PF acting national chairperson Davies Chama says President Hakainde Hichilema is using the corruption fight to impress the western world.

Commenting on President Hichilema’s remarks that his government was handling corruption cases cautiously by ensuring that the rule of law was upheld, Chama said people were getting tired of the continued arrests without evidence.

“You know when he meets his Western colleagues, he wants to impress them on the fight against corruption. He wants to impresss these bazungus (whites), that now they have a darling. All the six presidents were fighting corruption. If you want to impress the western that you are the first one to fight corruption, you will fail. People are getting tired of these arrests without evidence. And it is concentrated on one political party, members of one political party are being searched, are being investigated. This fight against corruption is being misguided,” he said.

“I think he is losing it, the Zambian people did not elect him to witch-hunt and start arresting people everywhere and filling the cells. They elected him to develop and make sure he uplifts the living standards of the Zambian people.”

Chama said the President should not be distracted by citizens calling for the arrest of purported thieves and instead concentrate on governing the country.

“You know people can say anything, if he wants to prosecute corruption [cases] because people are saying ‘there is so much corruption, prosecute’ and he is saying they are slow, you will be misled, you will fail to govern. People will say anything, people will say thieves, thieves and yet there are no thieves. There are no thieves , people are just screaming ‘thieves’ and yet there are no thieves. Today you start hunting for thieves who are not there. You will be distracted, that is why he should leave these matters to professional bodies and focus on governing the country as President of the Republic of Zambia,” said Chama.

“He is being distracted by people who don’t want him to achieve anything. I can tell you it is very easy to distract anybody. For me he is being distracted because anyone can be shouting ‘thieves! thieves! Corruption!’ And you start looking for thieves, where are the thieves? Where are the corrupt people? And a term will go and you would have done nothing, because you are busy looking for corrupt people.”