Scott Has Been Professional In Handling Matters In PF -GBM

GEOFFREY Mwamba says acting President Dr Guy Scott has been professional in handling matters in the PF.
And Mwamba has wondered why some members of the party are scared of the general conference called to elect the party’s candidate for the coming presidential election.
But PF secretary general Edgar Lungu says acting President Scott has no powers to call for a general conference to elect a presidential candidate.
Meanwhile, acting President Scott has announced that the PF’s central committee will meet on Monday to discuss the practicality of holding a general conference. Speaking at Government House in Lusaka yesterday, Kasama Central member of parliament Geoffrey Mwamba said acting President Scott had operated professionally in the manner he had handled matters in the PF. He said PF members should all support acting President Scott’s decisions. “Let us be united.
There is no need to fight. Why are people scared of going to the conference? Is it because they are scared of losing their parliamentary seats? Let us all support what acting President Scott has said,” said Mwamba. And speaking at a press briefing in Lusaka yesterday, Lungu said neither him nor the acting President had the authority to convene a general conference for the ruling party, adding that such powers were only vested in the central committee. “Neither the secretary general, who is Edgar Lungu, nor the acting President Dr Guy Scott has the power to arbitrarily summon a meeting, it is the central committee to guide.
So the central committee will guide if we are going to go for the convention, which is the general conference. We will go; we are not scared. If the central committee will decide to take shortcuts, we will do that as provided for in the constitution,” he said.
Lungu said the party constitution mandated the central committee to decide the process for adoption of a presidential candidate. Among the PF members that attended Lungu’s press briefing were youth and sports minister Chishimba Kambwili, gender minister Inonge Wina, information minister Joseph Katema, Copperbelt minister Mwenya Musenge, Northern Province minister Freedom Sikazwe, gender deputy minister Esther Banda, Davis Mwila, Effron Lungu and Willie Nsanda.
And acting President Scott said the only agenda on the PF’s central committee meeting would be the general conference. “This morning, the PF national chairperson Inonge Wina came to see me here [Government House] with a request for a central committee meeting. So we shall have a Cabinet meeting today (yesterday) to consider the date of the presidential by-election. On Monday next week, after the routine Cabinet meeting, we will meet as the central committee to discuss the practicality of holding a general conference and the electoral college. That will be the only item on the agenda and I hope after that meeting, all this excitement that we have been witnessing will go away and we can be back on track as a party,” said acting President Scott. And Wina said the opposition had been jumping up and down that the PF would split. She, however, assured that the PF was united and that it was only mending fences. “My request is to the media to be factual as you report. There was no meeting that was held to discuss the expulsion of Dr Scott,” she said. During the briefing, acting President Scott was flanked by sports minister Chishimba Kambwili, agriculture minister Wylbur Simuusa, Southern Province minister Daniel Munkombwe, home affairs deputy minister Nickson Chilangwa and Mwansabombwe PF member of parliament Rogers Mwewa. Simuusa said PF members needed each other more than ever before and they could only do so by being united.
Munkombwe said he was on his way out of politics but that he wouldn’t want to leave the PF in problems. Later, acting President Scott met Matero member of parliament Miles Sampa’s supporters outside Government House, where they had marched to show solidarity with him.
Acting President Scott advised the supporters to remain peaceful even as they would be campaigning for Sampa.