The Post: HH Is Nothing But a Defender Of Corruption

Hakainde Hichilema says they support the fight against corruption but not in the manner the Patriotic Front government is doing it.
Hakainde says even the removal of Rupiah Banda’s presidential immunity was not handled properly; it is sheer revenge. Hakainde went even further to accuse the Legislature of overriding the Judiciary over the removal of Rupiah’s immunity.
It requires little intelligence – if a little is all one has – to realise that Hakainde’s opposition to the removal of Rupiah’s immunity has nothing to do with “the manner the PF is doing it” but his political relationship with Rupiah.
It cannot be denied even by the most dishonest person that after the collapse of his pact with the Patriotic Front, Hakainde went into a shameful political alliance with Rupiah and the MMD. We say shameful because this was a relationship, a political alliance even Hakainde himself could not publicly acknowledge or announce. Hakainde could not do so because Rupiah and the MMD were discredited not only by other people but by Hakainde himself. Hakainde had accused Rupiah, his sons and Dora Siliya of corruption. Hakainde used to denounce the MMD as a corrupt political party running a corrupt government. This was so until his pact with the Patriotic Front ended.
Hakainde was determined to ensure that his former political allies, the Patriotic Front, did not win the 2011 elections. He used to continually state that no opposition political party, including his own UPND, could win the 2011 elections on its own, without an alliance with other opposition political parties. And to ensure that the Patriotic Front didn’t win, Hakainde went into an unannounced alliance with Rupiah and the MMD. Rupiah and the MMD helped UPND in some of their parliamentary elections. Rupiah became an ally of Hakainde and that relationship still exists today. And it is this relationship that has made Hakainde become a defender of Rupiah’s corruption, which he used to denounce. It has nothing to do with the way Rupiah’s immunity was removed because Hakainde was already opposed to the removal of that immunity before it was even taken to Parliament. Hakainde had mobilised long before to protect Rupiah’s immunity. And there is nothing the Patriotic Front government would have done that would have changed Hakainde’s position on that issue. What Hakainde today is looking for is sheer pretext to justify a longstanding decision of his.
Hakainde cannot claim to be a staunch supporter of the fight against corruption when he is so comfortably lying in bed with a person and a political party he used to denounce over corruption.
What is it that has cleansed Rupiah and the MMD of corruption today? Has the electoral defeat by Michael Sata and the Patriotic Front cleansed Rupiah and the MMD of corruption in the eyes of Hakainde?
The truth is Hakainde has no problems with corruption. And this is why today he is an ally and defender of Rupiah and his corruption. If it was only the way the Patriotic Front went about removing Rupiah’s immunity that displeased Hakainde, this wouldn’t have pushed him into making Rupiah and the MMD a political ally.
Hakainde’s defence and protection of Rupiah has nothing to do with the way the Patriotic Front is doing things, but with his political relationship with Rupiah.
Hakainde has proved to be a very unprincipled politician. Principles don’t count for anything in Hakainde’s world. He operates on expedience. What matters most to Hakainde is what can enable him to get power, to get into State House quickly. That’s all that matters to Hakainde. Other things such as principles, standards, morality don’t count for anything in his politics and life in general. Hakainde could jump into a full pit latrine and swim there if that would gain him power. The bad smell is not a deterrent. Likewise, Rupiah and the MMD’s corruption has never been a factor for Hakainde when it comes to political alliances. He is able to withstand the pungent smell of their corruption as long as this is likely to get him power.
But unfortunately for Hakainde, his opportunism is not combined with good political analysis, understanding and wisdom. He is always making wrong assumptions. Hakainde got into a pact with the Patriotic Front on the wrong assumption that he was going to lead that political alliance ahead of Michael. Any wise politician, any thoughtful person would have realised that Hakainde was cheating himself and, as a result, he was working on the wrong thing. Hakainde was no match politically for Michael. While Hakainde jumped around like a chicken, Michael watched him like an eagle until he had exhausted himself on sterile political endevours. Hakainde came out of that alliance more badly damaged politically than he had gone in.
But like all blind opportunists, Hakainde can’t see and because he can’t see, he is incapable of learning from his mistakes. Hakainde has jumped opportunistically from one political alliance, election pact into another. Since entering politics in 2006, Hakainde’s path has been that of disastrous and failed election pacts. But it seems he has learnt very little, if not nothing, from these failures.
Today Hakainde hopes to gain political mileage from defending Rupiah and his corruption. How is this going to help him? Does Hakainde think Zambians have forgotten that he told them that Rupiah was corrupt?
Does Hakainde really think that Rupiah will deliver for him the necessary votes in 2016? Where is Rupiah going to get those votes for Hakainde, which he himself failed to secure in 2011 and lost that election?
Rupiah cannot give Hakainde what he himself doesn’t have. One can only give what one has – not more.
If Hakainde had a little more respect for the Zambian people, he would not be saying the things he is saying today. He would realise that the Zambian people are very capable of seeing things for themselves, of listening for themselves and of thinking for themselves. If Hakainde was capable of seeing this and understanding this, he would politically come to an intelligent decision for himself.
People have more respect for a man who lets them know where he stands, even if he is wrong, than the one who comes up like an angel, yet is nothing but a devil. Hakainde should simply tell the Zambian people that he has nothing against corruption, that he defends corruption as long as it is his friends who are involved in it. The Zambian people would find this position to be wrong but would respect Hakainde for being honest.
Hakainde should learn to be honest and realise that politics is a noble undertaking and requires more decency, principles, standards than he is able to offer. If he realises this, there may be a possibility of a reversal of political fortunes.

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Posted by Editor on April 7, 2013. Filed under POLITICS. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry