The Electoral Commission of Zambia says the cost of holding parliamentary bye elections varies depending on the location and the size of the constituency.
ECZ Director Priscilla Isaacs said the Commission does not spend anything less than K 5 billion in running a bye election.
Ms. Isaacs said the recent Lukulu West and Kapiri constituency bye elections cost the Commission a whopping K 11 billion.
She said June 20 Feira bye election will gobble another whopping K 7.7 billion.
“For June 20, we are also doing eleven ward bye elections and the cost is around K 7.7 billion unrebased, the cost varies per constituency but we don’t spend anything less than K 5 billion,” she said.
Mrs. Isaacs was speaking in Lusaka when the ECZ hosted a media luncheon for Journalists drawn from different parts of the country.
At the same event, ECZ Spokesman Chris Akufuna revealed that the Commission has set July 25 2013 as the date for the four bye elections in Solwezi East, Kafulafuta, Chipata Central and Mkushi North.
Ok iliko bad but again i wouldnt worry much about it coz that money is budgeted for.
imagin how much that money can do……
Can you show us the budget line for this expenditure? And please tell us how many bye elections were budgeted for and how much was reserved for this?
Imagine! thats just those 3 bye elections lukulu, kapiri, and feira…altogether k18,7 billiion
you still have to add on 4 more bye election namely solwezi east, chipata central, kafulafuta and mkushi north…how much will it be??!! then someone is talking cheap about subsidies…stupid..kupusa!
In any case DEMOCRACY IS EXPENSIVE!!! But this is the model of government we overwhelmingly chose in 1992. We should fully follow its tenets!!
Unless we want to revert to the ONE PARTY system, we should continue with elections and by- whenever and wherever possible!!
Its god that these are in fact budge for. Our constitution provides for them. So whenever an MP dies, resigns, defects we must continue holding by-elections to replace them. Viva democracy viva!!
YES! democracy is expense.. but inducing bye elections just because democracy is expense is insane! stupid!,, kupusa!
@Honestly, Is this what the country needs? This is corruption. Sata is using taxpayers money to bribe immoral MPs to crossover to his PF so that he appoints them Deputy Ministers with all the trappings of office like an official car, 800 litres of fuel per month and protection from prosecution if they have any cases before the courts! And Zambians are paying for all this with high prices of almost everything because Sata has to raise money to sustain his corruption. And is this the rubbish you want to pretend people overwhelmingly chose in 1991? You are an id.iot without any morals!
Zambians have to see from where we are coming from to where we are going!
Surely Sata will be shot and hanged on display in front of Statehouse! If people are doubting look at the greatness of the current anger towards Sata & his PF corrupt leaders
NO MATTER WHAT PF Moron Chimpanzee WRITE HERE NOR THEIR PROPAGANDA, Sata wont be saved! Sata is already gone!
Zambia is not Barotseland where Sata ordered soldiers to go & shoot people! Zambia is a land where evil UNIP Dictator Kaunda was overthrown despite him using soldiers who turned against him & almost killed him in Ndola in 1990
If Sata had a high IQ & had intelligent advisers, he could have read mood of Zambians & what removed Kaunda!
Sata & PF are goners! He is dead! He just cannot survive not this year!
you sound ignorant!
bukala bwenu father.
Are you real?
Honestly is just reminding everyone of the reality that democracy is expensive. When you opted for it in 1991 you should have realised this. Kaunda used the argument of expense and bloodshed to do away with multipartism. The US pays a lot to maintain its democracy including a big army police intelligence. Sata isn’t doing anything illegal by poaching MPs. Like any capitalist he just wants his assets to grow
@sobelenge, get yourself some civility! The money set aside in the national budget for by-elections is meant for eventualities such as the death of an MP, its not for conducting elections for the same individuals who have been lured to the other side of the political divide. When are we surely going to wake up? How much are we willfully putting to waste? And we expect to make meaningful progress towards the attainment of the MDGs and the Vision 2030.. Doesn’t make economic sense to remove 16% fuel subsidy at once, maize subsidy…only to finance by-elections!
Ubupuba,that is why muli nchushi because you support amafi.
