11 November 2009
LATE president Levy Mwanawasa's son, Patrick has said the MMD is the only democratic party which has political ideologies that appeal to all people and branded the Patriotic Front (PF) as a mere populist party.
Speaking on MUVI Television Matter At Hand programme on Monday evening, Mr Mwanawasa said it was for this reason that he had made a decision to remain an MMD member.
He said the MMD was also the best party for young people who wanted to serve the country, unlike forming their own political parties, which he said would never survive the political climate in the country.
"Youths should understand political party ideologies before making a choice on which party to join because only then will they know how they will use their positions to serve the people," Mr Mwanawasa said.
He said the PF was a populist party which just wanted to woo the support of the people for the leaders to achieve their own motives.
But PF national youth secretary Erick Chanda said Mr Mwanawasa was new to Zambian politics and did not fully understand the party manifestoes.
Mr Chanda advised Mr Mwanawasa to study the manifestoes of all major political parties in the country so that he could decide which party was the best.
He invited him to join the PF-United Party for National Development (UPND) pact, saying that was where he could best exercise his leadership as a youth.
Mr Mwanawasa urged young people not to shun politics for fear of being branded as dirty but to fully participate, saying it was the youths who had the power to change the country's political image by bringing in issue-based politics.
He said there was need for more fresh minds in Zambia's political arena because they could help bring creative thoughts which would lead to national unity and development.
Mr Mwanawasa called on young people to join politics with intentions of wanting to serve the people, instead of personal gain.
He also advised youths who were already in politics to avoid mudslinging, saying politics of insults had failed to move the country forward and warned that if that trend continued, the country would continue being dragged backwards.
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