Wynter Kabimba says Rainbow is currently the fastest-growing party.
And Kabimba says the PF is governing the country using common sense.
Speaking on Hot FM’s Hot Seat programme yesterday, Kabimba said Rainbow was spreading its tentacles throughout the country’s ten provinces within a short period following its formation.
He said he was confident that many Zambians would buy into the ‘people-centred’ ideas that the party believed in.
“Rainbow today is larger than other political parties that were formed before it. Other parties that were formed before 16th December have gone into oblivion, why is that so?” Kabimba asked.
“We have enough well-wishers and that is why you have seen the party grow at the rate it is growing, you can see it. You don’t need a microscope. The party is growing and it is growing every day and across the ten provinces. We are the first political party in 23 years that has been formed and has spread tentacles in terms of membership in the ten provinces at the same time.”
He said those that believed Rainbow could only end up as a non-governmental organisation were wrong.
“This is the party of the day. We shall be sending a very clear programme to the Zambian people in the area of corruption, health care, education, agriculture. We are laying down very clear policies that we are going to abide by and I am sure the Zambian people will buy into these policies and vote for us,” Kabimba said.
He said Rainbow would embrace all well-meaning individuals who wished to participate in the democratic process of the country, including foreigners resident in Zambia.
“We have stated very clearly in our constitution that the Rainbow Party will bring together the 73 tribes of Zambia and also include all the racial minority groups. So, this is the first political party that does not exclude anybody. There are other political parties, in order to be a member, you have to be a citizen of Zambia. If you’re not a citizen of Zambia, no membership can be open to you. Under the Rainbow Party, as long as you are resident in Zambia, it doesn’t matter your country of origin, you could participate in the affairs of the Rainbow Party,” Kabimba said.
He said the members and followers of the Rainbow Party believed that if political parties did not identify themselves by way of a clear cut ideology, they resorted to using the tribal trump card to win votes.
“For us as Rainbow Party, we have clearly said that we are ideologically a socialist political formation, so you don’t have to be tribal in order to identify yourself with the Rainbow Party. You just have to believe in the ideas and values and principles of socialism which is a social and economic system that is intended to provide for the majority of our people,” Kabimba said.
And Kabimba said the policy inconsistencies that had been witnessed in the government over the recent months were evidence that the PF was ruining the country using common sense.
“The policy inconsistencies that you see in the PF today arise out of the fact that the party is no longer running as one. Secondly, it is clear for me who was there that the PF has abandoned its manifesto. They are using common sense. They are using personal and group interests in there because the PF manifesto that we formulated and kept on referring to during Michael Sata’s era is very clear,” he said.
Kabimba said leaders become prone to policy inconsistencies once they become self-serving.
“When you are not sure whose interests to serve, you are always going to encounter policy inconsistencies. When you become self-serving, as leaders, then you become prone to policy inconsistencies. When you do not know in whose interests your policies are supposed to operate or to serve, you encounter a lot of policy inconsistencies, that is very clear,” said Kabimba. “What you see today arises out of the fact that PF has abandoned its manifesto, PF has gotten into an alliance with a faction of the MMD, which also does not have a manifesto and therefore, it is about decisions that serve individuals and not decisions that serve the public.”