National Restoration Party (NAREP) president Elias Chipimo emerged from political hibernation to give a state of the nation address that painted a gloomy picture of the state of affairs.
Chipimo said that Zambians should blame themselves for having believed that their elected leaders would worry more about their country than their pockets.
“So where does the problem really lie? It lies with us as a people and as a nation. It began when we believed that somehow electing leaders into office would mean that they cared for us; that they would be corrupt but not too corrupt; authoritarian but not too authoritarian; visionless less but at least able to act in the best interests of the nation,” Chipimo said.
“Why would a leader who loved his people not institute a commission of inquiry and independent investigation into the death of Vespers Shimunzhila? Why would a leader who loved his people allow Chinese Road contractors to acquire huge tracts of land in a nation with such high levels of poverty and dependency?”
Chipimo added: “Why would a leader who loved his people not make it his personal ambition to address the corruption at the highest levels of his administration that is destroying the life of the ordinary citizen? Why would a leader that loved his people allow his nation to borrow huge sums of money only to squander it on overpriced public contracts, government vehicles, giver meant planes and a personal lifestyle that consume the very debts we owe?”
Chipimo took a dig at the growing Chinese influence in the economic sphere.
“It is hardly surprising that people believe our nation’s wealth has been handed over to the Chinese. What happened to the decision to hand over the NRDC land? Had it not been for the exposure of this immoral transaction there would probably be Chinese investment in that land taking place today,” he said.
“What about the land that is out of the view of the general public? What about the deals that have been concluded behind closed doors that will only come to light when it is too late to reverse them?”
He called for the establishment of an independent commission on the death of University of Zambia student Vespers Shimunzila.
“NAREP will be writing a letter to the Republican President requesting that this matter be handled by an independent committee and not the very police whose officers have been implicated in this serious matter,” he said.
“We urge all Zambians to write their own letters demanding action. We will deliver the letters to State House on their behalf. We need have no fear. This is our country. If every student in Zambia was to write a letter expressing their concerns about how the Vespers incident has been handled, this would send a very clear signal that Zambia wants accountability and is no longer ready to tolerate incompetence and complacency.”
He also raised questions about the debt burden with a call to economic prudence.
“Why did we spend US$1 million on a single fire truck worth less than a quarter of that value? Why did we spend UD$280,000 on a single ambulance when we could have used this money to improve the education and skills development of our youth? Why have we borrowed to buy a president jet valued at nearly US$50 million when our rural communities are struggling to educate their children, feed their families, address their basic health needs and attend to their legitimate and modest aspirations?” he said.
“Why must we spend 45% of our national income in 2019 on paying off our debts, 42% on paying for running government leaving and only 13% on healthcare, education and social support for the vulnerable? Why must we cover up the theft of money meant for the poor?”
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