Chilekwa Mukonge resigns from MMD

Chilekwa Mukonge resigns from MMD
Lusaka, Jul 20, ZANIS – MMD member and losing Kasama Central aspiring Member of Parliament Chilekwa Munkonge has resigned from active politics.

Mr. Mukonge, who stood on the MMD ticket in the 2011 elections says he wants to concentrate on doing business as a private individual.

Mr. Mukonge, who is Defense Minister Geoffrey Mwamba’s young brother, confirmed his decision to leave active politics in an interview with ZANIS in Lusaka last evening.

“I have resigned from active politics because l want to concentrate on my businesses and enjoy a private life. I have no intentions of joining any political party neither the ruling PF. My former party the MMD is free to come and get wise counsel if at all they need such advice in the governance of the party,” Mr. Mukonge said.

Mr. Mukonge wished the MMD and the National Executive Committee (NEC) members well in its political endeavours and described what the party is going through as a minor set-back in politics.

He claimed that he immensely contributed enough to his former ruling party and time to rest and give chance to others had come.

During the run-up to the September 2011 tripartite elections , Defense Minister Geoffrey Mwamba popularly known as GBM differed with his younger brother Mukonge for challenging him in the Kasama Central seat.

However, the Kasama Central electorates rejected Mukonge and voted for GBM who scooped the seat to represent the people in the National Assembly on the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) ticket.

And MMD deputy national secretary Chembe Nyangu told ZANIS that the party has accepted Mr. Mukonge’s decision to resign and thanked him for his gigantic contributions to the party.

Mr. Nyangu said in a separate interview that the MMD is not shaken by Mr Mukonge’s resignation and wished him well in his private life.

“Mr. Mukonge has got a democratic right to resign from our party. It’s a personal choice to join or resign from active politics and if he has decided to do so, we can’t force him to stay in politics. I can only say we wish him well in his private life,” Mr. Nyangu said.

The MMD has continued to lose members with most of them defecting to the ruling party, the PF.