STAND ON YOUR OWN IDEOLOGIES

President Edgar Lungu has appealed to Independent Candidates participating in the 11^th August general elections not to ride on his popularity by enticing the electorate to vote for them as they back the head of state.

While in Luapula province drumming up support ahead of what analysts say is a tight election, President Lungu said that Independent Candidates Campaigning using The ruling party symbol And regalia have no blessings of the Party.

First of all let me establish who is an Independent Candidate is in an election.

An Independent Candidate is somebody who does not have any outside influence and fully backs his or her campaigns.

I find it disturbing that an Independent Candidate can be enticing voters for support a Presidential Candidate of the ruling party which to some extent is an indication that they should as well vote for him or her.

Any Independent who engages in such maneuvers clearly demonstrates that he or she does not believe in their ideologies, in short they have nothing to offer to the electorate.

It also implies that such a Candidate is not sure if they can win and want to use every chance to pull through tight general elections.

Such Independent Candidates want to ride on the perceived popularity of President Lungu, so that he could consider them in his cabinet if the wins the polls provided that a PF candidate in that area loses.

But there is also a danger which should be monitored by Security wings, because President Lungu has denounced such Candidates openly, they are at risk of being victimized by supporters of preferred candidates from the ruling party.

There was such case in Kabwata constituency where an independent candidate, Clement Tembo, is urging his supporters to back President Lungu as they give him a vote and he uses regalia of the ruling party.

At one time a fight ensued between his supporters and those of immediate past area Member of Parliament Given Lubinda, who is re-contesting the Seat. Such happenings may escalate?

 Another point that has not being explained is how do these Independent Candidates source their funding more especially the patriotic front regalia, because I believe the regalia is not just dished out to anybody within the party.

And where do these Candidates draw their mandate to support President Lungu who already has an adopted candidate for each constituency?

In areas like Lundazi and Muchinga constituencies where two cabinet ministers namely Dr John Phiri and Dr. Ngosa Simbyakula failed to file in Nomination papers, it is understandable but not in areas where the Patriotic Front has presence.

Dr. John Phiri

Dr. Ngosa Simbyakula

An Independent Candidate that fails to stand on his or her own during campaigns cannot be trusted because it shows that individual is ready to abandon set targets whenever they spot low hanging fruits.

Candidates should not confuse a voter, who says that backing a President of a ruling party can win somebody votes? It is try and error kind of thinking and who says that everybody who follows them believes in him or her?

In my view those Candidates openly using the name of the president, some of them may have gotten an insurance that if you deliver a constituency there are better things ahead especially in areas where the ruling party is not very popular.

I foresee a situation where some of those candidates withdrawing from the race if their funding was indirectly coming from somebody within the ruling party to just try and destabilize a candidate adopted by the party in power.

If independent candidates can have courage campaign for a sitting head of states openly, can we conclude that they are also backing opposition presidential candidates who have a realistic chance of forming the next government?

There is no sense at all for a Candidate who claims to have an independent plan for Ward, Constituency to use the achievements of a governing political party; that is being a visionless Leader.