By Henry Kyambalesa
Over the years, the people’s call for a Republican constitution that is expected to stand the test of time has been loud and clear. Unfortunately, we have wasted a good portion of our country’s meager resources on financing the Chona Constitution Commission, the Mvunga Constitution Review Commission, the Mwanakatwe Constitution Review Commission, and the Mung’omba Constitutional Review Commission without coming up with such a constitution.
We are now grappling with the draft constitution recently tendered by the National Constitutional Conference (NCC), which is apparently laden with Articles and Clauses that are partisan, short-term and discriminatory in nature. It has too many contentious issues, errors and inconsistencies, which are predictably going to elicit nationwide demonstrations and potentially culminate in losses of property and human life if the authorities attempt to push it through by hook and crook.
I, therefore, wish to urge President Rupiah Banda to appoint an ad hoc task force consisting of at most 30 citizens who do not currently hold leadership positions in non-governmental organizations (NGOs), political parties, religious institutions, the labor movement, the legislature, the executive, the judiciary, the civil service, and the House of Chiefs.
The terms of reference for the task force should be to identify and examine contentious issues, errors and inconsistencies in: (a) the 1996 Republican constitution; and (b) the draft constitutions of the Chona Constitution Commission, the Mvunga Constitution Review Commission, the Mwanakatwe Constitution Review Commission, the Mung’omba Constitutional Review Commission, and the National Constitutional Conference.
Moreover, the task force should be required to prepare a draft constitution based on its findings. It could be given 1 year to complete its work, and its output could thereafter be tabled for comments by the citizenry.
We can hold the forthcoming tripartite elections under the 1996 constitution in its current form. It would not be prudent to push through a controversial and potentially divisive constitution just because we have spent unprecedented amounts of public resources on it. I believe it is much more important for the output of the constitution-making process to be widely acceptable.
It is shameful that after nearly 46 years of political independence, we have failed to give ourselves an acceptable constitution. Is there something that is innately deficient in us? How can personal, partisan and short-term interests inhibit us from working together to craft a constitution that will stand the test of time?
Henry wa lasa! However, as Zambians we are tired of Task Forces that end up producing sub-standard documents. The NCC is a task force of some kind in its own respect. We can’t afford to give billions to another new task force. Let the NCC collect all the contentious issues and address them in the draft constitution. What is another task force for? People are just getting richer from allowances and yet producing silly documents.
The UK has no constitution but is well governed – Zambia can amend its laws without expensive “Constitutional Reviews” with each and every new President.
If we can not produce a constitution after 46 years of independence then perhaps it is time we asked for help from experienced organization. The AU and the UN could be our take off points. There are a lot of people that could help or contribute if we stop being proud and act as if we know everything.
From the begining it was clear that mmd didnt want to hold next years on new constitution contentious issues where there from the begining now what mmd wanted is fulfilled. When were buzy cheating people will use new constitution see now
Yes we really need a people driven constitution and not a tailor made constitution by the MMD. The guys have really stolen it all. The only problem I see is the group that was hand picked by the MMD. Their love for money will never make them do things as people want but as the MMD wants. After all these short sighted people think that the money comes from the MMD pocket and they do as they are told to do because of their love for money. They think that doing things against the MMD can make them poor and deprive themselves of the huge free perks. On the other hand the MMD want a minority win for next year elections after all thats what they want now! They would rather leave the constitution as it is if anything! WASTED MONEY!!!!!!!
Constitution making is always contentious & expensive.Kenya just approved one after 20yrs of failed drafts,commissions & referendum.It should not aim at certain persons or hijacked to fit certain persons but rather outlive & yoke everyone equally.Arguments to change it for 3rd terms to “complete our dev agenda” as in uganda,niger,zim and others just show how certain persons emasculate & hijack constitutions as they’re bigger than institutions of governance.Zambia should learn to avoid this as there’re signs certain parties are built around personalities without whom they’ll fall apart.
Rubbish. What can you do as Zambians outside NCC which you could nt witihin it. You remain the same untruthful oeople within and outside it. First as Zambians learn not to tell each and agree toi untruths first. Zambians fail to be honest wIth each prefering to seem united in fear. Besides BRE has submitted that the Barotseland Agreement be recognised as part of the constitution. Let s see how you rtackle that hot potato. The truth is the basis of a lasting constitution. The truth.
This no.nsense called constitutional whatever just makes me sick. Its nothing but just a sheer waste of the little resources this poor country has. It has so far consumed millions and millions of kwacha & yet they are just amending and mending very small unimportant things & important things like 50+1 are left out.
