By REBECCA MUSHOTA in Mpika –
PRESIDENT Lungu has urged Zambians not to experiment with leadership and vote for the Patriotic Front (PF) in the August general elections.
He said yesterday during a rally at Nabwalya Secondary School in Mpika that Zambians should not experiment with leadership, especially that the PF administration was doing well.
“Do not experiment with leadership. (Late) President Michael Sata had a vision to connect Nabwalya to Mpika and Mfuwe, so I want to complete his legacy and that is why you should vote for PF again,” Mr Lungu said.
He said the PF had only served for less than five years and, therefore, should be given a chance to complete its projects.
Mr Lungu said those claiming that the Government had failed to improve the lives of Zambians were merely politicking because the PF had done a lot in the four years it had been in office.
He said he wanted to leave a legacy that the people of Nabwalya would remember him for.
He wanted to deliver a road that was promised to them and connect the area to the national power grid.
The President also thanked the teachers in Nabwalya for working in an area that lacked mobile phone services and other social services, including electricity.
Mr Lungu urged mothers to take their children to school because education was a “game-changer” in life.
And during a visit to the ZamPalm plant in Kanchibiya, the President said it was unfortunate that agriculture was not a good paying job for labourers.
He challenged investors to pay their workers satisfactory wages, and added that a balance should be found to create a win-win situation for both parties.
He said he was aware that Zambeef had invested a lot of money in the plant and was not yet making profits.
Mr Lungu said the company could still strive to pay the workers well, and cautioned management against discriminating against PF supporters.
“I am a friend of Zambeef and so I can do this because friends say such things to each other. No one should be denied a job, whether PF or opposition based on party lines,” he said.
Zambeef chief executive officer Francis Grogan said the plant, which started seven years ago, was offering 180 jobs and was poised to be the hub of palm oil production in Zambia.
Mr Grogan said Zambeef had invested US$40 million and that the company had spent $21 million so far on setting up the company.