The Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) says the political violence being experienced in the country can degenerate into chaos and create an atmosphere of fear and intimidation among voters.
LAZ president George Chisanga said this therefore calls for institutions charged with the responsibility of maintaining law and order to control the situation.
Mr. Chisanga said it was undeniable that all forms of electoral malpractices, including violence, fear and intimidation, have the potential to take credibility and honour out of an electoral process.
He has since called on the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to convene an urgent meeting of political parties participating in the forthcoming presidential elections to resolve the problem of electoral violence.He said the meeting must be attended by LAZ, the Inspector General of Police, members of civil society and the church adding that all these institutions should be on hand to offer counsel needed to address the scourge.
Mr. Chisanga stated in a statement to ZANIS today that the violence threatens to undermine the very essence of a free, fair and credible election.
He said the matter requires urgent attention by all stakeholders.
He further said it was manifestly clear that the lawlessness being exhibited by the cadres of the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) and the opposition United Party for National Development (UPND) was on the upswing despite the efforts employed by the leadership of the two parties to stem the hideous acts.
The LAZ president noted with concern that despite the parties leadership condemning the reported violence in Shiwang’andu and Mongu and calling on the cadres to be civil during campaigns, the advice has not been heeded.
Mr. Chisanga said it was unfortunate that the cadres have remained resolute in their quest to employ violence and hate speech as the modus operandi for campaigning for their respective candidates.
He said the news of the serious injuries suffered by a named UPND cadre at the hands of a named PF cadre in Mongu has brought to the fore the urgent need to have a national response to acts of violence.
The culprits are UPND because they always provoke the PF, they are the ones to throw the first blow!!! Many a time PF cadres have indeed turn the other cheek only on few occasions have some overzealous comrades used excessive force in defending themselves. Still let peace prevail and to the PF family lets not be like UPND that always seek blood, we are well and truelly on our way to winning the elections so lets not give these satanic crybabies anymore reason to complain!!!
January 21, it will be announced…Edgar Lungu is leading in the elections
January 23/24 it will be announced…Edgar Lungu has won the elections
By the first week of February it will be announced…HH has resigned as UPND president..
****VIVA EDGAR LUNGU 2015 AND 2016****
UPND often provoke PF and when PF retaliates they cry foul accusing PF of being violent. These characters think they can foool Zambians into thinking they(UPND) are peaceful and PF is violent. Ifintu ni Lungu !!
The selective amnesia that the PF cadres in this blog display is sickening. There are so many examples of PF violence especially in the last 3 years. In case you need reminders-Remember PF cadres storming a church and beating worshippers praying over the subsidy removal? Remember the killing of a PF cadre by his fellow PF cadre in Livingstone and the blame being heaped on PF till evidence showed otherwise? ..Why am I wasting time trying to put sense into heads that clearly do not have capacity to comprehend!
It is so nauseating that PF cadres can come and defecate their nonsense on this forum. To claim that UPND is provoking PF is madness. PF is panga family, the violence in PF is unprecedented. Attacking a former first lady, attacking a female former deputy speaker of the national assembly….what kind of men attack women with such impunity…that is PF for you. Vote HH 2015
PF MISCREANTS BE WARNED.
PF minions be warned, that UPND and indeed Zambia has had enough of your silly violent acts.
Any attempt by PF to commit violent acts against UPND or any Zambian will be met with twice the force.
So please try to control your PF miscreants not force UPND to hit back because its gonna be ugly and indeed very ugly.
UPND has tried hard to follow the law by reporting all acts of violence to the police but it seems they are not punishing PF miscreants enough to control their appetite for violence.
Just know that any violent act will be not tolerated from now on.
Mwajila ba chimbwi imwe moona monga UPND is weak.
Mwanya ni bwela ku Zed next week to take charge.
We will take pictures of all violent PF acdres using stealth button cameras for…
***** BREAKING NEWS*****
The PF and MMD have this evening almagamated without notifying Dr Mumba.
The new party will still be headed by EL the aspiring candidate for the 2016 presidential election.
