Leader of the opposition in Parliament Jackie Mwiimbu has vowed that the opposition will block the proposed Constitutional Amendment Bill.
Justice Minister Given Lubinda recently revealed that he will table the Constitutional Amendment Bill when party resumes sitting in June.
But Mr Mwiimbu who is also UPND Monze Central Member of Parliament says the UPND is not going to support any constitutional amendment that will be brought before the floor of the house before the dialogue process is concluded and before the issues are resolved and agreed.
“That is the position of the UPND.If they think they have the numbers, theycan go ahead. But we think we also have the numbers to ensure that this process of constitutional amendment process does not go ahead,” Mr Mwiimbu warned.
Mr Mwiimbu said the PF need two-thirds to pass the constitutional amendment but that the UPND will ensure this does not go ahead in the interest of stakeholders until issues are discussed and agreed.
“Once they are agreed and resolved, we as UPND have no problem in supporting any constitutional amendments that will arise out of the dialogue,” Mr Mwiimbu said.
Below is the full statement issued by Mr Mwiimbu on Friday
FULL STATEMENT OF THE UPND MEDIA BRIEFING BY HON JACK MWIIMBU-LEGAL CHAIRMAN AND LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION IN PARLIAMENT -27.04.2018
Members of the press, you might be aware that on the 27th of March 2018, the minister of Justice issued a statement on the floor of the house giving a roadmap pertaining to the enactment of the constitutional amendment bill 2018 and in that Ministerial statement he indicated what processes the Ministry is going to undertake.
He mentioned that he was going to consult Members of Parliament, Secretary Generals and Presidents of the various political parties before bringing the document to the floor of the house.
It is as a result of this particular statement that I want to make a reaction on behalf of the UPND.
Members of the Press you are aware that there is supposed to be a dialogue process that is supposed to take place in the country pertaining to various issues that have taken place from the time of elections 2016 to date and you are aware that the Commonwealth initiated the dialogue process which was purportedly accepted by the Government Republic of Zambia and this process should have commenced.
Unfortunately,this process appears to have stalled due to the decisions by the Patriotic Front not to accept the Commonwealth to lead this process.
We as UPND have always been for the dialogue as we believe that this is the civilized way of resolving issues that affect the nation.
We have been requesting our colleagues to come on board and dialogue with us on national issues and I would like to confirm that my President Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND have been willing and ready to have a genuine dialogue with all stakeholders in this country.
What has drawn us back is the issue of the proposed Constitutional amendment bill 2018 which the Government intends to lay on the floor of the house and be passed in the month of June.
Members of the Press and the Public, you may be aware that the UPND has raised a number of issues that require to be resolved through a dialogue process and one of the pertinent issues raised that has contributed to the political tension and the problems we are having in the country is the constitution itself.
We strongly believe that it’s only after dialogue and after the issues that require to be placed in the constitution are resolved and agreed, we believe that is the only time a new constitutional amendment bill should be tabled.
A new Constitution amendment bill should arise out of the Consensus that will arise out of the dialogue.
But unfortunately our colleagues have decided to place the constitutional amendment bill before the dialogue commences.
It just shows that there is no political will to have the dialogue.
The pertinent issues, members of the press, members of the public hinge on the constitution of the Republic of Zambia.
You are aware that members of the public and other stakeholders have been raising issues pertaining to the management of the electoral process in this country.
The electoral process today is flawed arising from flawed constitutional provisions .
The electoral provision that relate to the management of elections in this country need to be addressed through a dialogue process.
How now can we sit to table the constitutional amendment bill before issues are agreed upon?
We believe and genuinely so that this can only be done after the dialogue.
You are aware that we have implored major stakeholders in this country to be involved in the process.
We have implored the churches and other major stakeholders to be involved so that when we come up with issues, they will be agreed issues that will be placed in the constitution and that when it is placed before the house, there will be no acrimony because the issues would have been agreed. But as it is, no issues have been agreed.
