Thursday, March 28, 2024

No charter has been violated on degree clause-Ronnie Shikapwasha

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Shikapwasha

THE Government has said the country has not violated the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights by allowing the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) to adopt a clause that requires a presidential candidate to be a holder of a university degree because it is the citizens themselves that demanded that their presidents be degree holders to articulate issues intelligently.

Chief Government Spokesperson Ronnie Shikapwasha said the citizens were well represented in the NCC and that the decisions made by the conference were a reflection of what the people of Zambia wanted.

Gen Shikapwasha was reacting to Patriotic Front (PF) president Michael Sata who yesterday said that Zambia had violated the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights by allowing the NCC to adopt a clause that requires a presidential candidate to be a holder of a university degree.

“Zambia has not violated any charter because it is the Zambian people that want the presidential candidate to be a degree holder and so whatever Mr Sata is talking about has no substance,” Gen Shikapwasha said.

He said that by the NCC recommending that a presidential candidate should be a degree holder, it was merely stating that whoever wanted to aspire for the office should be an enlightened person.

Gen Shikapwasha compared the person seeking the office of presidency to an individual looking for a job either in the private or public sector.

“There is no such a thing as violation of the charter in as far as qualifications are concerned, otherwise people would not have been getting jobs.

If you are looking for a job and the employers are saying you should have a degree there is no way you can say no.

In this case, the Zambian people who are the employers are saying they want a degree holder to aspire for presidency,” Gen Shikapwasha said.

Similarly, Gen Shikapwasha said it would be illogical for any Christian to claim that he would go to heaven if such an individual has not come to know Jesus.

Gen Shikapwasha said that for as long as anybody that claims to be a Christian does not know Jesus, such an individual would not go to heaven.

Speaking in an interview in Lusaka yesterday, Mr Sata said Zambia had violated the charter to which it was a signatory under the African Union (AU). He said the nation had violated Article 13 of the charter. “Zambia has violated the African charter which allows for the various forms of freedom.[quote]

In the past 45 years, we fought against the white minority to rule so that the majority can rule but now we are going back to the situation where the minority should again rule. The country has violated Article 13 of the charter,” Mr Sata said.

Article 13 of the charter states that every citizen shall have the right to participate freely in the Government of his country, either directly or through freely chosen representatives in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Mr Sata argued that by restricting the position of presidency to a degree holder, Zambia was now allowing the minority to rule.

Meanwhile, Lusaka lawyer Christopher Mundia has supported the degree requirement for a presidential candidate saying the move was not in any way discriminatory.

Reacting to the NCC’s adoption of an article that requires a presidential candidate to have a minimum qualification of a first degree, Mr Mundia said that the article was important.

He said by adopting the article, the NCC acted in line with the aspirations of the Zambian people because the world had become complicated and ill-qualified persons could not articulate development issues.

He said in the era of a global village, there was need for enlightened leaders because the days of the blind leading the blind were long gone.

Zambia had seen positive sustenance of the economy because of enlightened leadership of late president Levy Mwanawasa and the continued leadership of President Rupiah Banda who was not only a degree holder but an experienced economist.

He said the degree requirement for a president entrenched the wishes of the Zambian people and that it was interesting to hear that some aspiring candidates felt that the clause was targeted at them.

On the 50 per cent plus one clause, Mr Mundia said it was unnecessary as it would be expensive in the event that a re-run was to be conducted.

He explained that next year, 2.5 million people were expected to vote when the population was about 12 million and issues of legitimacy could not arise and therefore, the simple majority should be the best.

[Times of Zambia]

43 COMMENTS

  1. The people shall participate in governance according to that particular country’s laws.So it is that country that will constitute its own laws coz each country is different!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Mr. Sata should consider instead concentrate to prepare him self adequately

  2. its the fake Reverand again, Please, stop ranting and halucinating! Go and study for your grade 9 first. then grade12. Without a grade 12 Certificate, you dont qualify to say all this. Concetrate on your studies than making noise. When you pass grade 12, go and Study for a degree, If you will pass it, then come and start commenting on constitutional issues. You didnt learn basic governance taught in grade 9 civics thats why your views are pathetic. Your short sight will soon cost you. MMD is leaving next year.

  3. 50+1 per cent presidential requirement.
    I fail to understand the intelligence of some of our so called lawyers. Mr Mundia is no exception as his reasoning to fore go this important requirement reads a sad story. Am taken aback when i hear people like claim that they are representing Zambian people. Which Zambian people is he refering to? The clause in question is an extract from the Willa Mung’umba draft constitution. These people went round the country asking the Zambian what they wanted and people submitted that. Senior chief Inyambo Yeta was the Vice – chairperson of that commission and every thing is there on record for every body to see. Its surprising that lawyer worth his salt can stand up and its say the nonsense coming from people like Mundia. The money is ours not you.

