Bwana Mkubwa PF Member of Parliament DR Jonas Chanda says rigging elections is not as easy as the UPND is claiming, and he had since urged the opposition party to embrace the cost saving decision that government has made to print ballot papers locally.
And Chanda says the decision is in line with Zambia’s sovereignty and also based on national security.
Speaking when he featured on a Radio Christian Voice Chat Back programme yesterday, Chanda said it was embarrassing that 54 years after independence, Zambia still did not have the capacity to print its own ballot papers.
He said the fears of rigging by the ruling party were baseless because it was possible for the PF to lose power even if ballot papers were printed locally.
“Let’s give credit where it is due. President Kaunda and UNIP got power in 1964. By 1991 when Zambia went back to multi-party democracy, ballot papers were printed here in Lusaka. UNIP which was in power then printed ballot papers and lost that election. They lost by 80 per cent. So, where was the rigging? Why didn’t UNIP rig? We had president Rupiah Banda in 2011, when PF came to power. President Banda and his government were in charge of the electoral system. He conceded power and handed over to president Sata. Where were the issues of rigging?” he asked.
“There were no issues of rigging you see that? Now rigging has become a new trend under our colleagues the opposition UPND. If you look at UPND from the time they started losing, they have lost so many times I lost count of how many times they have lost. But every time they complain of rigging. Ok nangu waba fye weka pa calo, ninshi rigging yali ku konkafye weka ai (does rigging follow the UPND only?) You see the problem is that even if they talk about rigging. They fail to present the evidence. Let us not accept these simplistic stories of rigging. Rigging is not easy, it is complex. That is why we have had ruling parties losing to opposition parties. And if those guys want to be in power let them focus on selling themselves to the Zambian people.”
Chanda said printing ballot papers in Zambia was about sovereignty.
“It is so sad that 54 years after independence we can argue over that kind of issue. Just two weeks ago Sierra Leon in Africa which came out of a brutal ten year civil war had elections, and guess where the ballot paper were printed? Liberia a month before came from a brutal war with very weak institutions and a smaller economy than Zambia, guess where their ballot papers are printed? In Liberia itself. The same applies for Somalia. Can those people tell me which country prints ballots outside their boarders?” Chanda asked.
“The problem that we have in Zambia is that we have too much negative energy. As long as it doesn’t come from me, it doesn’t benefit me or my party therefore I have to oppose. What we call throwing the baby with the bathe water. We cannot do that. So, the issue of printing ballot papers in Zambia is not even a debatable issue. It is a sovereignty issue, it is a national security issue. If you are going to print ballot papers in South Africa, Dubai, America you will finish the world printing your ballot papers.”
He said printing ballot papers abroad was not only costly but a sign that the country was disorganised.
“Apart from it being a very expensive exercise, it is also an issue showing that the country is so disorganised. Remember there was a company Universal Printers in South Africa. These guys that are crying used to go there, make a lot of allowances, and do all the shopping in Johannesburg. When the ballot papers come here [they claimed that] the elections have been rigged. [They said] no, we need to change now from South Africa to Dubai. So we went to Dubai where there were even better shops than in Johannesburg. The same people went to get allowances. Some of them came fat when they were arriving at the airport. Ba ile na malnutrition, ba bwela na bena,” charged Chanda.
“So, weather you print outside its rigging, you print in Zambia its rigging. I should mention that from 1964 up to 1991, ballot papers were always printed in Zambia. It was when MMD came in to power in 1996, that’s when they started this exercise of printing ballot papers out there. And that problem has actually cost us a lot of problems. Because we don’t know what’s happening outside the country. Now here we are saying, if ballot papers are printed in Zambia you know the location. If you want you can take your mattress, start sleeping there so that you monitor that there is no rigging.”
Sometimes it is better to shut up than yap nonsense if you have nothing better to say.
Rigging is real! The various petitions in the last general elections tell a gloomy story
Chanda is spot on. Did pf rigg to win in 2011? The problem with upnd is that they are all insane. Repeating the same thing over and over while expecting a different result. Overhaul your leadership and you will start winning.
I agree with Sunday’s brother.
Sovereignty.
How dare he compares Kaunda to Lungu.
Stop telling lies. PF wants to hang on to power. They know they will be jailed if they lose.
I pray zambia finds a good leader soon. Not this Lungu and HH nonsense
Let’s roll … we will the next ballot papers printed at Government Printers the rightful place for them to be printed from.
No shopping sprees for losers, go shopping on your own terms not using tax payers cash.
@ PF d!ck head
How your protection of “sovereignty” stands against disposal of National Assets to the citizens of new colonial empire?
PF has not up to now told the Nation what unauthorised CHAVULA was doing in the ECZ election counting office, if he was not there for rigging purposes then why was he there. People should refuse to have ballots printed in the PF back yard. This will be a recipe for massive rigging.
Well spoken ba Chanda.
The fear of rigging is not the real thing here. It is the FEAR of loosing. If it is so easy to rig it is also easy to stop it. Further more, the ones thinking of rigging all the time, why don’t they rig instead? Fear of the unknown at play.
Only those who control the police can rig….ndc supporters were hacked at central police in front of police who were watching…..who controls the police ?
You can not print ballot papers locally where there is only pf cader rule…..when even opposition supporters are hacked with pangas at central police station in front of police by PF ……what chance is there that the same PF caders will not take over printing ?? No one can stop them…..opposituon do not accept this.
It will cost zambia more to print ballot papers abroad but that is price the country must pay for PF bogus corrupt democracy where their caders rule with impunity…..you see a flow chart of a country ruled by a corrupt leadership who will do anything to stay in power always leads to the country losing. That flow chart only shows Benifits for the corrupt in power while the majority lose out.
@ Carlos it is better to shut up yourself.
Mr chanda you havent explained how printing ballot papers has anything whatsoever to do with sovereignty. How can anyone let alone, a learned Dr. link printing to sovereignty. England’s sovereignty must now be non existent because they are having their passports printed in france. Silly nonsense Dr chanda
Printing ballots domestically makes sense. First, it is about ownership of the process. If you own something, then you exercise control without seeking permission. For instance, you can work overtime. Second, it is about funding. When work is done locally, local borrowing can prove economical in comparison to external borrowing. Third, it is about keeping jobs. There is no point in exporting jobs instead of importing jobs. Why waste machinery and idle labor? Four, it is about national image. A positive attitude builds a good image for the country. Why remain the underdog that can never grow up and do things for yourself as a country. Five, it is about self reliance. There is no need to depend on others. They can let you down. It is better for you to let yourself down.
We all know about self reliance , keeping jobs…..bla bla but we are saying PF caders control the police and do as they pleas , so who will stop them taking over the printing process ??
THOSE OF YOU WHO WERE SMALL BY THAT TIME, NO ONE NEW HOW TO RIG BECAUSE WE WERE UNDER ONE PARTY LEADERSHIP. PEOPLE REVOLTED TO REMOVE KK BECAUSE OF HIS LONG TERM BY-AIR
Printing ballot papers will help retain our sovereignty, then turns around and sells huge tracks of land to foreigners lol!!