We take note where the Minister of Justice is saying that on the 12th of June, 2018 he will have a consultative meeting with members of parliament.
12th June is a Tuesday and Parliament will be sitting entailing that the consultative meeting with MPs will take four hours to discuss a very important national issue.
For me this is a mere joke, it’s a way of hoodwinking the public that they are serious with discussing issues of national interest.
It just shows that they are not interested to have a genuine dialogue.
If they are interested in genuine dialogue, let them defer the presentation of the bill in parliament until after the dialogue process is concluded.
I would like to state very categorically that UPND is not going to support any constitutional amendment that will be brought before the floor of the house before the dialogue is concluded and before the issues are resolved and agreed.
That is the position of the UPND.If they think they have the numbers, they can go ahead.
But we think we also have the numbers to ensure that this process of constitutional amendment process does not go ahead.
They need two-thirds to pass the constitutional amendment and we will ensure this does not go ahead in the interest of stakeholders until issues are discussed and agreed.
Once they are agreed and resolved, we as UPND have no problem in supporting any constitutional amendments that will arise out of the dialogue.
It is my considered view that you cannot have a genuine dialogue over a very important national document such as the constitution in four hours or less than 4 hours.
It’s not only one article they intend to amend but various articles that need to be amended.
It’s like they are overhauling the entire constitution.
They are overhauling the entire amended constitution of 2016.
How do you discuss the whole process in 4 hours.
It’s not possible and we are not the only stakeholders anyway.
The most prudent way of resolving this issue is not to publish or gazette the proposed bill.
Take the bill to the members of the public for validation, discussion and dialogue.
And once it’s agreed, it can be taken to parliament.
But before that we will not support it.
You do recall that we went through the same process in 2016.
We advised our colleagues not to go ahead with the constitution.
We had to vote but they proceeded and they were telling us that the constitution will stand the test of time.
Has it stood the test of time, the answer is no.
Within one and half years of the enactment of that constitution, they are now coming out with amendments.
It just shows that the current constitution is flawed because they don’t want to consult the stakeholders.
There are many stakeholders in this case including you the press.
You are the users of that particular constitution and I tend to think that any genuine government is supposed to consult you as the fourth estate.
You are supposed to have an input in this process but you are not being consulted.
If they go ahead and manage to pass it, we will continue having the same problems which we are having now. For me the so called consultative process is not genuine, it’s not prudent.
How can you have a consultative process over the constitution within 4 hours? It’s impossible?
You are aware that this process does not only involve the UPND but other political parties, the three church mother bodies, chiefsand other stakeholders and once the issue of the constitution is presented before them, they can raise issues.
Even currently you are hearing of issues of land where the chiefs are raising issues pertaining to the management of land.
Those are issues which we need to ensure that we scrutinize and include them in the constitution. We will not want to take a process which we know is flawed.
You are aware that in 2016, we passed a constitutional amendment act and in that act the constitution provides for the parliamentary service commission which is the institution that is supposed to manage parliament.
And arising from that constitutional amendment, parliament of the Republic of Zambia passed the parliamentary service commission act in 2016 but to date the executive has refused to actualize it because they know that by not allowing that they will be controlling parliament.
Currently because they have not actualized that act, members of staff are being appointed by the executive.
The Clerk of the National Assembly is not appointed by the National Assembly as required by the constitution. The current Clerk of the National Assembly was appointed by President Lungu contrary to what the act provides.
That is why we are saying parliament is now being controlled by the executive.
They don’t want the act to see the light of the day because they want to continue controlling parliament.
It’s not just parliament. There is also another constitutional provision where aid contraction is supposed to be reported to parliament.
It’s constitutional provisional now.
But they are not doing it because they want to be hiding the debt they are contracting.
They don’t want parliament to have an oversight role.
There is the Gender Equity Commission which I know that you ladies are supposed to have an interest.
The constitution was passed in 2016 but to date no law has been passed to actualize that.
It’s because they don’t equity among the genders because they have their own interests.
