By REBECCA MUSHOTA –
THE first Patriotic Front (PF) secretary general, Edwin Lifwekelo has advised other founder members not to hold President Edgar Lungu to ransom by attacking his leadership for embracing new members and giving them positions.
Mr Lifwekelo said it was wrong for PF founder members to demand special treatment from Mr Lungu.
He said in a statement yesterday that the PF was bigger than any individual, thus people should not demand special treatment or positions just because they were party founder members.
“No one should hold President Lungu hostage for merely being part of the team of men and women that were there when PF was formed. Of course, we appreciate their role but that is not a good reason to start breathing fire,” Mr Lifwekelo said.
He said it was important for party members to safeguard the interests of the party and not individuals.
PF members should avoid public squabbles which undermined public confidence.
Mr Lifwekelo said even the nation’s founding father, Kenneth Kaunda,did not claim all the credit over every development in the country but acknowledged the works of others.
He said there were a lot of people that contributed to the formation of the PF, but most of them did not go round blowing their trumpets as well as demanding positions.
“There is need for discipline in the party if we are to remain relevant to the political dispensation, especially that we are the ruling party in Government. Having registered the party and being its first secretary general does not make me more important than others,” Mr Lifwekelo said.
He said founder members had a huge responsibility to unite the party.
The members and the leadership of both the late president Michael Sata and President Lungu had contributed to the growth of the party.
Mr Lifwekelo said it was normal for people to aspire for any position in the land when a vacancy occurred, but since there was no vacancy yet, there was no need to undermine the incumbent leadership.
He said the party should indulge in introspection in order to identify weaknesses and strengths and work out issues accordingly.