KBF To Contest PF Party Presidency

rominent Zambian Lawyer and 2021 presidential aspirant, Kelvin Fube Bwalya, popularly known as KBF has reiterated that he is a bonfide member of the ruling Patriotic Front (PF). Mr. Bwalya has also maintained his resolve to contest the party presidency at the forthcoming party general conference slated for this June or July, saying he qualifies to stand for the post of president of the PF, just like any member of the party. 

He said he would not be drawn into a fight with his elder brother, President Lungu, who he so much respects. Mr. Bwalya also commended President Lungu for opening up the race for party presidency and all other elective positions. This, he said, is as it should be for a party subscribing to democratic tenants. He urged all Patriotic Front members and his supporters at large to remain calm and focused on the general conference.

On his purported dismissal from the party, Mr. Bwalya said the party cannot expel a member for simply expressing personal political ambition to contest an elective position in the party structures. This, he said, was provided for in the party constitution. He was speaking in a live Muvi TV interview dubbed Blunt Talk.

In response to questions suggesting that he had been expelled from the PF and therefore would not be allowed to contest for the position of party president, Mr. Bwalya said he has never received an expulsion letter from the Patriotic Front to that effect. “I genuinely believe I am a member of the Patriotic Front. They claim that they expelled me, I have never received a letter of expulsion from anybody. We are not running a kangaroo court, we are running a ruling political party. That is not how you run a political party. You do not expel people simply because one member says I want to be President of the party. It’s not a crime for a member of the party to indicate intention to stand for a political position in the party, not even in the constitution of the PF.’’

“The President of the Republic said members are free to stand, and I give credit to him, he is on record and said it’s my democratic right if I want to stand. “The Secretary General of the Patriotic Front also said it’s okay, there’s an amnesty- everybody who left the party or everybody who was expelled should feel free to come back. Mind you, my party doesn’t have membership cards. If it was a question of going to buy a membership card, I would have done that. But for me I took their words, this is what they wanted, they wanted unity back in the party. So I am here,” he said. 

And reacting to earlier comments made by Patriotic Front Deputy Secretary General Mumbi Phiri that Mr Bwalya was not a member of the Patriotic Front as he had been expelled and that should he want to return to the party, he would have to re-apply and wait three years, he said “I have never insulted the leadership of the Patriotic Front. Some people left the Patriotic Front, insulted the leadership of the Patriotic Front, came back, you don’t give them three years you want to give me three years? What crime did I commit? Why are you going back on your words?
“You said there’s an amnesty, for everybody to come back. I can’t fault the President, he has been quiet on this matter,” he said. 

Mr Bwalya went on to state that he did not commit any crime and believed there are people trying to build differences within the party. 

“I am prepared to suffer the inconvenience of insults and being degraded so that every Zambian enjoyed good life.

This article originally appeared on Lusaka Times