By CHUSA SICHONE in Mansa –
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) presidential candidate Edgar Lungu has challenged the Church not to be afraid to engage and counsel politicians.
Mr Lungu appealed to the Church to continue praying for politicians from both the ruling and opposition political parties.
He was speaking when he attended Mass at the Catholic Cathedral Assumption of Mary in Mansa yesterday.
The Church should be fearless when addressing politicians, as they (politicians) were also part of their community.
Mr Lungu disclosed that even if PF members seemed to have differed over who would take over the leadership of the party, they embraced each other behind closed doors.
“So as Christians, do not hesitate to bring suggestions and contributions to the politicians because we are part of your community.
“Please children of Christ continue praying for all of us, the opposition and the ruling party because we are here to work for the people and in our quest to work for the people differences arise, it’s the nature of politics. So if you don’t bring Christianity to the political arena, you have failed to bring the love of Christ,” he said.
Mansa Parish Priest Nicholas Mumbi thanked Mr Lungu and his entourage comprising his wife, some Cabinet and deputy ministers, among others, for their visit and was hopeful that their coming to Mansa yesterday would not be the last.
Mr Lungu then proceeded to have separate closed door meetings with Mansa Diocese Bishop Patrick Chisanga before meeting chiefs and other traditional leaders.
Earlier in the morning, a convoy accompanying Mr Lungu from Mansa Airport to the Cathedral Assumption of Mary brought business in Mansa to a standstill.
Meanwhile, Mr Lungu has appointed Home Affairs Minister Ngosa Simbyakula as the party’s Central Committee chairperson for disciplinary and legal affairs.
Addressing a crowd at a rally at Muchinka ground in Mansa yesterday, Mr Lungu said he appointed Dr Simbyakula as he had the right attributes to take up the position he previously held.
“This gentleman you see here is a very accomplished lawyer, he is also a lecturer at the University, he was also a director of Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education, he is one of us.
‘’This is the man I have chosen to be the chairman of legal in PF Central Committee, chairman for discipline. He will ensure that he pushes discipline in the party forward,’’ he said.
Mr Lungu said Dr Simbyakula was equally humble and tough, adding that as party president, he was reconstituting the Central Committee.
Mr Lungu said he had plans to make the party have a national character, revamp the party to make it brand new and implored the party membership not to reject new members regardless of where they were coming from.
“Our plans are to revamp the party so that it becomes brand new with new members. The size of a chicken is in its feathers. If the party is not growing with new members then it is not going anywhere,” he said.
“So what we are going to do as a party is, we will receive people from UPND, we will receive people from MMD, we will receive people from NAREP, we will tell them our culture and values in PF so that we work together,” he said.
Mr Lungu also reiterated that he would continue with late President Michael Sata’s vision but insisted said that did not mean that he had no vision of his own.
His wife Esther knelt down to pleaded with people in Luapula Province and the country as a whole to support Mr Lungu.