Bigger things coming if UPND is re-elected, HH promises

By BARNABAS ZULU

PRESIDENT Hakainde Hichilema has urged Zambians to support the ruling UPND in next month’s general elections, saying his government has bigger development plans and more employment opportunities in store if returned to office.

Speaking during a campaign rally in Petauke yesterday, President Hichilema said citizens should remain patient and optimistic, insisting that those who had not yet benefited from government employment programmes would also have their opportunity.

“Big things and big works are coming for you and your relatives. That is why we need to vote for the UPND on the 13th of August,” President Hichilema said.

“Do not complain that your neighbour, who is a teacher or a nurse, has been employed while you have not. Your time is coming and you are next to be employed.”

The Head of State also cautioned voters against supporting opposition parties, saying the country should continue moving forward rather than returning to previous administrations.

In an apparent reference to the former ruling Patriotic Front and members now aligned to the Tonse Alliance, President Hichilema said Zambia should not go back to the past.

“Do not go back to those people. They are dead. Do you want us to exhume them? What do you want to bring back home? Leave them, God is looking after them. That is how it is with our friends,” he said.

President Hichilema further stated that Zambia had become more politically tolerant under the UPND administration, arguing that citizens were now free to associate with and support political parties of their choice without fear.

He said residents of Petauke and other parts of the country could now freely wear regalia of any political party, unlike in previous years when some people allegedly faced intimidation for openly supporting the UPND.The President reiterated his call for voters in Petauke and across the country to support the UPND in the August 13 general election.