Felix Mutati’s fall from grace is finally on course. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Like we said, it was not a matter of if, but when and how. In fact, the former Finance Minister should thank President Edgar Lungu for generously offering him a ladder on which to climb down. If the President had chosen to execute his eventual plan in one move, Mr IMF would not be returning to Parliament next week.
If Felix Mutati thinks this is just an ordinary reshuffle and that he can soon be elevated again, to the position of Vice-President or anywhere near the throne, then he is dangerously naïve because President Lungu is not that stupid.
This is the beginning of the downfall for Mutati. Soon his stint in PF will be over. He will be former minister, former MP and former Honourable; and that is when he will know Jesus. If he thinks we are hallucinating, let him watch the next move from the Great Leader of this Great Country.
But why is this happening to Mutati? Firstly, the relegated minister was too ambitious. He showed too much of his intentions to succeed President Lungu, and thought as a king-maker through the 2016 PF-MMD alliance, he had wielded enough political influence to call some shots in some way. That’s why he was sending his boys like Raphael Nakacinda to go about bragging that PF was nothing without Mutati. Just last week, Nakacinda had the audacity of going on ZNBC TV to boast that if an election was called, the Mutati-led MMD faction could stand alone and beat PF.
Secondly, Felix Mutati betrayed his brothers and sisters in MMD to pursue his selfish personal interest. After noticing that Nevers Mumba was hesitating to take up the immoral offer for partnership, Mutati hijacked the MMD and gave himself to the PF, leaving the Mumba-led faction in disarray. The PF gave Mutati some resources to mobilise youths who violently stormed the MMD secretariat and hounded out office bearers with stones and sticks.
But while all that was happening, we knew that Mutati was nothing but a pawn. He was used by Rupiah Banda, who also wanted to guarantee his freedom by ensuring that PF stays in power. Posterity is crawling towards Mutati now. He made his bed and soon he will come back to lie in it. When he is given the final kick out of government, that’s when he will tell us the truth about Zambia’s debt. Otherwise, Mutati’s job with the PF is done; his relevance has expired. That’s why he has been thrown in the trash bin waiting for the garbage collectors to pick him and take him back to the opposition where he belongs. Like they say, there is no honour among thieves.
What about former Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Kampamba Mulenga’s demotion? What lessons can she learn? Well, Kambwili warned her:
“I feel sorry for that little girl Kampamba Mulenga. She thinks she is making a name to Edgar Lungu but she is being used. Don’t defend things that you don’t know. Aya ma politics; me I have learnt something, I can only advise Kampamba not to make the mistakes that I made. I am a very good example for those who are going to hold the office of Chief Government Spokesperson. Because I tried my level best to defend President Edgar Lungu and the PF, what have they paid me? They have paid evil for good. So, mwaice wandi Kampamba, defending people who do not appreciate, soon you are going to have more enemies than friends. They will just discard you and start insulting you.”
What more can we say? The President has the power to appoint and disappoint at any given time without giving any reasons, but we encourage Honourable Kampamba to introspect and find the reasons herself. Let her ask why President Lungu would throw her in the fishpond after exposing her to so much ridicule for defending the Digital Migration scandal? She must ask herself why a former MMD spokesperson who despised Michael Sata so much is coming for her position. And finally, let her remove the red lipstick now because she won’t find much TV cameras at Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries.
For Dora Siliya, her new appointment suits her profile. But we are eager to see how she will defend Michael Sata’s legacy; a man she said wanted to get into power and introduce gay rights; a man whose heart she said was as ugly as his face. We have our fingers crossed and can’t wait to see the Petuake MP redeem her mouth after failing to redeem e-voucher cards at the Ministry of Agriculture.
President Lungu has also transferred a self-confessed number one bootlicker, Bowman Lusambo from Copperbelt to Lusaka. This is a sign that President Lungu finds joy in being hero-worshiped. If the ‘booty’ licker licks the Great Leader smoothly, he may soon land himself a Cabinet position. We also feel, in this move, the President has brought the attack dog closer to Kambwili – chaos is brewing.
Meanwhile, we have nothing much to say about the Water Development Minister who has been fired, unless the President tells the nation that Mr Lloyd Kaziya is among the corrupt ministers whom he promised to fire recently. Whatever the case, do not despair Honourable. Just know Jesus.
Finally, the biggest winner in the reshuffle is the new Finance Minister Margaret Mwanakatwe. She had been dying to get the job, even though she knows as much as we do that she brings no rescue plan for Zambia’s collapsing economy. This appointment is only good for her CV, not for the poor people of Zambia.
Most importantly, we were shocked that President Lungu went to pick a woman, whom the High Court found guilty of fraudulently winning the Lusaka Central parliamentary seat. This woman is still in the Constitutional Court with an appeal case, praying that her lawyers may save her from total humiliation. Anyway, it seems the President is a judicial prophet who knows court outcomes before they actually happen. Since he can declare himself a presidential candidate for 2021 before his eligibility is decided by the court, we assume keeping Mwanakatwe in Parliament will be child’s play, even if she loses her seat.