Bail out M’membe, HH challenged
Published On June 27, 2016 » 2296 Views» By Davies M.M Chanda » HOME SLIDE SHOW, SHOWCASE
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. Mmembe

. Mmembe

By MILDRED KATONGO –
LUSAKA-BASED lawyer Kelvin Bwalya has challenged United Party for National Development (UPND) leader Hakainde Hichilema to bail out Post Newspapers owner Fred M’membe over his K63 million tax debt.
Mr Bwalya said Mr Hichilema’s remarks regarding the legal halting of operations at The Post newspaper clearly showed that he lacked the temperament of a national leader.
He said it was unfortunate to note that Mr Hichilema publicly stated that a defaulter must be excused from a criminal offence by avoiding paying tax.
Mr Bwalya, who is Patriotic Front (PF) deputy chairperson for elections, said in a statement that such remarks coming from a leader of the party who had been boasting about having a monopoly of intelligence could lose him votes.
He advised Mr Hichilema to do the noble thing and pick up Mr M’membe’s K63 million ZRA tax bill and pay it up.
“Mr Hichilema, use your deep pockets to bail out your friend, he has been around for you. It is time for you to be around for him by removing his name from the tax defaulting shame list,” Mr Bwalya said
He said national leaders should not shield offenders just because someone wanted to become a president against all odds.
“Mr Hichilema’s statement did not come as a surprise to us looking at his dangerous pattern of desperation to rule Zambia and, in turn, perhaps mould it into yet another pet business project.
“How can a leader worth his salt publicly state that a defaulter must be excused from a criminal offence of avoiding to pay taxes that must help Zambians access drugs in hospitals and save babies from dying needlessly at birth, or indeed sinking bore holes so that rural Zambians can access clean drinking water?
“If this is the kind of leadership we will get from a man who calls himself ‘an economic messiah’ then the opposition has a long way to go before they can ever convince Zambians to give them a vote to oversee the affairs of Zambia,” Mr Bwalya said.
He also said that Mr Hichilema’s attempt to drag President Edgar Lungu into the matter was cheap politics.
Mr Bwalya said President Lungu was checking and pointing at the projects he had delivered within the short period he had been in power.

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