President SATA Had BIG Dreams –Mutati

Former Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry in the MMD administration Felix Mutati has described the late President Sata as a leader with great determination and big dreams.
And the Patriotic Front (PF) has said there is no infighting in the party as perceived by some sections of society.
Mr Mutati, who is Lunte Member of Parliament (MP), said President Sata will be remembered for embarking on a genuine and ambitious journey to transform livelihoods in Zambia.
He told journalists after signing the book of condolences at Government House in Lusaka yesterday that the gesture by the late President to nominate him as a candidate for the position of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) secretary-general was humbling.
In April last year, President Sata announced Mr Mutati as Zambia’s candidate for the UN job during the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) in China’s southern coastal town of Boao.
On calls by some MMD members for him to stand as MMD’s presidential candidate in the forthcoming elections, Mr Mutati said he will make his position known after Mr Sata’s burial.
“At the moment, we are mourning and I will make my position clear on this matter after burial, let’s all mourn in dignity,” he said.
And veteran politician Chibesa Kankasa has pleaded with Zambians to ensure the nation goes through a peaceful transition.
Speaking after viewing President Sata’s body yesterday, Ms Kankasa, popularly known as Mama Kankasa, said it is unfortunate that some people want to disrupt peace in the country.
She said President Sata was an advocate of peace and that he must be buried in a peaceful manner and the transition must be smooth too.
Mama Kankasa, who was a Member of the Central Committee in the UNIP government that reigned form 1964 to 1991, also said that for 50 years women, especially widows, never had an opportunity to express themselves but that the late President brought them to the fold.
Federation of Free Trade Unions (FFTUZ) acting president Chingati Msiska said in a statement yesterday that everyone should behave in an orderly and respectable manner during the period of national mourning.
He urged those provoked not to hit back but to maintain their integrity.
Meanwhile, the PF has said there is no infighting in the party as perceived by some sections of society, reports YANDE SYAMPEYO.
PF chairperson for Community Development Jean Kapata said in an interview yesterday that the party is united despite some protests by some party members on Monday as a result of the reshuffles that had been effected by acting President Guy Scott.
Police on Monday night fired teargas canisters in a bid to disperse protesting PF cadres on the Leopards Hill Road in Lusaka over Dr Scott’s decision to drop party secretary-general Edgar Lungu.
The decision, however, was reversed on Tuesday after Dr Scott held an emergency meeting with some central committee members.
“There is no infighting in the party. The cases of small riots were as a result of the reshuffles. As far as we are concerned, there is nothing like infighting,” Ms Kapata said.
She said there is need for PF members and Zambians in general to mourn President Sata with dignity.
Ms Kapata said all Zambians should rally behind the first lady Christine Kaseba and the first family during the mourning period.
She said Zambians should desist from giving the First Lady pressure during the trying moment.
And police say they will not allow any kind of protests during the period of national mourning
Acting police spokesperson Esther Katongo said in an interview yesterday that law enforcers will not entertain demonstrations.
She said police will not, under any circumstance, issue any permit to allow any kind of demonstration until after the mourning period.