There are so many provisions in the current constitution which they have deliberately refused to actualize.
If you are failing to implement the current constitution, why would you want to come up with another constitution, it just shows that there is no political will to ensure that the provisions of the constitution are enhanced and implemented.
We will not be part of that process as UPND, that am speaking as leader of the opposition in parliament. We are not going to support it. Let them show the political will in ensuring that the current provisions of the constitution are actualized for the benefit of the people of Zambia.
There is also a provision in the constitution which states that when making appointments, you have to take into account the regional representation of the country as well as gender representation.
If you are appointing two people for a particular position and you are a member of government, you have to ensure that one of them is either a woman or man.
That is what the constitution says.
But do they do that, the answer is NO. They are deliberately breaking the constitution because they know that there are weak institutions in this country that can take stock of the wrongs they are doing.
But we are not going to be abetting that as the opposition as UPND.
We cannot do that. We have to stand up and fight for this country and stand up for the constitution.
THANK YOU
UPND will block everything except HH
Shame that UPND did not block tour mother to give birth to 5OB
I don’t want to know what they think quiet honestly
Thanks
BB2014,2016
Vow vow vowing till you vow no more…why cant UPND vow to replace HH if they’re serious about winning elections..with HH as the President…forget state house
UPND slowly dwindling from what I see. It is just that at the moment there is no real opposition otherwise UPND should be carpeted easily. You seem not to be issue based. Very weak party.
UPND REFUSED TO TAKE PART IN THE CONSULTATION PROCESS AND NOW JUST WANT TO OBSTRUCT.
AND ALSO CRY FOUL FROM JOHANNESBURG THROUGH THEIR MASTERS.
Please UPND don’t make same fatal error as you did with blocking referendum on Bill of Rights. God & majority of Zambians haven’t forgiven you because you put party interests ahead of Zambia’s interests. You haven’t even recognised this mistake or sought forgiveness. God cant trust you with leadership & no right thinking Zambian can trust such a party. Your true colours are coming out again. The proposed amendments are aimed @ addressing short comings in what is best constitution we have had so far but your objective is to stand in way of progress for personal or party interests. Where’s Zambia’s interests in your objective? Realise that Constitution & Bill of Rights are national documents & not about political party games. Remember all those poor people in majority whom you denied…
Cont…Remember all those poor people in majority whom you denied free education, health, etc by blocking the Bill of Rights? God is watching & he will always protect His people. God Bless Zambia
Yes, we will even block your mother and grandma from showing their nakedness
I’m reminded of appeals to smart alecking Alex Chikwanda not to increase the borrowing limit for GRZ in 2013. Those appeals from various NGOs , the church and opposition parties fell on deaf ears as the borrowing limit was doubled and money was borrowed. Where are we now? Yes, you will amend the constitution but I do not expect anything in national interest to come out of it. It’s not the law that matters in Zambia but the will of the PF. The constitution says ministers have to leave office on parliament’s dissolution, but did they? Need I say more?
Jack “Preliminaries” Mwiimbu…! There you go again, insisting on some more preliminary issues aka, “Dialogue First”.
Dialogue is not an event, but a continous process. And who tells you the Dialogue will end quickly. Most likely, many more issues will arise, and if these extend until 2019, then forget about a cleaner and better Constitution in 2021. You will find yourr staring into the face of your nemesis: “14 Days”.
How can you oppose something before you even see it. Better to say we would prefer the bill to come after some Dialogue, and condemn thedocument after the said 4hrs meeting.
After all, HH said he read the proposed Constitution within an hour and was able to understand it fully. How about you an MP and a lawyer for that matter…???
I rest my case.
First off, learn to keep your statements short and to the point.
