Kitwe Mayor Chileshe Bweupe has been accused of hiring Patrotic Front cadres to assault an official from the Zambia United Local Authority Workers Union (ZULAWU) branch in Kitwe allegedly for opposing lucrative conditions of service for he proposed to the local authority.
ZULAWU Kitwe branch chairperson Kennedy Matambo is being sought by a group of PF women after he opposed the Kitwe City Council motion to offer the city Mayor a council mansion and 24-hour state security, which has never been done in the history of the town.
Mr Matambo opposed the proposed lucrative conditions and he issued a media statement on October 11, 2012 in which he condemned the development.
But PF women in Kitwe are upset that a ZULAWU official, who is also employed by the same council, could oppose the proposed conditions of service.
They are and calling the dismissal of Matambo from the Kitwe City Council employment.
The PF cadres have given Matambo a 24-hour ultimatum to apologise because they will take matters into their own hands.
Leader of the PF cadres, Felistus Mukuka said there was nothing wrong with the proposed conditions of service for the Mayor of Kitwe because the move was aimed at benefiting not only the incumbent mayor but his successors as well.
Insiders have revealed that Bweupe hired the PF women to deal with Matambo. The PF women gathered Nkana West at the weekend to plot how to capture Matambo. They said Matambo was not in order to oppose council motions.
The women said a council employee was not supposed to portray a picture that the Kitwe Mayor was bulldozing the council to award him lucrative conditions of service.
“We are disappointed with Mr Matamba for his action to take a council chamber matter to the private media because we think he is twisting facts. If he was genuine with his concerns, he should have gone to a public media organisation,” said Felistus Mukuka, leader of the PF women.
Many PF officials in publicinstitutions have been awarding themselves exorbitant and lucrative salaries and conditions of service arguing that this was their time to benefit from the 10 years of being in the opposition.
Efforts to get a comment from Bweupe proved futile by press time.