OPPOSITION, CIVIL SOCIETY AGREE TO FIGHT HICHILEMA’S MINGALATO
…We Don’t Want Zambia To Burn Next Year – M’membe
The opposition political parties and Civil Society have agreed to work together and fight President Hakainde Hichilema’s manipulations (imingalato) ahead of 2026 elections.
Insiders within the opposition have told Zambian Eye that it has dawned amongst them that fragmentation would not help.
Yesterday even those who could not share the same platform did at a media briefing called Sunday evening.
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The United Kwacha Alliance (UKA) who were throwing stones at the newly formed Tonse Alliance headed by Sixth Republican President Edgar Lungu met to denounce what they say imingalato of Hichilema going into 2026.
“Who knew that UKA would share same platform with Tonse Alliance? What about Fred M’membe who have always distanced himself from alliances? This tells you that it is now dawning that as individuals they cannot manage to take on HH,” an Insider within the grouping said.
The Sunday evening gathering that brought the two Alliances together, Fred M’membe’s Socialist Party and Civil Society is the beginning of them working together.
The Sunday media briefing has put some demands that they want government to respond to.
We have so many options including Civil disobedience, Lusaka Lawyer and UKA Chairperson Sakwiba Sikota who chaired the gathering said when asked what the group will do if government ignores their demands.
Dr M’membe whose party prepared the speech signed by all parties said there is need to stop anything that would degenerate the country into chaos.
He said elections were an important aspect of governance which has caused wars in many countries citing neighbouring DRC.
For many years Zambia has enjoyed peace, Dr M’membe observed saying Hichilema must do the correct and moral thing.
PF Acting President Given Lubinda said the information brought in some 15 wards in Southern Province where the number of people in those wards were less than the numbef of Voters in 2021 questions the eligibility of the 2021 General elections.
Lubinda said the information brought out in the census Hichilema is alleged to be covering shows that the opposition or ruling party can rig an election.
The opposition and Civil Society observed that for the first time, government is dismissing its own programme the census it conducted.
The UPND Administration conducted a national census in 2022. According to UPND Director of Research and Policy Dr Cholwe Beyani who is also the Chairperson for Civil Servants Commission, President Hichilema at a State House meeting dismissed the information from the 15 wards in Southern Province and directed that the errors are corrected before making the information public.
Zambian Eye, 3rd March 2025