Secondly, Lets wait and see.
toothless mission , how many attempts as UPND tried to slow progress in Zambia and how many have been achieved, even petition has not been heard yet, these are the reasons why UPND had lost 4 upnd ward strong holds because they are a party formed to irritate those working. surprisingly the so called upnd media team had something to congratulate the upnd for, ati they now know what strategies to take in order to win in 2021, bushe njipusheko ninshi ubupuba bwisa nama levels olo shani because you people behave the same and the dullness seems to be shared equally, im breaker im transcendent and i approve this message
Saying this nonsense meanwhile you have no job and can’t even feed yourself or buy your own airtime. Are you not ashamed of yourself?
HH must be retired from active politics in the national interest! GBM should take over but he will face tribal backlash from within since only a Tonga should lead UPND according to Sejani and company and HH was okay with that since it favored him then. #HHmustgo
Why start with retiring yourself and take your mother and grandchildren with you both.
Sembe….
Mwebantu, ubushilu tabupola. You just have to learn to live with such a person uwafunta
Just like your mother and grandfather have to put up and feed a useless unemployed adult like you!
Same old characters directing and advising hh and upnd how to lose. These pathetic dinosours have never won an election and Tuesday’s results were another blow yet they stand up again, same strategy and think they can achieve different results??? Bushilu fye ubu!!!
Problem is the calling others Fishilu doesn’t know that ndiye chisilu and that is you chimbwi!
There they go!! The same person was the one who asked Lubinda when the amendments are coming, like he was missing them & he could not wait for the amendments. Like the constitution in its current form was getting in his way. So just like they did with Sata, crying “we want a new constitution”. Then Lungu beat them at the polls they continued with the same noises. Then good Lungu gave them their new constitution & to the suprise of all Zambians they turned around & refused the very contitution they wanted. So we are back to the same bantustan approach. Only their bantustanians will go along
Jack Mwiimbu you failed HH with the petition case in a similar manner by time wasting.what dialogue are you talking about.one you failed to recognise the person you want to dialogue with and please note that Zambia is Sovereign state the commonwealth cannot preside on our matters.Do not take all Zambians to be UPND and followers of your HH .your interest is personal for your small God HH and not the common Zambians.
Pilato told us that inchito yakolwe kwiba….it’s so true isn’t it? Even Zambian Nationality he also stole it….so what else has he not stolen?
When you say pilato, you mean that lunatic dobo guy?
How do the numbers add up? Can’t PF pass the bill without UPND?
In your dreams! Ask your grandmother to give you answer!
As somebody has already said, upnd will block everything except hh..what can of people are these who can’t learn from their mistakes? I think they are happy remaining in opposition in perpetuity.
Mad Mp Chanda is giving free mental health check ups…you are a good candidate for that free check up. Shall we make a booking for you?
They blocked bill of rights in SP . Today siwale is inside and hh spent 129 as a result
Siwale is in cells not because of the stupid fake bill but because the thief that forged someone’s identity is terribly scared!
You dont want government to place the constitutional bill before dialogue, yet you placed an impeachment motion before dialogue. You are cotradicting yourself Hon Mwiimbu. Advise your party correctly if you are going to form government in 2041.
You can put that bill if you want but it will not pass the two thirds requirements. Go ahead if you want and nobody will stop you. Even your mother can table that motion if you want!
Good one.
Ba twikatane , good question. Unfortunately, it is not them to tell you when they want to win the elections. Its us who have decided to allow them to occupy plot one in 2065! For now we need them for entertainment and we are happy that CK has joined them to entertain Zambians though fainting. Comedy in Zambian politics.
I don’t know ’ABENA J’ (as we would call Jack on Copperbelt) well. However, he doesn’t come out as a smart politician or lawyer for that matter. UPND has great brains except they have put wrong guys as the face of the party. Learn to be consistent Bwana. So it is ok for you to bring impeachment to same parliament where you don’t want your colleagues to bring their business until dialogue is concluded. 2021 is almost here. Your friends are selling their party besides the advantage of being in govt. Where is Mweetwa? Where is Syakalima?
@ Twikatane. Exactly my point. I now perceive what those who say UPND should go for convention mean. The team needs a complete overhaul as mechanics would put it. In case UPND doesn’t get it, we need a strong opposition. We need you to actually do your job as opposition. Galamukani!