Imagine the amount of medicines that could be provided to hospitals with this kind of money! Pathetic Fools!
But that’s why I suggested that the PF govt establish a ministry of By-Elections, coz this is what constitutes their core business! And look at that budget – we could’ve built and properly equipped another health centre with it, or bought at least 60 tractors for our farmers!!!
NEXT POTATO CUTS PROTEST!!! THIS ZOMBIE HAS GONE FAR,,,ITS ABOUT TIME WE STOP THIS STUPIDITY!!!
@NTombo, in fact its actually about time you stopped your stupidity!!
@HONESTLY
KUPUSA IWE MWANA WA GALU!
Guy, what happened to issues-based debate?
This is sick, given that Zambia has alot of problems when we talk about chawama etc..this is not human … again elections be it the ruling party at the moment and the formers once they are all the same story to me.
This is the price we have to pay for unfortunately for embracing democracy.To avoid this expenditure the opposition should not be taking part so that the ruling party candidates goes through unopposed.This can save us some few kwacha`s.All we go back to a one party state or even dictatorship. It is that simple.I repeat….democracy is not cheap !!!!!
This is the price we have to pay for unfortunately for embracing democracy.To avoid this expenditure the opposition should not be taking part so that the ruling party candidates goes through unopposed.This can save us some few kwacha`s.Or we go back to a one party state or even dictatorship. It is that simple.I repeat….democracy is not cheap !!
Dont be dull as usual; why can’t pf refuse the defecting mps from standing on their ticket so that they send a strong message to would be defectors. What we see is the SG of the party going to dance with the defectors and calling on more defectors and the so called HEMCS then appointing them to the overbloated Cabinet or whatever you may term it….is that what you mean by democracy being expensive. Please try to use some logic even if you are one hardcore cadre or maybe you are ***** George Chella or even Fred ‘the muttonhead’ membe or big bum Mutembo
This is how sick our Country has gone. So now by elections are going to cost the Country more, much more than a general election. And some lunatic with dementia insults people’s intelligence by says they have budgeted for this rate of expenditure. The bare fact here is that these by-elections have now become a smoke screen for big organised thefts of the Country’s treasury by selfish individuals entrusted to spearhead development.
@ Ndobo, just debate don’t insult your friend! STAY IN NEW YORK!! AS ALL!!
@ngoni
donot be selective, read everything in posting including my reaction then adivise everyone involved better or even react,, donot cherry pick!
More money in their pockets! power is sweet, it’s about time the ordinary citizen realised their power and influence in voting for these id10ts. Collectively, we can claim our country back
YAABA, THESE PF (PATHETIC FOOLS) MUST BE STOPPED AT ALL COSTS. THEY ARE A WORST OF ZAMBIA’S RESOURCES. AM A VERY STONGE SUPPORTER OF MR SATA BUT HE HAS GONE TOO FAR
YAABA, THESE PF (PATHETIC FOOLS) MUST BE STOPPED AT ALL COSTS. THEY ARE A WORST OF ZAMBIA’S RESOURCES. AM A VERY STONGE SUPPORTER OF MR SATA BUT HE HAS GONE TOO FAR. THE OLD MAN HAS STOPPED THINKING
YAABA, THESE PF (PATHETIC FOOLS) MUST BE STOPPED AT ALL COSTS. THEY ARE A WORST OF ZAMBIA’S RESOURCES. AM A VERY STONGE SUPPORTER OF MR SATA BUT HE HAS GONE TOO FAR
Morons Ass Lovers how on earth can any right thinking patriot support wat this govt is doing, this really sucks to my bones. PF is a team of morons who are infesting on our hard earned paye fools
Spending so much money just to put one Fo.ol in parliament so that he can doze during sittings and later get his allowances and gratuity!!!!! This is so f.o.olish
Zambians have to see from where we are coming from to where we are going!
Surely Sata will be shot and hanged on display in front of Statehouse! If people are doubting look at the greatness of the current anger towards Sata & his PF corrupt leaders
NO MATTER WHAT PF Moron Chimpanzee WRITE HERE NOR THEIR PROPAGANDA, Sata wont be saved! Sata is already gone!