  4. It is very good that the degree clause has been included in the constitution because it means that Shikasushi himself will not be president because he only has a Grade 12 certificate!

  5. Shikapwasha is not telling the truth by insinuating that the NCC is well represented. The man is an hypocrite. He has no moral right to even open his mounth. When you look at the composition of the so called NCC you find that it is not balanced thats the more reason why the church and other NGOs boycotted it. The man’s past speaks volumes. He was Air force Commander and we the type of a person he is. Let him not open old wounds of the damage he did whilst serving as Commander. He should just remain silent because we know him very well. Evidence is there for anyone to prove.

  6. There is nothing lie violenting the charter but setting standards to help our future leaders understand the same AU charter. Satan has a right to everything but on this one, no. We need organised souls to rule us and not kwangalas.

  7. To all concerned Zambian,what Chief Government Spokesperson Ronnie Shikapwasha has being trying to do is calling for help. Every time you see this man saying something it is actually a cry for help. He needs money to pay for his treatment at Chainama Hospital for the mentally misplaced. He was born like that. That is way he joined the army in the hope of being killed, but as you all know, nobody was willing to waste bullets. So play lets help me.

  8. To all concerned Zambian,what Chief Government Spokesperson Ronnie Shikapwasha has being trying to do is calling for help. Every time you see this man saying something it is actually a cry for help. He needs money to pay for his treatment at Chainama Hospital for the mentally misplaced. He was born like that. That is way he joined the army in the hope of being killed, but as you all know, nobody was willing to waste bullets. So pls lets help me.

  9. [-( # 8 When you are signatory to a charter you abide by the terms & conditions agreeable to all signatories of that charter. so don’t mumble about setting standards & all, zed already signed the charter. you would know this if you weren’t behaving like a kwangala.

  10. Can Shikapwasha comment on whether this degree clause was going to be included if RB had no degree?

  11. # 11, I strongly doubt if Sata has the two degrees he claims to have. If he has them, then they are stolen or Matero market certificates. He should have allowed his people to debate this issue at the NCC sitting. Fighting outside the ring may not help much.

  12. If Sata has a degree why is he complaining very loudly?..this kaponya has No degree. one or two nothing!, i can tell you that..he claims he started pursing a degree in 2006, well, a 4years degree programme is what is required,the guy should be completing end of this year or 2011 or 2012 after the elections if its true that he started in 2006,,,
    and where are his o’levels, requirement for a degree programme?

  13. Let Sata become a councillor because u need not to have a degree. But this Charp is Standard A or B?? or was it sub ???? whatever, No !!!Country Men we can t have Presidents like that. He is not surpose to qualify even as a councillor!!!

  14. #15 mbo,,,if those degrees are there, am sure there are not from matero university, because F.sinyangwe (MP for matero) would have told us, they(degrees) must be stole from somewhere else, or maybe printed by the post from somewhere.

  15. # 15, What has the NCC achieved since it was initiated?? Sata did not want his MPs getting millions per sitting when the people they claim to represent are starving. If that’s not being a good leader then i don’t know you are doing on earth. And just like Thomas you’ll stop doubting very soon.

  16. Good Morning

    Principally, there’s nothing wrong with this clause but it’s the timing that is questionable. Why adopt it now and not after the upcoming elections, for instance? Furthermore, it appears to me that the supporters of this clause are only obsessed with endless internal arguments and have forgotten to connect with (or chosen to ignore?) those outside the NCC – the larger citizenry and those at the sharp end of political conflicts.

    This strongly suspects a gimmick by the ruling party to create politics for insiders only. However, sooner or laiter it will be visible to everyone that the incorruptibility of this new leadership clique they are trying to create is no better than the traditional leadership class.

  17. # 15 Don t be foolish in your thinking. Sata has grown up in that Parliament.When he was receiving Parliamentary and ministrial Perks are u saying we didn t have poverty in Zambia and that Poverty is here only when he is in the Opposition?? this is S***t thinking to say the least. Do you know how Late Paul Tembo was killed?? who was at the centre of Politics?? there is a reason why GOD will never allow Sata to lead Zambia

  18. # 17 Don t be foolish in your thinking. Sata has grown up in that Parliament.When he was receiving Parliamentary and ministrial Perks are u saying we didn t have poverty in Zambia and that Poverty is here only when he is in the Opposition?? this is S***t thinking to say the least. Do you know how Late Paul Tembo was killed?? who was at the centre of Politics?? there is a reason why GOD will never allow Sata to lead Zambia

  19. I accept that it is a good idea to have a degree holder to be President but I do not think that it should be a constitutional requirement. Why not let the people who vote decide at the ballot box. There will be some who say the majority of Zambians are not good enough to make that decision, but I reject that patronising stance. I know a lot of uneducated people who would vote for a learned person and not an unlearned. But, at the end of the day, we will leave this clause to be interpreted by the courts of law. Is human rights law superior to the constitution? If it is, Mr Sata may have the last laugh, without producing his ‘invisible ink’ degree!

