SIMUUWE HITS BACK AS MASEBO ELECTORAL CLAIMS SPARK CONTROVERSY
SIMUUWE HITS BACK AS MASEBO ELECTORAL CLAIMS SPARK CONTROVERSY
UPND Media Director Mark Simuuwe has dismissed as fake an online publication allegedly quoting former Lands Minister Sylvia Masebo attacking the party’s electoral performance in Lusaka and on the Copperbelt.
Speaking in Lusaka on September 20th, Simuuwe said the publication does not represent Masebo’s views and was aimed at creating confusion and divisions within the UPND.
He described Masebo as a loyal party member and urged supporters to disregard unverified social-media reports.
Simuuwe said the UPND remains focused on President Hakainde Hichilema’s Grow Zambia agenda, economic growth, job creation and improving livelihoods, saying more than three million voters backed the President in the consolidated presidential results.
The controversy comes as Masebo herself has separately denied social-media claims that she called the Electoral Commission of Zambia the country’s most corrupt institution.
In a statement on September 16th, Masebo said she had never made the remarks publicly or privately and reaffirmed respect for the ECZ’s constitutional mandate.
Meanwhile, the ECZ is opposing Masebo’s Chongwe East election petition, asking the High Court to dismiss her challenge.
The former Lands Minister was also alleged to have accused President Hichilema of influencing efforts to block her election petition, while other social-media reports alleged that she challenged Simuuwe to name any UPND Member of Parliament who genuinely won their seat in the 2026 elections.