Africa-Press – Zambia. THE Voice executive director Faith Siatubotu has observed that the UPND have detached themselves from the people who put them into office. “You promised an affordable cost of living, affordable fuel, no load shedding; basically a better economy and the people are expecting just that. They voted not to make your lives great but to better the livelihood of all,” she said. “Listen to the people; listen to radio programmes if you have to so that you know the complaints of the people on the ground. And stop protecting the President from getting the truth on the ground. He needs to know, especially if you support his vision.” In a statement, Siatubotu warned that if the UPND stop listening completely they risk being rejected by the people.
“The quickest way for a political party in government to lose the support of its electorates is to create a gap in communication and to lose contact with the people on ground. The UPND administration, just like the PF are losing contact with the people,” she noted. “The people are happy with the UPND but they are also disappointed. They are happy about the free education programme, employment in the civil service and increasing CDF, but they are disappointed about how high the cost of living has become – cost of fuel keeps shooting high; how the FISP (Farmer Input Support Programme) and CDF programmes are being handled.”
Siatubotu cautioned the UPND against praising themselves before looking at the real situation on the ground. She challenged the new dawn government to instead explain their solutions to people’s challenges.
“Do not pat yourselves on the back yet but pay attention to the concerns of the people. You need to remember that not everyone that voted for the UPND into power is a proponent of the UPND. Some voted because they wanted the PF out of power, and others because you promised a better Zambia for all – affordable cost of living. But every single time they raise a concern, you do not provide solutions. You just point at the failures of the PF but we are aware about their failures. That is why we voted them out,” explained Siatubotu. “What you are doing to fix the damage caused by the PF is the question citizens want answers to. You promised an affordable cost of living, affordable fuel, no load shedding; basically a better economy and the people are expecting just that. They voted not to make your lives great but to better the livelihood of all. Listen to the people; listen to radio programmes if you have to so that you know the complaints of the people on the ground. And stop protecting the President from getting the truth on the ground. He needs to know, especially if you support his vision.”
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