Friday, March 29, 2024

A Note: Chapter One Foundation explains MP’s Walk Out

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What was the significance of the MPs walking out of the Bill 10 parliamentary debate?

Yesterday, Minister of Justice Given Lubinda made a ministerial statement to the effect that Cabinet had rejected the most contentious clauses in Bill 10 in a bid to get more support for Bill 10.

Why do we feel that Cabinet’s proposed amendments are not sufficient?

By Honourable Lubinda’s own admission Bill 10 was presented to the National Assembly without any amendments, in other words nothing was changed in the Bill. Once the Bill is presented in its original form, the National Assembly is under no obligation to accept any proposed amendments to the Bill, whether the amendments are proposed by Cabinet or the Parliamentary Select Committee. That means that there is a danger that the whole of Bill 10 can be passed into law without any amendments.

Even assuming that all of Cabinet’s proposed changes were adopted, there are several of the provisions that Cabinet has accepted that are a real danger to the rule of law and democracy in Zambia. We urge you to read the joint CSO statement that we issued yesterday that explains this in full.

What is the purpose of the walk out?

To pass Bill 10 at the Second Reading 2/3rds of the total number of MPs in the National Assembly need to vote for it. The walk out of the MPS has meant the PF haven’t met the 2/3rd threshold because more than one-third of the MPs walked out. The walk out has also exposed those who support the Bill as they remained in the Parliamentary Chamber.

We rely on the MPs that walked out to maintain their position so that Bill 10 is not passed into law.

26 COMMENTS

  1. We shouldn’t expect any complaints about the current constitution if Bill 10 doesn’t go through. Petition will be 14 days…

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    • Mwashininkisha that indeed PF are fools kaa!? Why not take advantage to close that fvcking parliament due to coronavirus?

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    • if some UPND MPs walked out and others remained, this proves that FREE WILL exists in the party, unlike chilya ichipani where it seems all MPs are controlled robots, how do they have the same thought and ideas about bill 10?

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  2. Those traitor MPs who remained will not live to enjoy the bribes they have fallen for! This is not a partisan matter as PF wants to make it look! It’s not about leaders prescribing for citizens what changes need to be made. What is annoying about Bill10 is PF’s lack of sincerity! All the so called contentious clauses are not the issues that were agreed on in Siavonga! These PF have sneaked in clauses that favour them in order to get a stranglehold on power! As a Zambian citizen, I see NOTHING for the ordinary citizen! It’s all about THEM (Leaders) AND US (Ordinary citizens)! We should be worried about a government that is preoccupied with Bill 10 than the Freely falling Kwacha which is now K17 to a USD! The consequences of a depreciating Kwacha will be disastrous starting in 2020! More…

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  3. More workers will go without pay forever! The little money there is is for our fat leaders’ salaries and allowances, money for Bye-elections, money for bribing opposition MPs, etc. So all money will be for PF and nothing for you and me! We’ll default on debt and our National Assets will be grabbed one by one! This is not a prophecy but simple Cause-effect analysis projection!

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  4. The only time PF is so dedicated to a cause is when it is exclusively beneficial to them. Fresh in memory are Chitotela’s Ndola-Lusaka dual courage way, Kampyongo and Easter’s fire trucks, Chitalu’s ambulances, ECL jet. This should tell you a story that there is a huge benefit in bill 10.

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    • Would you attend a daughter’s wedding of a man you disapproved …you even refused marriage payment from him? would you walk your daughter to the aisle? The UPND walked out of NDF …surely what is the point of them staying in Parliament??

    • Tarino Orange, let me educate you. UPND MPs walking out is idiiotic, that is the same as voting yes for the bill. Any MP that is PF or UPND and walks out is a traitor to the nation. They are supposed to vote down the bill and not listen to HH who has never help an elected position in the country. Why are MPs in the PF and UPND cowards. At the least the crooks in the MMD challenged Chiluba, it is a badge of honor for MMD. The had principles MPs, some of them kikikiki.

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  5. I think we should be civilised by now. I don’t support bill 10 but will never call any mp who remained to debate a traitor. Remaining to debate does not mean voting for it. If during the debate one realises that grz is not adding the amendments proposed am sure they will also walk out or vote against it. Its at that point we can be justified to call them names which still will not be right since everyone has freedom of choice.