Zambia is not Barotseland where Sata ordered soldiers to go & shoot people! Zambia is a land where evil UNIP Dictator Kaunda was overthrown despite him using soldiers who turned against him & almost killed him in Ndola in 1990
If Sata had a high IQ & had intelligent advisers, he could have read mood of Zambians & what removed Kaunda!
Sata & PF are goners! He is dead! He just cannot survive not this year!
I SUBMIT- INDEED YOU ARE AN AS5 H0LE! DON’T ABUSE THIS SITE WITH YOUR HATE AND TRIBALISM!!
#11.1
You are a Zombie Chimpanzee with a very low IQ like Sata & Kabimba who tells lies like they are telling a new born babe!
Just like evil sadist Sata, u are allergic to criticism!
Sata uses soldiers or whatever, he wont survive in Statehouse but his shot hanged body will be put on display like the way the body of Dictator Samuel Doe of Liberia was displayed!
U want or u do not want Sata & all his PF govt leaders wont survive they will definitely be HANGED BY Hungry Angry Zambians!
God forgive me for voting for PF, im very sorry.
People are dying and starving, I was at UTH last night and people patients brought to the emergence room are sleeping on the floor-imagine how many hospital beds you can buy from that money….. hospitals have no medicines, fuel and food prices are going up and this useless government i voted for is wasting money. Shame on you Sata and you friend for telling us lies
These By-elections are really costing money. meanwhile CNP Ukwa is busy removing subsidies ati costly whilst at the same time inducing by-elections.
popularity will not keep them in governance, in fact they becoming unpopular each day! we thought we had a leader, instead a dictator! now that things are okay with him, he has forgotten people that rose up as early as 03:00 to line in order to give him a place in the white house. when they say things are not okay, he orders arrest-WHY?
The only people that follows his orders are the police, he gave a directive to millers, they mocked at him- cant you see that something is wrong!
we will give no chance, not again!
mufumbwe+mpongwe+livingstone*2+chongwe+lukulu+kapiri+canel lungu+chipata central+faira+taima+itezi tezi+mukush=??????
Hi my dear, General Elections, Parliamentary Elections, Local Govt Elections and yes, BY-ELECTIONS are part of a system called DEMOCRACY!!!!!!!!!!!
Any way, I like your name! suggesting that you are a gentleman! Not the gentle koswes and tribalists like SHAKA OZs. Its our country lets criticise, but also give credit where its due. This is IMPORTANT!
@Patriotic act
The point is, General elections, bye elections or any other constitutional elections are not a problem here…
The problem is the stupid PF induced bye elections which costing poverty stricken zambians their life blood.. you understand???
A single by-eRection can finance construction of a maternity wing at some clinic in Chitulika village of Mpika district in Muchinga Province!
No priorities.
This is not the price of democracy! It is the price of the self-centredness and retrogressive behaviour of a few people AND A MINDLESS & IMPOTENT FATHER!
Shame on Dandy Crazy for campaining that Ubufi was acceptable . . .we are reaping the consequences.
READING THIS AND YOUR COMMENTS ONLY MAKES ME MORE ANGRY WITH MYSELF. ALL I CAN SAY FOR NOW IS THAT GOD IS WATCHING AND WILL SURELY SET US FREE SOON.
It is true, God is watching and i know he will restore our lives and dignity that are being brought down by Sata and his old friends. Let us pray for a miracle, God is able, he will give us a true leader
Its sad that such amounts are being spent on such things, when there places where police officers have no houses. anyway its more money thats the price Zambian will have to pay for new until there eyes are opened. Donchi Kubeba mwelalelalela
A standard block with 3 classrooms costs K250m.A bye election that costs K7billion translates into 28 blocks or 84 classrooms which can accommodate 7,560 pupils by double session.So I now understand why people are complaining about bye elections. Do the democratic rights of one MP who defects out weigh the right to education of 7,560 children. Do MPs do such calculations when they defect. Why should we budget for selfish individuals in the name of democratic rights when thousands of our people need education and health facilities.Lets observe rights in the context of the poverty our levels and prioritise expenditure.