WISHFUL THINKING!
MWIMBU, DO YOU HAVE THE NUMBERS IN PARLIAMENT?
He seems so confident about this. Are they depending on dark arts of the dark party? Spooks will be their to add to their numbers perhaps.
Sabotage as usual from UPND. Its all about their selfish interests. We need a serious opposition political party not UPND full of a bunch of Comedians.
These putrid brains are always putting spanners into the works. The world is watching and they know who the trouble maker is-UPND.
UPND has no numbers to block anything in parliament!!!this is time wasting!!
Jack Mwiimbu is just making the usual tonga noise for nothing!!!
Moreover,can UPND support anything from PF Govnt?never and all Zambians know this fact HENCE UPND GETTING 3 WINS OUT OF 16 WARDS LAST TUESDAY!!
UPND keeps on using same old strategies which Zambian voters hate but hopes for different results after elections,is that being normal?
IT IS GETTING CLEAR BY DAY THAT HH WILL NEVER RULE ZAMBIA!!!
Anyway,in PF we trust,so come 2021 ni PF nafuti nafuti!!
In your dreams! Where will PF get two thirds to amend the constitution? Ask your grandmother again!
Its all animal farm. Even animals govern themselves better than us in z. Poor finishing or upndown, u are all crazy
Who do u think u are in zambia? failure is your motto go ahead since we knw that u’ve never achieved anything
Jackie my boy why don’t you talk about things that will improve the wellbeing of your people in Monze. For instance you can introduce a bill to do with taxes that we are paying. ..but of course you can’t do that because the more we’re taxed the fatter your sitting allowances will become. Never heard of Upnd obstructing increase of Parliamentary salaries.
Frustration and helplessness are the characteristics of opposition in Zambia. No plan, no vision for the nation, just opposition for the sake of their personal ambitions.
Is this not the same guy who led the upndeez petition lawyers to abandon h.h at the 11th hour?
Do not trust PF and lungu…..they will make changes so their borrowing is unlimited and changes so lungu appoints PF caders to positions that are supposed to be independent of the executive…
look who is talking about trust? certainly not tongaz , they only trust their kind and cattle. all of us don’t matter
I was thinking over the long story by “Professor” Hansungule defending himself over his “error” of judgement by presenting his personal political and tribal (politribal) views as the views of the University of Pretoria. Then I remembered being taught somewhere that you need to keep your words to a minimum otherwise you either give yourself away or you reveal what you don’t want or you will just be misunderstood. In this case “professor” revealed the basis of all the noises that come fromupndeez and h.h. – the cry by h.h that the Speaker was not allowed to take over as President as soon as the petition was lodged. It also explains why the petition was not supported by evidence of rigging. upndeez strategic plan was for Zambia to have no President in order to greatly weaken the…
You have failed to block Bill on Health,how are you going to block Constitutional Bill?The Health Bill will be another tax on the formal sector who have little disposable income to take home.Where are the union when a worker is burdened with such taxes?Labour day is coming but it is just to hoodwink the work force that the government has care for them.A Zambian worker is highly taxed and has no breathing space in expending his or her hard earned income.The laws that the nation make do not favour a Zambian worker.A Health Bill is another tax that will push a Zambian worker towards poverty.These are issues opposition parties were supposed to delve into.
It also explains why the petition was not supported by evidence of rigging. upndeez strategic plan was for Zambia to have no President in order to greatly weaken the security situation during that critical time. What am I saying? Well in that situation upndeez could have organised a “coup” . Imagine the Speaker as President, he has no clue on security matters and he has very weak if any control over the security forces. Just the perfect timing for upndeez to launch their armageddon!!! The fact that the President did not hand over thwarted their plans, all their cries so far can be traced to that strategic failure. That is why h.h and upndeez since August 2016 do not make sense.
If you read from tgat context you will understand why upnd does not make sense in whatever they do or say.