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    • Our kind of democracy is very uncivilized. We believe so much in mob thinking. Anyone who reasons differently is a traitor. There is no way 17 million people can have the same thought pattern.

  6. What type of democracy does this country talk about? Not all PF MP agree in totality with Bill 10. In the same breath not all UPND Mps are against Bill 10 totally. Our type of democracy is based on intimidation. MPs cannot expressed themselves. They are ‘forced’ to walk out of parliament. It means they cannot express themselves through voting. If they walked out on their will it would be okay. But they work out as commanded because those who remain in the house are called names.

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    • @ Matumbo, I suppose since you assume not all PF MPs agree in totality with Bill 10 you are expecting some of them to vote against it ??? Pleaase – get real!!

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  7. Parliament and the National Assembly can not be used interchangeably. Parliament is made up of MPs and the Speaker. Parliament graduates to the National Assembly when the President is in attendance.

  8. Real men fight their cause till the end. Cowards run away but don’t realise that he who runs away seeks to fight another day. Kz

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  9. Well the litmus test for all MP’s in parliament is on the bill. i trust all MP’s with the exception of Chitotela, Lusambo, kapata, kampyongo, and Siliya are mature enough to do the right thing. Those MP’s in the opposition should know that voting for something that favors the PF who have been bullying or illegally forcing themselves to any victory will always put them at further disadvantages. If PF cared about democracy especially concerning the Public order Act they would have acted in a manner that would be admirable and not use the act to favor themselves and dictate what other do. even as soon as yesterday PF youths matched without notifying the police. selective application of the law is not honorable.

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    • @ Rowdy, I totally agree with you. It really surprises me that people would get duped that a PF that has done nothing but abuse the Public Order Act and reduce the academic space would now be so hell bent on democracy and the provision of more days for petition. Remember – whose thugs went to threaten outside the court for the 14 days is 14 days!! All these are smokescreens for them to pass what really matters to them

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  10. Well done U.P.N.D M.P’s for walking out. You have saved Zambia here.
    We cannot afford to give a visionless inept President J0n@ more powers via the back door. This Mukula -1 & NOT Eagle -1 J0n@ is so useless, even cadres now fight & maim one another right in front of “a Republican President” & “the J0n@” takes ZERO Action ndwii just thinking of the next bottle of Jameson, same as when his goon K@!zar slapped & roughed up a Female Police officer right in front of the useless one.
    J0n@ is only brutal & effective when it comes to fighting the opposition, or dealing with anyone in his useless party who wants to challenge him to his Corrupt throne.
    WELL DONE M.P’S FOR WALKING OUT!!
    Lastly, P.F.KUYABEBELE!

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  11. You don’t need a prophet to tell you that Zambia is about to fall off a cliff ECONOMICALLY! The Reason is Simple. Our PF leaders have stopped focusing on the Economy and are more preoccupied with how they can retain power through Bill10 Manouvres! We are told they also want ECL to vote for Bill 10? What manner of desperation is this that you can sink so low Bwana ECL? Anyway, in life, you reap what you sow! Pass that Bill 10 and the first victims of that Bill will be PF! Remember that Zambians will pass the ultimate verdict! This Bill 10 now feels like Rape! You don’t force yourself on top! It’s too much!

  12. Linda Kasonde, please don’t go to your constitutional court as you often like to. You give them the legitimacy they otherwise do not have. Look now what you got when you last went there, is it pleasing to you? Those fools you call judges will never be such. Please spare us the agony, don’t go there.

  13. What is upnd hiding let them come out and tell us the truth what is the argument all about,why shunning the debate what are there points.And if Bill-10 goes through what next for upnd? SEER-1 told upnd not to walk out but debate and that hh should go to SA and see how his counterpart Malema is doing things and not just walking out and telling liars that is bul***t men.

  14. Just close Parliament!
    There is Corona virus in Zambia now! We don’t want our MPs like Lungwangwa and Kasonso voting with Corona in their heads!

  15. People with no sense of integrity like Tayali would not understand the stance taken by those MPs…you can see them above on the thread. They have forgotten that opposition disapproved of the NDF.

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