The NCC delegation is a total failure and this must have been expected, the views of people were not addressed. They laughed off the important clauses that need serious consideration but they simply did not want to address them, because they did not suit them. It is a pity that the delegation were busy coming up with clauses that would fix individual and not protect the general citizens. In this the task force is not a solution and it will just be a shear waste of time and resources. The best solution maybe would be to simply amend the current Constitution.
If we hold 2011 elections under the current constitution, MMD will return power dubiously. That will mean that they will NEVER change the constitution becouse that will fix them if they do so. I would not say let us rush the process, the process is already behind schedule. So let us just implement it now. Let us demand for OUR constitution now. Then next year’ elections will reflect the democratic wish of Zambians. If MMD wins genuenly, then i will support them. The Last Mun’gomba CRC is good to go. It already harmonized the issues raised by Zambians in the previous CRCs. Its not that we dont know what is right, the problem is the MMD is REFUSING what is right is OUR wishes as Zambains. Since they cant reason with us, perharps force will make them to.
MA rubbish,KUNDA…
No task force, no CRC, no NCC will change things as they are. What we need now is a HEAD of State. Pres. RB had an opportunity because just like he has not followed every that the late had started or has changed certain things, he should have done the same with the NCC. He should have abandoned this NCC idea and adopt the Mungomba report as it was presented. Why? because the people of Zambia have already spoken. It is sad that Pres. RB has lost an opportunity to make a name. It is gone and it will not come back. The backs stops at the President now to unwaive this mess.
The real problem lies in ourselves. Each one of us 10 million Zambians wants his own constitution.
As usual instead of identifying the real problem, the real culprits, psycophants place the blame on an innocent president H.E. RB. RB is a democrat, he did not come into power and begin to undo everything that he found. He respected what the people of Zambia through late president Levy had started and let it run its course. He could have started his own process like every other president has done but did not. The real culprit is Sata and some of his catholic friends, the likes of PF telesphore. Imagine what a beautiful output would have come out of the NCC if all the stakeholders that were invited had participated. As it is let’s just move on with NCC, that is the best that we have.
A constitution is not a static document. We can amend it as we go and as we become more politically mature as Zambians and recognise that there are 10 million of us and we cannot have a constitution for each one of us, or one that will satisfy each one of us. Levy’s formula for an all inclusive NCC was brilliant. The South Africans did it, the Kenyans have done it but here in Zambia no formula can ever work because we take everything in a partisan (and sadly, rather idi.otic way). Anyway we botched Levy’s good ideas because we listened to selfish politicians. Let us take this as a good lesson and move on.
There are many people who are complaining about the NCC and yet they have never even read what Mung’omba said! NCC has corrected many wrong things in Mung’omba. E.G. Article 57(5) wanted to allow publication of anything including porongraphy! NCC rightly deleted that. Article 80 wanted Parliament to pass a new to make the Bill of Rights effective! This means that the human rights for women, children, the Youth, etc were not going to be enforceable until Parliament passes new Act, the same Parliament that has failed to pass Freedom of Information Bill and the IBA Bill! NCC had to delete that so that the Human Rights in the Constitution become enforceable when the new Constitution becomes effective. The right to food was not deleted but moved to Directive Principles of State Policy.
Most of the Complaints about the NCC have been fomented by the Bishops under the ZEC. They wanted to impose their will on Zambia through the Oasis Forum as they dominated it by bull dozing CCZ, EFZ, NGOCC and LAZ. Consequently Oasis Forum has died its natural and necessary death as ZEC only has CCZ and NGOCC to treat like a set of children. LAZ and EFZ reasserted their independence. In the NCC Draft Constitution, the right to food was not deleted but moved to Directive Principles of State Policy. ZEC knows that some people sell fertiliser given under FSP and fail to produce food. Do we want to such people to sue Govt when they fail provide themselves with food? Doesnt Govt currently give free food where justifiable to people under disaster management? ZEC! SATA will never be President.
If there is one thing I credit Levy with failure, it is the constitution. My expectations were so high and I thought the constitution was going to be Levy’s legacy especially so that hwas a lawyer. For he failed to guide this nation despite his being a lawyer and all this mess we see now is as a result of Levy’s failure to handle the bull by its horns. He became a cadre and relegated this mammoth task to partisan politics.
What we need is not necessarily changing the whole constitution but the electoral process. The rest of the Constitution making process can be delt with and completed without (much) panicking within parliament when need arise. Period. Alot of tax payers money will have been saved by the time the new constitution is approved through a ballot. But first we need a good electoral process that will empower a GOVERMENT CHOSEN BY THE PEOPLE FOR THE PEOPLE.