Forum for Democratic Alternatives (FDA) President Dr. Ludwig Sondashi this morning filed in his nomination papers for President.
Sondashi says he will provide his ground breaking scientific discovery the Sondashi Formular for free if elected.
Meanwhile,the Zambia Episcopal Conference has asked Edgar Lungu and Harry Kalaba to immediately relinquish their ministerial positions for failing to respect the Head of State and disregarding the law.And the UPND says Lungu and Kalaba are a veritable danger to Zambia.
In addition,the Zambia Episcopal Conference (ZEC) says a presidential candidate’s character can be judged by the actions of their cadres.
In an interview, ZEC assistant secretary general, Fr Justin Matepa, said Lungu and Kalaba had shown gross indiscipline by failing to respect acting President Dr Guy Scott when they left the country without clearance.
Lungu, who is defence minister and his foreign affairs counterpart Kalaba, last Wednesday sneaked out of the country to meet SADC chairperson and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, without permission from acting President Scott.
“That was indiscipline, they are Cabinet ministers and Cabinet ministers are supposed to respect the Head of State. Dr Scott is the President and whether they like it or not, they need to respect him,” Fr Matepa said.
“Cabinet ministers are supposed to abide by the law which is the parliamentary and ministerial code of conduct which says before leaving the country, they need to get clearance from the Head of State. If they followed this, they would have also avoided the suspicion their visit has raised. Ministers that do not want to respect the President should step aside to allow the smooth running of government.”
And Fr Matepa says the recent violent actions by Lungu’s supporters trickle down to his character.
“A tree is known from its fruit how well it is nurtured; its fruits tells you how the tree is, how its roots are. Thus the way his supporters are behaving tells us a lot on what sort of character he has,” he said. “A good leader knows how to steer his sheep and a good leader would not tolerate such supporters. But my question still remains; if they cannot control their cadres now, what will happen when they ascend to power? We can already see that these cadres have taken over bus stations and markets. But right now they are only cheating themselves because Zambians are watching.”
Fr Matepa has also called on ministers actively involved in the campaign to stop using their ministerial resources for party programmes.
He noted that he had seen what looked like ministerial vehicles in campaigns and urged the ministers to stop using government property for party work.
“I question myself about the vehicles being used, yes they do not have ministerial number plates or number plates at all but I wonder, did our ministers in three years raise so much money that they can afford to buy such expensive cars?” wondered Fr Matepa.
And the UPND vice-president for political affairs Dr Canisius Banda stated in a press statement that Lungu and Kalaba have sinned against the Office of the President and the people of Zambia for sneaking out of the country without getting permission from acting President Dr Guy Scott.
Dr Banda stated that UPND was utterly shocked and dismayed at the gross misconduct of Lungu and Kalaba, who were cabinet ministers.
“These two need to be severely sanctioned by our Republican President Dr Guy Scott. We wait to see just what punishment the two will receive,” he stated. “Before any cabinet minister leaves the capital city, Lusaka, as required by governance procedures and their code of ethics, he or she must inform and seek the permission of the Head of State.”
Dr Banda stated that the two ministers did not merely leave town, but that they left the country.
He stated that Lungu and Kalaba’s behaviour amounted not only to utter indiscipline but it also threatened the national unity, peace and security.
Dr Banda urged acting President Scott to cage the two ministers in the interest of Zambia and its stability.
And Advocacy for Human Development national coordinator Chris Mweemba said Lungu is setting an example of indiscipline and must apologise to acting President Scott for sneaking out to meet President Mugabe.
In an interview, Mweemba said undisciplined people could not be entrusted with government power.
“Why did Lungu and his friends in cabinet sneak out of the country without the permission from the acting President? It’s not just right and this is extremely sad and Zambians of goodwill must condemn such behaviour,” he said.
Mweemba said Michael Sata was a disciplinarian himself and those that aspire to live up to his vision should emulate his leadership qualities.