Tribunal not constituted for me – Mangani

—-Eastern Province Patriotic Front Chairperson, Lameck Mangani, has dispelled media reports that the tribunal that was constituted following Vice President Guy Scott’s instructions was to investigate how he allegedly suspended some Provincial Committee members.

Mr Mangani said it is not true that the tribunal was constituted to investigate him but merely to chart a way forward for the party.

He was speaking this morning at a media briefing in Chipata.

Mr Mangani stated that the Vice President instructed former Ambassador to France, Solomon Mbuzi, when he recently visited the area, to ensure a tribunal was constituted to harmonise a working relationship between the suspended committee members and the interim committee members.

He noted that there was some misinformation to Mr Mbuzi, who is the tribunal chairperson, considering that he was away for some time and could not know the happenings in the party.

The Provincial Chairperson further stated that he has received a letter from Mr Mbuzi which requested him to give details on how some committee members were suspended at both District and Provincial levels, adding that some aggrieved members may have misinformed him.

Mr Mangani said the Provincial Committee was dissolved and some members were suspended by the Central Committee, saying even if he was a also a member of the highest organ of the party in the country, he could not overrule its decision.

He said when the members were being suspended, he was merely an ordinary member of the party and there was no logic for him to explain how they were suspended as issues were coming out in the media.

The Provincial Chairperson, however, noted that the party was intact in the region and there was room for dialogue so that all the party members pulled in one direction.

‘’All the members in the party are useful whether those suspended or those serving and we need to work together to strengthen the party,’’ he said.

Mr Managani said that the membership mobilisation in the districts like Mambwe, Vubwi, Petauke and Kasenengwa where there will be parliamentary by-elections, are going on smoothly as everyone is geared to ensure the party performs well when elections are held.

He stated that even those that are aggrieved are members of the party hence the need to find room for integration so that the members work together to strengthen the party in the region.