By CHUSA SICHONE and   REBECCA MUSHOTA –
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) presidential candidate Edgar Lungu has urged his campaign team to make use of the remaining days before the presidential election to mop up votes in areas where the ruling party was receiving pockets of resistance.
Meanwhile, Mr Lungu yesterday addressed rallies in Chiengi, Chelenge, Mununga, Mambilima and Kawambwa as he concluded his campaigns in Luapula Province.

. Lungu

Mr Lungu’s remarks follow the finding of pockets of resistance by the PF Luapula campaign team comprising MPs and central committee members in Chiengi and Chifunabuli constituencies.
Briefing Mr Lungu at Mansa International Airport at the weekend, PF Luapula Province chairperson Nickson Chilangwa and area campaign manager Davies Mwila said the visits to Chifunabuli and Chiengi revealed that residents complained about the alleged failure to perform by their MPs.
Mr Chilangwa, Mr Mwila, who is also Chipili MP and the Pambashe lawmaker Ronald Chitotela were, however, confident that Mr Lungu would emerge victorious on January 20, 2015 as he was the most popular candidate and so was the ruling party.
They pledged to go flat-out together with the area MPs to entice the people to vote for Mr Lungu in the presidential election.
Benson Kapaya is the Chiengi MP while Mutaba Mwali is the Chifunabuli Constituency lawmaker.
People in the area recently did not allow their MP Nevelyn Wilombe to address them while Nakonde lawmaker Abel Sichula was shouted down as he attempted to do the same.
Mr Lungu said investigations revealed that there seemed to be a disconnection between the MPs and their constituents as well as attempts by some former parliamentarians who were trying to make a comeback hence the resistance.
Mr Lungu addressed rallies in Chiengi, Nchelenge and Mwansabombwe.
Meanwhile, an alliance of students from the University of Zambia, Evelyn Hone College, National Institute of Public Administration and Lusaka Trades have endorsed the candidature of Mr Lungu.
The alliance dubbed the Students Movement for Edgar Lungu has pledged support for Mr Lungu because of the ruling party’s sound education policy. The movement’s coordinator Clinton Nzala said at a press briefing at Blue Nile in Lusaka yesterday that Mr Lungu was the only candidate with the capacity to continue late President Michael Sata’s vision.
Mr Nzala said the PF had so far shown that it was committed to improving the education sector by coming up with plausible policies for tertiary education and had also shown resolve to end the accommodation crisis at the higher learning institutions.
He appealed to all students to vote for Mr Lungu.
The Students Movement for Edgar Lungu vice-coordinator Precious Nkunika said students should not be cheated by candidates that were claiming to give them free education because it was not possible.
Another member of the movement Dickson Lungu said Mr Lungu was the only candidate with the capacity to run a government because the national Budget was drawn by the party and majority of the current members of public belonged to PF.