Friday, March 29, 2024

Presidential Summit Attendance Not Consent To Contentious Electoral Issues in the Country

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United Party for National Development (UPND) President Hakainde Hichilema has charged that the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ’s) Presidential Summit which was held at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre (MICC) must not be misconstrued as a solution to the numerous contentious electoral issues the country is grappling with.

He said it’s not fair for ECZ to suggest that the acquisition of National Registration Cards (NRC’s) is outside its domain when every voter is required to have an NRC.
President Hichilema observed that the intent of the Presidential Summit for all political parties was not clear.

He argued that the lack of consensus among political players on a number of contentious issues affecting the country’s electoral process such as the issuance of NRCs to foreigners and underage children, the breakdown in the rule of law and respect for human rights, restricted freedoms, and community violence should be addressed if democratic tenets were to be entrenched in the country.

President Hichilema said the current voters’ register is legally correct and has a provision for the removal of dead people from it.

President Hichilema also stated that compliance to existing laws in the country was at its worst both before, during, and after elections, saying that the trend has led to an increase in political violence, vote-buying using the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU), and abuse of the Electoral Code of Conduct (ECC).

He stated that it was laughable for the ECZ to allege that the discrepancies surrounding the removal of the dead people from the old register have prompted the elections body to come up with a new voter’s roll.

He said there were several contentious issues surrounding the electoral processes such as the archaic Public Order Act (PoA) which needed to be addressed as they affected the political environment in the country.

“All these contentious issues need to be addressed if the ECZ is to conduct free, fair and credible elections,” he said.

The ECZ has proposed among other issues, the implementation of the 2019 delimitation recommendation for new election boundaries and increasing the number of polling stations from the current 7, 700 to 8, 999 as well as a three-phased online registration method which will include pre-online, mobile and static registration in which the electoral body plans to capture between 8.8m to 9m eligible voters within 30 days.

19 COMMENTS

  1. Hakainde Hichilema is playing to the minds of his supporters and the international community. He is pysching their minds to make them believe 2021 has already been rigged. Sadly, the PF leadership are busy eating and not correcting this wrong narrative.

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  2. THE UPND IS A PARTY THAT LACKS CONSISTENCY AND PEOPLE OF ZAMBIA SHOULD STOP TAKING THEM SERIOUS.
    DURING THE MEETING,THE CEO OF THE ECZ AND SAKWIBA SIKOTA CLEARLY MENTIONED THAT UPND AFTER LOOSING ELECTIONS IN 2016 WENT TO COURT TO CHALLENGE THE 2016 ELECTIONS RESULTS AND ONE OF THE ISSUES THEY RAISED WAS THE SAME VOTERS ROLL THEY ARE SUPPORTING TODAY.
    UPND SHOULD TELL THE NATION WHY TODAY THEY ARE SAYING THE VOTERS ROLL WHICH THEY REJECTED IN 2016 AS PART OF RIGGING AS THEY CLAIMED IN 2016 SHOULD BE USED NEXT YEAR.
    HH’S TEAM IS NOT SERIOUS AND FOR SURE THEY ARE CRY BABIES I BELIEVE NOW.

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  3. Every five years the same old pathetic crying and silly excuses just before losing elections. Hh is the type of guy to blame every single thing and person under the sun for his five yearly losses since decades ago. However, he doesn’t realise that maybe the problem is the fact that he has stood over 4 times and lost. Maybe it is time to accept that maybe he is the problem in this equation. Just may be people do not like you enough to vote you in. Ever considered that ?

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  4. Bj and similar others, was the petition challenging the 2016 elections heard and concluded? So are you now saying the winner of the 2016 elections suddenly agrees that the voter register for the 2016 elections had problems? Why then is the same 2016 register used for numerous by-elections? Stop shooting each other on your feet!! The 2016 voter register could still be challenged on the basis that ECZ has not been conducting continuous voter registration as required by law. So the UPND and other opposition parties still want ECZ to conduct continuous voter registration in updating voter register for the 2021 elections. The work of cleaning the voter register and removing dead voters is part of continuous voter registration work of ECZ!!!

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  5. Agony is when a few Zambians believe PF government is doing everything right even a simple concept that a current national voter’s register is valid and can not be discarded for a new one. PF and ECZ claim a totally new voter’s register is needed at an extra cost. All it needs is amend it by removing the dead and others who have left the country or foreigners and that brings to an updated voters register. Its done in the UK and USA.

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  6. Iwe Kaizar Zulu, why is your PF party worried about a competitor HH who you claim will lose elections again? Why does the PF instruct police to deny HH and UPND from holding public meetings using POA if HH is a weak candidate? Is it PF business to decide presidential candidates of opposition parties? Even a mentally deranged child would know the reasons you dont want HH to compete with your president in the 2021 elections. Worry about your presidential candidate in PF and stop extending your nose into other political parties business!!

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  7. This an attempt by PF thugs to rig the General Election. Why should there be contentious issues? The by elections have been held using the same register they have deleted or want to delete. Why should we start from the scratch, since what is required is amending the register by deleting dead people, people who have left the country and then just adding in the new people. It is now up to the Zambia people to stand up to this corrupt regime and issue a red card saying enough is enough . If you do not stand up ,they are going to throw you over the cliff.

  8. HH knows that his numbers are very very few to even begin to contemplate going to state house. Instead of campaigning he is as usual spending more energy on things that do not help his cause. He needs to be selling his mysterious manifesto to the electorate otherwise he is in for an even heavier defeat than all the other 5 times he has lost in the past.

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  9. That meeting was just a sham to cover lungus political violence and corruption……meant to concide and dupe the visiting UK Africa minister that there is dialogue between parties in Zambia.

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  10. It’s time to pass the torch to someone who can we the party another province to add to the Tally. Bringing back GBM may not be such a bad idea and besides Chiluba already did that by bringing Mwanawasa back.

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  11. HH has brought out varied points. But are all these points babies of ECZ? Is ECZ responsible for the Public Order Act and Issuance of NRCs? Was the Presidential Summit called by ECZ supposed to address such issues?

  12. HH has brought out varied points. But are all these points babies of ECZ? Is ECZ responsible for the Public Order Act and Issuance of NRCs? Was the Presidential Summit called by ECZ supposed to address such issues?

  13. If there is one country where it is very difficult for a foreigner to get a national id, Zambia is one. Same old song upnd, you’re now sounding like a broken record

  14. Alibaba ever considered that maybe it is because your comments are too f00lish?

    Chiluba, do you honestly think I have time to blog under different aliases when I know that I make a huge impact blogging under my own real name ? Be real

  15. The only day HH is going to agree ECZ is the day he will win. We have never heard HH say anything about Dundumwezi. Dundumwezi is in the National Park with very little settlement. Where did the 30,000 votes come from. That is why suddenly he does not want the new voters roll. Additionally HH need to pay attention to why he has failed five time not always blaming others.

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