PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda yesterday held closed-door talks with a delegation of bishops of the Roman Catholic Church where they discussed wide-ranging issues concerning the nation.
Special Assistant to the President for Press and public relations Dickson Jere, said in a statement that the meeting between the president and the representatives of the Zambia Episcopal Conference (ZEC), at State House lasted for about three hours.
“Some of the issues discussed at the meeting concerned education, health, infrastructure, politics and the economy,” he said.
Mr Jere said President Banda and the bishops agreed to have another meeting at a date to be communicated.
He said the president thanked the Catholic bishops for the meeting and urged them to feel free to engage Government on any issues concerning the nation.
President Banda was accompanied by Vice-President George Kunda, Works and Supply Minister Mike Mulongoti and State House aides.
ZEC was represented by its president Bishop George Lungu, Bishop of Ndola Alick Banda and the Archbishop of Lusaka Telesphore Mpundu.
And MMD national secretary Katele Kalumba has said he has lodged a complaint to ZEC seeking the Catholic Church’s official position on the priests who have become partisan through their conduct.
Dr Kalumba said in an interview the party was seeking clarity from the ZEC, which should state the official church position over some Catholic priests who have continued displaying partisan tendencies.
He said, as a Catholic and MMD national secretary, he wrote to ZEC through Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu.
He said the partisan conduct of some priests was offending some church members who expected them to be non-partisan because the church drew its members from different political parties.
Dr Kalumba, who refused to give the full details of the letter because he was still waiting for a response from ZEC said the MMD, wanted the matter to be dealt with locally and that was the reason why the party was not part of the group, which wrote to the Vatican complaining about some partisan priests.
But ZEC spokesperson Paul Samasumo said some priests who were alleged to be partisan were only doing so in their individual capacity and whatever they said was not the official position of the Catholic Church.
“The official position of the Catholic Church on various issues is only expressed when bishops speak collectively as ZEC through a statement or a pastoral letter which is used to express the church’s concerns on political and security issues which affect the country,” Father Samasumo said.
{Times of Zambia]
The Blessing of having an altruistic educated statesman, seasoned top diplomat, father figure and rationalist for the Head of state is in President Banda’s gifts of dispute resolution, dialogue, engagement, absorption, consensus and capacity building with a “Genuine” other than a “counterfeit community” which his opponents draw on. Diplomacy is RB’s virtue.
Bravo to His Excellency and administration for silence Diplomacy.
Everybody in the economy plays an important role.Iam sure the ideas discussed won’t just end up on paper because catholics have been a major development stake holder.:o):o)
Yes Paul Samasumo tell that Mr. lightening kalumba that the catholic church speaks to her children through pastoral letters and not through individuals like Maria k or Frank Bwalya.Eg.if i blog here against Rupia Banda and speak well of HH, Miyanda,Ben Mwila,Bikilon,KK etc,it doesnt mean the all church is with me but that im doing it in my own capacity there4 writing letters to Vatican is waste of time and showing how behind or ignorant some people can be.May God Bless Mother Zambia**==
1) He said the president thanked the Catholic bishops for the meeting and urged them to feel free to engage Government on any issues concerning the nation. HERE RB MUST TIE RONNIES MOUTH
2) And MMD national secretary Katele Kalumba has said he has lodged a complaint to ZEC seeking the Catholic Church’s official position on the priests who have become partisan through their conduct. WHAT ABOUT THOSE CHURCHES WHICH HAVE SIDED WITH MMD AGAINST THE PF/UPND PACT? ARE THEY NOT PARTISAN?
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Senior Citizen – HE IS A CHAMELEON- TO DAY HE IS OK- TOMMOROW HE WILL BE INSULTING OTHERS STANDING ON AN ANT HILL.