handled MMD at transition, you are being handled with kid’s gloves in a Sunday School classroom. There is no bigger ‘mistreater’ than the PF. The Bible says you reap what you sow. The PF sowed hooliganism, barbarism, they did not even behave like Zambians. It’s too early to complain,” said Mumba.