Lots of negativity, this upnd. Going nowhere governance-wise, for sure. Failures all the way.
Do we have a political party out there that can provide real checks and balances? UPND has clearly become irrelevant in our political dispensation.
“Honourable Jack Mwiimbu, you guys have effectively shut down the dialogue. What dialogue you talking about?
H.h’s “error” of judgement (borrowing from Hansungule, this clan has lots of errors of judgement it seems) on Janet Rogan has cost him dearly in loss of sympathy for his predicament. Now the Commonwealth Secretary General has emphasised and insisted that the dialogue shall be led by Zambians. So be Jack get it clear from me and Baroness Scotland, the government did not force her. All those parties you mention church bodies etc have already indicated their readiness for dialogue, we are all waiting for you and we cant wait forever. But we know that you dont want dialogue anyway, because whenever it gains traction h.h does or says things that make it impossible.
H.h seems to get excited sil.ly whenever he sees a crowd of supporters. Recently in Mongu h.h preached hatred and you know what? The people of Mongu did not seem to like that language and they showed it by voting the upndeez out of their ward in Lealui , yes the heart of Mongu itself where h.h has tried to plant hatred before, remember Eagle 1 incident which landed the boy in Mukobeko?
The word “vows” seems to be ingrained in upnd lingo and DNA, ,just the other day Hansungule used it, h.h seems to use it everyday!!!kikikikikiki
Amendment bill is the right way to go to perfect the constitution. The stakeholders have already discussed all the weaknesses in the constitution. Its now ready to go to Parliament. The minister of Justice has even delayed to present the amendment bill before Parliament. Let’s ignore jack mwimbu who has sunk so low in trying to protect the interest of his master hh. Those who want to dialogue let them go ahead. But this should not stop the amendment bill process. We sent mp to Parliament to enact laws and not to block every good thing.
point of correction sir. upnd MPs were sent to parliament to block and halt development until they are in state house.
ATI “WE HAVE BEEN REQUESTING OUR COLLEAGUES TO COME ON BOARD AND DIALOGUE WITH US…”. US!
WHAT PROPENSITY!
Who are you to invite the ruling party?
Are you the one calling the shots?
Are you in government?
Or are you just one of the tribal NGOs?
LT summarised it well but what is he really scribbling about. Did not even read though but blocking this and blocking that is just childish. When will these guys ever learn to reason. Tarnishing the image of the rest of the Tongas – or thats how they are?
Disaster party.
@rude monk mulanda ati” or that’s how they are. these people they have finally isolated themselves from the rest of zed for real.
In your mad mind you think you own Zambia with a known and convicted thief in power!
Ur are correct jack. Refuse to be part of these no good characters. They and their cadres here have already forgotten the errors that led to a constitution which one blind man closed his eyes to sign at a big expensive ceremony. Upnd do not legitimize impunity for the sake of praise from koswe cadres! Better never to go to state house than abeting illigalities.
Amazing the kind of people this country has i have read through the comments and not one has addressed any of the issues raised by Jack Mwimbu. All they are criticizing him for is his tribe and his party’s perpetual loss of elections. It’s obvious the commentators didn’t even bother to read the article or they did but they are using their barbaric hatred for the man and his party. You wonder why the country remains at the bottom of human civilization and development.
OK so HH and UPND have been losing elections, so what? Ask yourself why the country remains poor and underdeveloped even with your favourite party and people are the ones who have been winning the elections and have the keys to the treasury? Is UPND and HH losing elections the reason why the country remains so poor and…
continue reading…
Is UPND and HH losing elections the reason why the country remains so poor and underdeveloped? Whose job and responsibility to make positive, progressive and long lasting economic, social and political changes to this country? And is it not happening?
You really think PF would be making constitutional amendments that are favourable to the country but disadvantage them politically? Answer yourself honestly.
I feel sorry for you. Is Zambia the worst in the region? The poverty did not come with the PF. It has been there and any serious think will know its real source. It is not directly here but lies somewhere in the world where a conspiracy exist to keep Africa poor.
