A TALE OF TWO PARTIES .......................................... Two incidents coming within a fortnight of each other have captured my imagination. I have also learn that two similar incidents do jot always lead to the same reaction or results. The first incident was the mocking of Home Affairs Deputy Minister Nickson Chilangwa in Luapula Province at an MMD campaign rally. The second incident was the public stripping naked of UPND Buntungwa Ward Chairlady Majory Mulenga by PF cadres whilst she was campaigning in the impending ward election there. In both incidents it appears that unruly youths were at the fore of these despicable acts. Youths are very impressionable and quick to make rash and foolish decisions. They will make these mistakes and if left like the youths in the Janjaweed without any type of moral compass, they will grow into doing unspeakable things like the recent kidnap of Mr. Felix Ngoma. Bowman Lusambo stepped upto the plate, without prompting or pressure from anyone, to immediately condemn the youths in his own party and issued a press statement where he said, The reports emerging from Kawambwa in Luapula Province that some MMD youths verbally abused Home Affairs Deputy Minister and Kawambwa PF MP Nickson Chilangwa over his physical disability cannot pass without comment. As MMD youths, we feel moved to apologise to Mr Chilangwa and place it on record our disappointment with such behaviour attributed to our members in Luapula Province. We believe Mr Chilangwa is a competent colleague in politics and his physical disability should never be a political issue. As MMD youths, we have always treated Mr Chilangwa with utmost respect and admiration for his strong will to grow his political career. He serves as a true example of courage and hard work to the youths beyond the disability movement. The behaviour of the said youths in Kawambwa is unZambian and does not in any way represent the strong beliefs on equality that the MMD as an organisation espouses. This is as it should be. Contrast this with the steely silence that has come from the PF leadership over an incident which comparatively is worse than the inexcusable action towards Deputy Minister Chilangwa. No one physically touched Honourable Chilangwa whilst the PF youths put their hot grubby hands on Ms. Majory Mulenga and publicly humiliated her. This is not the way it should be. This contrast mirrors the opening paragraph in the first chapter of the classic novel by Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities which goes, It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period.... It is like the present because, Bowman Lusambo showed us the best of times whilst the PF leaders have shown us the worst of times, Lusambo showed us an age of wisdom whilst the PF leaders showed us an age of foolishness, Lusambo demonstrated to us an epoch of belief, whilst the PF still leave us with an epoch of incredulity, Lusambo brought a season of light, whereas the PF leaders have shrouded us in a season of darkness, Lusambo tapped the spring of hope, whilst the PF leaders frozen us in the winter of despair, Lusambo brought everything before us, whilst the PF leaders left nothing before us, Lusambo is going direct to Heaven, whilst all the PF leaders are going direct the other way. If the noisiest authorities insisted on its being received for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only, you will have to agree that This truly has been The tale of Two Parties.
Posted on: Fri, 08 Aug 2014 18:56:45 +0000
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