Opposition Parties Form ‘UPND Alliance’, With HH As Presidential Candidate

Opposition parties aiming to unseat the ruling Patriotic Front at August’s election have formed a new alliance under the United Party for National Development, called the UPND Alliance. The alliance will bring together a spectrum of opposition parties, with UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema as its joint presidential candidate.

The alliance was formally announced on Wednesday at a meeting of opposition leaders to discuss their approach to elections on 12 August. 

Writing after the meeting on social media, Mr Hichilema said the parties were committed to “working together as an electoral pact to liberate our country and bring it to normalcy”.

He said his party, the UPND, ‘humbly accepted’ to be the flag carrier of this electoral pact.

He added that the alliance had entrusted the UPND to nominate a running mate for HH “when the right time comes”. 

Speculation over who Hichilema will chose as his running mate has abounded in recent days, following the appointment of Mutale Nalumango as vice president of the UPND. 

It is currently unclear which parties will make up the opposition alliance, however National Democratic Congress (NDC) leader Chishimba Kambwili was conspicuous by his absence from the meeting, 

Mr Kambwili has previously been supportive of the idea of an opposition alliance, claiming that a united front is essential to ejecting President Lungu from Office. Last year, Kambwili congratulated Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera on the victory of his Tonse alliance at the polls in June, saying that Zambian opposition parties should follow Malawi’s example.