  20. #3 kadamu
    The logic behind Mundia’s argument is this. There are 11 million Zambians and only under 3 million register to vote. So, already even if all the 2.5 million voted for a particular candidate (100%) it will still be less that 30% of the population who voted for that person, because 70% have not registered to vote. So the issue of a ‘minority’ President will always be there even if we had 50%+1. We need not waste money on re-runs. I now agree with this argument. I did not before but now I accept. Thank God there are people brighter than me! (and I mean it)

  21. Shikapwasha please do not use the Lords name to justfy evil. That degree clause is aimed at Sata. Sata or no Sata God will liberate us from MMD.

  22. Sata was a constable in the Northern Rhodesia Rifles, at one time, he neat up Kapasa Makasa unconcious for demostrating against the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. It is therefore shocking to hear him claim: “In the past 45 years, we fought against the white minority to rule so that the majority can rule but now we are going back to the situation where the minority should again rule. The country has violated Article 13 of the charter”. I also recall how he became the unmistakable face of Chiluba’s 3rd term excrement only to turn around and seek the presidency himself. His lurches from one position to another are shamefully like the leaps of the red ruffed lemur of the Masoala peninsula in Madagascar.

  23. Please, mwe bantu! Right now RB is not doing well as president. What would Sata do? Let’s take these issues seriously instead of just being excited with the newest fad. We need a degree holder in plot 1. Have you seen how HH, Magande and Maureen articulate issues? They are far better than what we have and what we are thinking of replacing it with.

    Sata, please, give a chance to new blood. Muletukana fye insele!

    Elias Chipimo might be inexperienced and should probably support any of the 3 guys above for now. He could be an MP and a Minister of Finance and then become president one day.

  24. The next thing you will hear is that Mundia is the new minister of legal affairs. That a mercenary like this should share the same name as the gallant late premier of Zambia Nalumino Mundia is most unfortunate indeed. The veteran freedom fighter must be turning in his grave at Leopards’ Hill. was Sata not aware that this same Article 13 of the African Union (AU) charter was “raped” by his acts of “inserting” a parentage Clause into our constitution thus blocking KK from running? He should just swallow his sour grapes gracefully and be encouraged to go back to school, ubukupo Zondwe bwafulisha saaana awe sure!

  25. Leadership does not entail that one should be educated, it comes from wisdom and wisdom is God given. We have seen so many irresponsible and educated fools in this country hence, narrowing the Presidency to one with a degree is B…….shit! The stupid NCC have just run short of even indicating the area of specialisation because the composition is shit and made up of people trying to fill their pockets rather than providing a service to the majority. Its simple to understand that though issue of re-runs would be a cost to the country, it should be undertaken rather than having imposed chaps traversing the globe as presidents through rigged elections.

  26. 😕 Zambia has truly gone to th dogs! Debate sencibly or els u wil qualify to th same title,constitution making proces hs built nd destroyed nations,i wonder every head of state comes wnts to change wat suits hm,im begining to wonder nw tht there are leaders who are trying to take our peace for granted,hw chalenge lupiya why the inclusion of age limit is not included,th laws of men,nd nt of people,africa twasebana,

  27. #33 MMD is Ours
    And your point is?
    If gen Shikapwasha also has no degree, what has that got to do with what he is saying? It actually means that it is not personal, I would think!

  28. Let bashi-Chilufya Mr MC Sata just show us his 2 degrees. By the way how did the POST Newspaper and Mr PF/Sata forget to show us about his graduation ceremonies when Mrs Maureen Mwanawasa’s graduation ceremonies were talked about in the media;

    __
    Matt 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.

  29. Kamo Shikapwasha is useless.People said we want the 50+1 referendum to be held but you said NO it is going to be expensive. Amafi you want to include good things you want to exclude. You people are mad. Okay make it your way and we shall see whether that will stand the test of time.

  30. # 27 am surprised that you agree with the lawyer on first past post,well late me Educate you further,
    the constitutional process begans by president appointing Comissioners,then they Collect data and submissions of pipo thr out our 72 districts,submitte the Draft to president to enact into law.now
    Willa Mungombe Draft says-
    We the pipo what 50 + I Vote ,and G12 President ,To be a voter you must be 18yrs above meaning your are mature that does not traslent to 12million on voters row far from it you fool

  31. The adoption of articles requiring a presidential candidate to have a first degree as a minimum academic qualification, and to have been resident in Zambia for 10 consecutive years preceding an election are misplaced. Such clauses, as Henry Kayambalesa argued in another LT article on this subject, are designed to exclude some individuals from contesting the presidency, and are initiated by MMD members of the NCC and their sympathizers. Would the two clauses have been recommended by the NCC if the MMD presidential candidate in the 2011 general elections — that is, Rupiah Banda — did not have a degree and had been working for the World Bank in the USA over the last 5 or so years, for example?

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