President Edgar Lungu has warned UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema not to dare him by inciting his cadres to protest.
And President Lungu has called for transparency which he says can redeem the nation.
Commissioning a Rural Electrification Authority project at Luangeni village in Paramount chief Mpezeni’s area in Chipata on Friday, President Lungu referred to protests in Lusaka on Friday sparked by the death of a UPND cadre, Grayzer Matapa, who was buried yesterday.
“Let Hakainde Hichilema not dare me; he has incited cadres in Lusaka to demonstrate over the death of a man in Mutendere. I have time and again stated that I will not support violence or protect anyone from criminal activities. But HH organised people to protest in Lusaka and they were fighting today (Friday) in Lusaka,” he said.
President Lungu said without breaking the law or favouring anyone, he would protect every citizen, including UPND members.
He said being aggrieved did not mean that one should break the law with impunity.
President Lungu said Inspector General of Police Stella Libongani informed him that police had already arrested two suspects in connection with the murder of Matapa who was stabbed to death by suspected PF cadres in Mutendere last Sunday.
He said time for politics was over and that it was his wish that the focus of all political parties would be to develop the country.
And President Lungu urged all citizens to preach the “One Zambia, One nation” motto.
He urged the media not to promote violence in its reporting.
President Lungu said because of a certain type of reporting, people had started fighting, causing people to speculate that he was shielding PF members.
“A criminal is a criminal, be it a Chewa, a Tonga, a Christian or Muslim, he is a criminal. A Nsenga or a Chewa are all Zambians, and certain specified type of reporting that a Chewa has been killed by a Ngoni brings violence and divisions,” he said.
President Lungu said citizens should allow police to conclude their investigations.
The head of state, however, made comments on Matapa’s death a few days after his killing while police were still investigating the matter, saying criminals were behind the murder and not PF cadres.
UPND cadres protested against police and President Lungu over what they believed was inaction in bringing those involved in Matapa’s death to book.
And on Friday, police fired teargas to disperse the cadres who protested during a funeral procession for Matapa. In the ensuing confusion, pall-bearers dropped the casket, damaging it.
And speaking when he overruled his press aide Amos Chanda who asked the media not to cover the entire meeting with the business community at Protea Hotel in Chipata on Friday evening, President Lungu said there was no need to abandon the media because they were not plotting against anyone.
“So media, you are free to be here until we get tired and run out of this place because we should be transparent. Transparency is what is going to redeem us. I was saying something in Luangeni where we were and I talked about the media. One media house has got this propensity to misquote Mr Lungu, President of the Republic of Zambia. All the time, the headline ‘Lungu this, Lungu that’. But I am grateful that lately, you read the headline and the story is totally at variance and I say that’s editorial indiscretion or discretion. I will allow the media to remain here until we conclude because we have go nothing to hide,” he said.
President Lungu wondered why Eastern Province Chamber of Commerce and Industry chairperson, Thomas Mtonga, asked him about the high prices of mealie-meal.
“I thought you should be telling me as Chamber of Commerce and Industry to say, ‘look Mr President, I think we have evaluated all the valuables and we think the reason why mealie-meal is expensive in this region is because of 1, 2’…not to ask me ‘how do we reduce the price of mealie-meal’ when you are the people who are involved in the production of mealie-meal. I thought that you would be able to tell me that ‘we evaluated everything and we think that we should be allowed to invest in milling plants in this region’,” he said.
President Lungu said the government was not the manager of trade.
“All we need to do, as government, is to make a conducive environment to do business. How do we do that? We do that by you engaging us, telling us that ‘the regime on tax is oppressive; we can’t move’ or ‘the roads are very bad; we cannot find a profit because our vehicles are breaking down every day’,” he said.
President Lungu said the government was planning to partner with the private sector to have milling plants established in some areas of the country to reduce the cost of mealie-meal.
And Mtonga said the chamber wanted to see local processing of produce from the region.
“We also hope that there will be plans to make sure that the infrastructure development is also accompanied with policies, which will enable the businessman to do business successfully. We hope you will be able to see to it that the infrastructure, which you put up, can translate into meaningful development in Eastern Province,” said Mtonga.
Later after President Lungu and justice minister Dr Ngosa Simbyakula made their presentations, the business community did not ask questions until Mtonga said some people were not comfortable with the presence of the media.
At this point, President Lungu asked Mtonga whether it was his demand that the media should be told to leave.
“Is it your demand that the media be thrown out? It’s not my demand but I can’t say it. Me, I am very confortable because I have nothing to hide. But if you are uncomfortable, dear colleagues from the media, you hear that cry. In a very subtle way, they are asking you to go and have your dinner. Goodnight,” said President Lungu.
One of the businessmen who attended the meeting said issues concerning the Food Reserve Agency and citizenship acquisition were raised.
“Some businessmen expressed concern that 10 years is a long period for one to qualify to get Zambian citizenship while in other countries, it’s five years, but home affairs minister Davies Mwila promised to look into the matter,” he said.
Earlier, President Lungu urged PF members to embrace each other and called for unity among party members countrywide.