Why are copper, cocoa, coffee, tea prices fixed by countries that do not produce them?
And any African leader that talks about this is not a friend of those exploitors. Open your eyes and see where the real cause of poverty in Africa is!
The only Bill the UPND has unanimously supported is that of increment of MPs’ salaries and allowances. So we are not surprised
Go and rant and gnash your teeth on behalf of Zambian poverty and foolishness.
A face of tribalism in Zambia.
They blocked the Bill of Rights referendum because UPND is a party of “Nos!” When they woke up from HaLLUccinations they found they were wrong and They started protesting wanting referendum to be done because they saw that the Bill of Rights has been working against them! Dull party! Dull leaders! Tribal leaders! Tribal followers!
Foolish noise makers at it again to make dull supporters think you’re in pm not only after money while many of as know who really you are if not nothing for good
SICK OBSTRUCTIONISTS; BITTER UPNDEADS ARE 2016ISTS. HELLO! THIS IS 2018! GROW UP AND TALK ABOUT 2021. MAKE PROPOSALS FOR 2021.
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Chaps don’t appreciate what hit them in 2016.
Humble yourselves even as you call to dialogue. You don’t just wake up and say “Hey you, lets have dialogue!” or “We are not going to contest 2021 polls unless you dialogue with us.” What silly altercation. Sick puppies; bitter lots.
This the begining of the end of UPND! They are just bunch of confused Tongas makingup tribal NGO! They want PF to come on board ? How? And how come?
UPND boasts of having the most educated members in their party, so I expected them to thoroughly dissect the constitution, intelligently point out its flaws and suggest the remedies, and to accept its strong points, so that the country benefits from their collective intelligence. Sadly, the course of action they want to embark is not of intelligent people but of scoundrels who will obstruct even the progressive ideas just to satisfy their egos – as they did to the Bill of Rights. I hope the more independent minded UPND MPs – assuming there are any – will listen to their consciences and think of posterity when this issue comes up in parliament.
Pf is just selfishly looking for ways to perpetually stay in power by fidgeting with the constitution.
If it weren’t for its religious support from Southern Province (the foundation of its existence), the UPND would be non existent. It’s not relevant in the political sphere. They are only pursuing an HH agenda as one of theirs to be president of Zambia. Zambia does not anyone or region the presidency, it’s all about ability.
We need 2/3 majority or 112 seats to pass the constitutional bill. After discounting kambwili and kalaba, PF has 87seats. Add 13 independents, 4 MMD and 1 FDD the total comes to 105. Going by the recent local government election results, it is clear that PF has penetrated Western and NW provinces hitherto the perceived UPND strongholds. Given a secret ballot, I can see 10 or more UPND MPs voting for the onstitutional amendment bill. That will bring the number to 115. By the way, it does not matter whether the bill is defeated. The 2021 election will be held because we already have a constitution in place. And PF will win with a wider margin if we include Western, NW and the other half of Central provinces. We can the table a new bill with a clear majority.
As you people here in the comments debate selfishly on your personal affections you ignore the fact that this statement was a message to remind members of parliament that the due process must involve you the people. I’m no expert but I would think that if u guys were genuinely interested in the progress of your country you would be using this press briefing amongst other tools as a means of seeking more information surrounding the issues that must be deliberated on as stakeholders in order to carry out your duty as the members of the Republic to help our leaders make more informed and better decisions. The message also suggests that Zambia as a republic have an overall duty as members of the common wealth and the rest of the international community to demonstrate it’s appreciation for…
Comment:Upnd still have no message to tell the people of Zambia what they can do. They are a bunch of people with artificial intelligence that is overrated but fails to yield desired results.
That why they teamed up with a wrong MMD which did not help them.
Get your act together and stop barking at the wrong tree.
The people need a proper message like more money in your pockets. Not chipande pants politics no. Anyway maybe you are just fill to get it.