By REBECCA MUSHOTA and HOPE BWALYA –
ABOUT 200 members of the United Party for National Development (UPND) in Katuba Constituency have defected to the Patriotic Front (PF).
The 200 included the entire UPND Katuba Ward officials led by their chairperson Frederick Kapikisha.
They defected at Musaka Lodge in Katuba and were received by PF deputy spokesperson Frank Bwalya.
UPND Katuba Ward vice-chairperson Vernon Chembe said the party members had decided to defect to the PF because President Edgar Lungu had shown exemplary leadership.
Mr Chembe said President Lungu deserved a full five-year term so that he could complete his development projects.
UPND Chibombo District chairperson Queen Kapembwa, who also defected, said the opposition party was stagnant.
“I have been in the opposition for nine years and the UPND is not moving. It is stagnant,” Ms Kapembwa said.
She said she was going to work hard to bring more members from Chibombo to the PF.
Mr Bwalya said President Lungu was a political magnet who was attracting more members because of his sound leadership qualities.
He said it was clear that the PF was headed for victory looking at the number and the quality of people joining the party.
Similarly, in Lusaka, more than 100 UPND youths defected to join the PF.
The youth from Kanyama, Matero and John Laing townships were led by Chosha Mwanza, who at one point left the PF to join the UPND, but had decided to rejoin the ruling party.
Mr Mwanza said he decided to go back to his home party as the UPND had landed him into a lot of problems, which he did not have while he was in the PF.
“PF is my home. I found myself in a lot of problems while in the UPND. I was in remand prison for two weeks over the militia issue and I am still going to court for it,” he said.
PF Lusaka District chairperson Stafford Kayame, who welcomed the youth, said the PF was geared to win and retain all the seats.
“The coming back of our members shows that we are going to win and retain all our seats,” Mr Kayame said.