The new party will be known as MMD-PF or:-
Movement for Multiparty Destruction using Panga Family
I know that PF miscreants will misunderstand my message as revenge using violent means. BIG N.O
Ask your selves why stealth button cameras? We are smart. We are not going to engage in barbaric acts of revenge. Digital blacklisting using social media will come in handy for us.
Digital blacklisting on social media and you tube is just the best way to expose these PF miscreants to the rest of the world so that, any attempts for them to get visas and travel abroad will be difficult for them.
PF miscreants ‘s images will be splashed all over social media and youtube so that the relatives of the victims can identify them and deal with them in their own way and time.
Stealth button cameras already in Zambia will be set to upload videos and pictures onto social media live.
Its good LAZ are also endorsing HH.
But that Imbwa-e, former PF deputy minister li savage imwe… the way he walked through the crowd to go a “kill” his neighbor!?
Wow, Zambia in the sun. As we used to say.
you LAZ chaps,,,, why dont call a HH and lungu especially,,,, let them take oath against violence before a judge,,,,,and call a doctor to check them….,,,, beer in the kidneys can make people to be violent mwe!!
PF is known for both intra and inter-party violence. PF is the mot violent party in Zambia today. Come January 20 PF wawa.
@Nyau – Don’t stop saying it! You know it says everything in one sentence. Add the head shake and heavy sigh for greater effect.
@Ndobo – there’s one other substance check that should be done…no you’re right…that would chill them out. Let the Green Party chair the talks and pass round the pipe of peace.
I remember ECZ asking to be given powers to disqualify violent parties from participating in elections – guess which party opposed the suggestion? Its PF.
That was the best slogan for Zambia. It evokes everything good of Zambia.
The new one; Zambia, The Real Africa is bland and had been around before we stole it.
Zambia in a The Sun. Best!
@Nyau – and roasting your brains in the scorching sun like a lizard singing ” Zambia in sun” When the brains have reached boiling point then you go and eat a chi Nshima to finish you off!
ha ha! Mrs Wonder my dear, if you cook the nshima, I will bring the fresh pumpkin leaves along with the ground groundnuts so we can have a nshima party, you and me.
PF has killed, murdered, maimed and hacked each other before, nothing will change with PF. Can a leopard change its colours?
Zambians! wake up and claim your peaceful nation, vote for change, vote for rule of law, vote for credible leadership.
Mr.Chisanga don’t be st.up.id,ok!When did UPND cadres attack any of the political opponents since they started campaigning?
Who has been killing fellow cadres from the time Sata was alive?
Who went through a bitter split during the election of the presidential candidate and why did Scott,Sampa and others run away from mulungushi during the violent conference?All because of violence from pf.It’s insult for you to compare your violent and tribal and disorganised pf to peaceful well organised UPND.
If you a a paid pf cadre ,better shut your beak.
The LAZ statement is the right one and needs to be supported by all law abiding citizens. The only problem is that the LAZ have kept quiet for too long on the issue of political violence it, they should have been the first to come out long time ago.
There is no doubt that there are Zambians for and others against violence. The MP who organised the attack on the helicopter is without doubt a violent man and has many admirers like the LT blogger who yesterday supported and justified his (MP’s) action.
The LAZ has an important duty to lead and interpret what the law says in such matters.
Beautifully put. Let sanity prevail. I am just thinking we are in silly season so a lot of the brains have gone on vacation and desperation bred by paranoia becomes the order of the day. Something so simple becomes complicated because a fickle leader wants to look good to his violent cadres.
Error in 1st paragraph, the ‘it’ after the word violence should not be there at all.
PF is a loser…..viva HH 20 January 2015 come in numbers…
Listen to this…
Grade 9 results have been delayed to be published because PF and ka Lungu will be De-campaigned by the farmers who have not yet been paid their dues by FRA.
Farmer: No that the Grade 9 results are out how do you expect me to send children to school without money?
Lungu: Just chill, buy a small kajilili we discus this matter.
Farmer: How you PF danderhead?
Lungu: I will pay in arrears after the elections mwana, just vote for me….
Farmer: Oohh so this is the gimmick….nkani iyo mwe yumvwa??