Your assessment is emprical and emphantic. the problem we have in Zambia is people thinking about themselves more than anything else. its sad. whose gonna save us we sinking in this boat called Satanic just like the titanic
Hence the need to increase taxing the poor to fund the by election. PF keep up the good works
We have an I.D.I.O.T as a president!
I understand the concerns about money spent. I want to remind the readers that this is not a loose loose situation . Some of that money ends up spent on these local economies. This is fortunate for them because they would have never got such a direct injection of funds in there communities. Bana Mulenga gets to sell her katata.
Zamule. I bet you between 50% to 60% of these costs are personnel costs and the remaining is logistics. To add on to bana Mulenga’s joy others build mansions in Lusaka! How I wish our journalists could have pushed her to break down the costs.
Funding lazy men to sleep in parliament !!! Zed has a lot of money, the problem is management and proper people who can sacrifice for the country. We are not even ashamed when we compare our management to our neighbors.If you look at tourism in comparison to neighbors its a cry,as if we do not have the victoria falls.
Honestly is just reminding everyone of the reality that democracy is expensive. When you opted for it in 1991 you should have realised this. Kaunda used the argument of expense and bloodshed to do away with multipartism. The US pays a lot to maintain its democracy including a big army police intelligence. Sata isn’t doing anything illegal by poaching MPs. Like any capitalist he just wants his assets to grow
Democracy has only become expensive with your id.iot as President. It was never expensive with the past Presidents before this muppet of yours. Stop justifying stup.dity and dictatorship!
The sad part of these by-elections is that President Sata won’t be arrested for this, when he leaves offices because By-elections are constitutionally enshrined. Democracy at its best. Nikulimba chabe
Raw figures could distort the meaning of holding bye elections in Zambia. Democracy without free and fair elections is inconceivable. Therefore, cost in itself can not disallow democratic practices. It would be better to compare how many bye elections are taking place in countries in similar circumstances here in Africa and other parts of the world. If you look at great democracies, including Japan and Italy, you will discover that cost of one impeachment is higher than all parliamentary bye elections combined. Secondly, dictatorships spend a lot more dealing with effects of dictatorship, including violence and war.
and your point is??
dont give those text book theories and explanation from mugabe unversity…poor zambians need solutions on the ground not those `roundus` explanations… get to the real point!!compare apples with apples… not zambian mangoes with italian grapes!!
Honestly is just reminding everyone of the reality that democracy is expensive. When you opted for it in 1991 you should have realised this. Kaunda used the argument of expense and bloodshed to do away with multipartism. The US pays a lot to maintain its democracy including a big army police intelligence. Sata isn’t doing anything illegal by poaching MPs. Like any capitalist he just wants his assets to grow
Can ECZ also tell us how much the total is that has been spent so far in these bye elections and the breakdown of each bye elections, these MP’s should be made to pay back the Zambian tax payers money back.
So ECZ spends more than $1 000 000 dollars, 1 million dollars on one bye election, that’s just unacceptable.
yaba vibantu ivi nivo funta this is just poor evil zambians please wake up from this slumber you are in these people will destroy and are destroying this country please wake up
chimbwi plan yasila aza vuta if a dog has lost its use what do you do
At the rate we are going there wont be any opposition MPs by time elections are called. To be honest some of us are getting tired and sick of hearing about by elections everyday. Just how many members of parliament does PF need to pass legislation etc. I thought they already had enough. I mean they passed to remove the immunity of the former president on their own. Hence logic would dictate that they would pass anything they want. But I fear that the reason for these stupid by elections is to create a one party state or something akin to it. The MPs don’t give a damn about their constituencies only about themselves. Politics is sick pa Zed. We need people of integrity running the affairs of the nation.
The problem is the corrupt fools people voted for as MPS. How do you just to move to another party whose idealogies are not the same as your own party? No common sense at all. In the old days we were taught that a human had 5 senses, but going by what is going on in Zambia I disagree. Most of the Zed politicians do not even have one sense. The chaps are senseless and it is for this reason they behave like crocodiles eat and eat. Can you imagine someone saying “we all in Govt to eat” Chi Mukombwe chi chi color. These guys must just go out rather today than 2016
You knew exactly what you getting when you voted PF into forming government. A leopard does not change its spots neither can you force a horse to drink water nor teach an old dog new tricks. Get used to it and grit your teeth. Zambia was sold on the cheap by Chiluba and now it’s being raped by Sata. Round of applause ladies & gentlemen!!!
