DF was intended to cushion rejected PF MPs– SCOTT

FORMER vice president Guy Scott has revealed his involvement in the deregistered Democratic Front (DF) led by Miles Sampa.

Dr. Scott revealed that the DF, which has signed a memorandum of understanding with the United Party for National Development (UPND), was intended serve as a cushion for PF MPs who would not be adopted by the ruling party.
Speaking during an interview broadcast by Millennium Radio yesterday, Dr. Scott said the party may have to find a new name following its deregistration.
He also said UPND president Hakainde Hichilema’s statement that he was ‘the most stupid white man on Earth’ had no impact on him and that he was not bitter about it.

He said his political party was DF and has since denied endorsing Mr Hichilema on Monday but that he only declared his support for the UPND.
“I never used the word endorse, I said our party; this new party which is called DF at the moment now has to be called something else and because of all this kafwafwa, we will work with the UPND” Dr. Scott said.
He said most of the loyalist and founder members of parliament under the PF were being pushed out of Parliamentary Constituencies to be replaced with those from the opposition MMD.
“We are working together with UPND and one of the reasons we did that is that many of the loyalists , the old founders of PF are being pushed out of parliament,” he said.

He said he was aware of a scheme by PF top leadership to oust him out of Lusaka Central Constituency by pushing for Commerce Minister Margaret Mwanakatwe to stand under the PF.
He however said even if she was to be the one adopted under the PF ticket, there was no guarantee that she would win because other parties would field candidates capable of beating her.

“We have been told unofficially that I must quit Lusaka Central and give it to Margaret Mwanakatwe who is MMD. So MMD is invading PF. I just do not want to find PF MPs on the street and having to do their own negotiations one by one with UPND or whoever, I want to make a safety net for them.

“I have no choice if the central committee decides or the president decides that it goes to Mwanakatwe on PF ticket, then that’s what will happen. It doesn’t mean somebody else won’t come along from UPND or rainbow or DF. Someone else may come along and beat her. I mean, that is what is happening.

When you start chopping up that party, that is just the kind of thing that befalls you,” he said. And Dr Scott said Mr Hichilema’s words against him were simply politicking and that he was not bitter about it. “As for someone calling me ‘the most stupid white man’, so what? That’s politics; if you had someone at school who called you the most stupid brown man he ever met, are you still bitter about it, ninkani zandale (that politicking) and it has no impact at all,” he said.
In 2013, Mr Hichilema referred to Dr Scott then Vice President as the most stupid white man he had ever seen for campaigning in a by-election in Lukulu west when the campaign period had ended.

Zambia Daily Nation