VOTE HH VOTE UPND….2015
Mr Phiri mudala, thanks. I will. But I think we agree this kind of thing should not be allowed to stand. Societies that descend into anarchy usually start this way. A few baboons decide to settle disagreements with violence and it’s downhill all the way from there.
Edgar himself got the presidency thru violence and intimidation with the help of his clowns. Can he and his friends condemn violence in ernest? I doubt very much
@Mwansa
I don’t think it is a good enough excuse it continues
As a point of correction. Lungu is Legally elected and that was the judgement of the High Court of Zambia, even the Supreme Court of Zambia held that ruling. If you believe in the rule of Law (which you clearly do not), since you condone violence, you should, uphold the decision of the highest courts of our land and STOP alleging Lungu is unlawfully President of PF.
I have been suspicious of LAZ and their loyaltieS.
This statement has bias against PF. It really reads in-between the lines that PF are the major cause, which is untrue.
UPND has carried out the acts of intimidation by turning up to at least two PF Campaign areas on the day PF were campaigning. That is just ridiculous. In order for the police to be present at clashes they need to know where Parties are potentially going to clash. UPND has repeatedly failed to give notice and have caused PF to fight their right to campIgn, which UPND should gave ended by now as they begun earlier.
UPND also use various Online outlets to bad mouth PF. ZWD, MUVI are all running negative propaganda against PF. This needs to stop and HH should be carpeted. Citizens NOT voteHH.
Can you explain the PF intra-party violence along the Lusaka airport during which a PF cadre was hacked to death and recently PF cadres targeted Miles Sampa’s (PF MP & Minister) Metro cabs for simply contesting the PF presidency, and as you should be aware the list on PF violence goes on and on.
@patriot abroad
I think you are 4 times mad than Kudos. Your are what @Sara would call a mythomaniac.
PF is a violent party period. They will have to deal with it seriously otherwise it will cause their downfall.
Zambia is a peaceful nation and this PF want compromise just for a 1 yr 6 month mandate.
Ba UPND mwilayamba ulubuli amaka ngatamwakwata ifwe tukalaminayafye pantu. Stop provoking PF and they will leave you alone. If you can`t take the heat don`t frequent the kitchen.
The Police Commissioner in Mongu should just be fired. These women are just a let down. You can’t allow this type of lawlessness in a country.
This PF faggots are using the same method they used during their convention at Mulungushi; why is the police command allowing this nonsense?
May be we should ask the army to help this Sata’s niece.
Confidence in IG person Stella Libongani – Zero! She could at least speak to her paymasters and tell them she’s beginning to look reallly bad, could they please halt the planned violence?
Her future is nil to zero after this. No press conference to even pretend to care.
I have absolutely no regard for this woman.
Violence culture of political nature was born,nurtured and educated at PF panga University.
Lets reject PF ,its candidate and all its opportunistic minions.
NAKONDE ELECTION POLLING STAFFS PUT THE ACCOUNTANT TO TASK OVER K200 BEING PAID AS SITTING ALLOWANCE.
About 308 election staffs in Nakonde this afternoon took the ECZ Ac
countant to task over the K200 which each of the staff is being paid
per day which they claim was not uniform across the country. The
named polling Assistant asked the accountant to clarify whether the
ECZ’s rates were varying from districts to districts as other polling
assistants in other districts such as Mporokoso were receiving K250
as sitting allowance plus snacks while those from Nakonde District were just being paid K200 plus snacks. She claimed to have received the information on phone from her young sister who is also training as a Polling Assistant.
Yaba, things can get that worse?
I know that the institution charged with responsibility for making laws in Zambia is the the National Assembly. LAZ has no mandate to enact anew law called “political violence”. Laws on lawlessness, violence, carrying offensive weapons, intimidation, roguery, etc etc, already populate our governance systems. LAZ as a statutory institution should be alerting us to the utter failure of state institutions charged with responsibility to oversee orderliness in the Republic of Zambia. All the institutions and individuals in the executive offices, judiciary offices and legislative offices are either corrupt, complicit or incompetent or downright irresponsible!!!!