~~confused.moc?
I just wonder what in the hell the Military are wainting for. Makanduleni Sata onono, muto lele nshi? aswepo mungwela
You knew exactly what you getting when you voted PF into forming government. A leopard does not change its spots neither can you force a horse to drink water nor teach an old dog new tricks. Get used to it and grit your teeth. Zambia was sold on the cheap by Chiluba and now it’s being raped by Sata. Round of applause ladies & gentlemen!!!
~~confused.moc?
Induced by elections are a wasteful way of using our resources. The same applies to the big number of deputy ministers.
country needs prayers that expenditure for someone to sleep in parliament
how can the country develop with such kind of wasteful spending, people need
to wake you can’t be voting every times, every month, when is it time to enjoy the vote.
True a cost benefit analysis is needed on all those MP’s that have caused these by elections, 1 million US dollars that is 5 billion unrebased plus monthly salary and benefits versus value that they have brought to their constituency and the country at large. They need to be made to pay back the Zambian tax payers money.
True a cost benefit analysis is needed on all those MP’s that have caused these by elections, 1 million US dollars that is 5 billion unrebased plus monthly salary and benefits versus value that they have brought to their constituency and the country at large They need to be made to pay back the Zambian tax payers money
These BYE elections are a cause of removal of subsidy. do not be cheated that the funds are budget for. Why not spend those funds to build hostels for students? Its CNP I have no respect for PF. You blame students for boycotting.
Here is an idea for us to save all these billions being spent on by-electons in Zambia. This is from the UK example (I am not saying we should simply copy it, but it is worth thinking about) Thus, according to the UK parliamentary rules;
“A by-election does not automatically take place if an MP changes political party.
Until a new MP is elected, constituency matters are handled by an MP of the same party in a neighbouring constituency.” … end of quote –
What do you think? Especially in regard to the greedy unprincipled defecting vulture MPs in Zambia, at the moment.
This is a brilliant idea.
Iwe chi Ndobo ytou are over 60 and you enjoy trading insults with kids What kind of man r u? And u say u r married What kind of children do u bring up?
Go say that to SATA my insult Prof. i `passed` with flying colours from his class.
Only a person without mental ability would think that SUBSIDIES which are budgeted for can be removed and BYE-ELECTION claimed to be budgeted for cannot be removed. This shows how hollow our leaders are.
Not less than 5 billion to hold any by election!One does not need to be an economist to realise how misplaced priorities are.A waste of resources and even human resources in case of the livingstone incident still fresh in our minds.In Germany ,one of the richest economies ,the run up automatically becomes the next mp if you like should the sitting one relinquish his/her seat.Andyou still wonder why the majority of our people still wallow in the mud of abject material poverty?
ZAMBIANS DEBATE WISELY THAN INSULTING ONE ANOTHER. FACT OF THE MATTER IS THAT THE BY-ELECTIONS ARE EXPENSIVE, MISUSE OF RESOURCES, ON THE EXPENSE OF POOR ZAMBIANS. OUR LEADERS ARE NOT BEING FAIR TO POOR ZAMBIANS. THEY ARE BEING-IRRESPONSIBLE, VERY SAD THAT THE PRESIDENT IS ENCOURAGE THIS. IT WILL HATE HIM AS A LEADER.
you see how much money you are wasting bakolwe..
Is this K rebased or just K? cos I can’t believe zambia has $2 Billion to spend on an election. The numbers don’t add up. What ever the amount, it will add up in the end to a ridiculous amount if we are going to have by elections every month. May be the fees for the candidates should be raised to cover the cost. The parties have to also foot part of the bill. This will be a deterrence for unnecessary by-elections. We need the money for social programs.
I like Harold Muna’s idea
ECZ is not being honest. Feira constituency is such a small constituency that should cost K7.7Bn. That place only has a population of just over 34,000 people. The surface area is not as big and people all settle along the road apart from Mburuma and Mphuka’s area and Kavalamanja and Kaunga which are off the road. ECZ do steal money anyhow.