By Saboi Imboela Spokesperson- NDC

The National Democratic Congress, NDC, is shocked with continued statements from the PF over a statement made by our NDC president Dr. Chishimba Kambwili.

Last week, Dr. Kambwili shared how disappointed he was with Zambians keeping quiet in the midst of human rights abuse and harassment of citizens. Dr. Kambwili shared how he expected people to stand up for their country and not let politicians be the only ones to speak and stand up in defence of Zambia’s democratization process.

To our shock, the PF have twisted the statement to mean that our president regrets the way he has been providing checks and balances to the PF. There is nothing wrong with the way our president provides checks and balances, and to twist that statement to make it sound like his kind of politics are not good is a serious case of desperation on the part of the PF.
Our president is one of the strongest voices for Zambians in the country and he will continue to provide the required checks and balances.

Politicians have their role to play, just as much as citizens have their role to play in our country’s good governance. The call by our president to remind people to play their role of good citizenship does not in any way mean that he regrets or is giving up on opposition politics which require him to be a voice of the voiceless.

One of the tenets of good governance is that of participation. Participation requires that all citizens get involved in issues that affect them. Voting alone is not enough because citizens have to continuously ensure that their elected representatives govern in an acceptable and prudent manner.

It is also said that Democracy is not a Spectator’s sport. This simply means that, citizens are not spectators but active players in their democracy or democratisation process of their country, as the case is in Zambia now.

The above message of citizen participation is what our president was emphasising on and the PF desperation to make that statement be about them and their president is a serious act of desperation. Why would our president regret having brought out some of the serious cases of corruption that this country has ever seen?

We urge the PF to concentrate on real issues affecting the country than to keep twisting statements from various political players.

‘I can never give up on Zambians. We have a big task ahead of us. We may sometimes feel weary as leaders, but the task we have at hand is not anything that I or we as NDC can give up along the way. We need to liberate this country and it takes concerted efforts to do so. For my part as president of NDC, I can never give up on the mission to liberate Zambia,’ president Kambwili said.

By Peter Sinkamba

Today, Wednesday the 2nd of December, 2020, the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) accepted a World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation to remove cannabis and cannabis resin from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.

The historic vote in Vienna will have far-reaching implications for the global medical cannabis industry, ranging from regulatory oversight to scientific research into the plant and its use as a medicine.

The eagerly awaited approval of Recommendation 5.1 had a slim majority in favour with 27 votes for, one abstention and 25 votes against The CND – the main drug policymaking body within the United Nations – turned down all five remaining recommendations.

The passage of Recommendation 5.1 carries broad symbolic significance for medical cannabis, as it could help boost medical cannabis legalization efforts around the globe now that the CND tacitly acknowledges the medical utility of the drug.

As the Green Party, and the Zambian Hemp Growers and Industries Association, we wholeheartedly welcome the result of the vote, and are hopeful that with this development, industrialisation of African countries through industrial and medical cannabis will be a reality.

Zambia religiously follows the UN scheduling in our legislation. Consequently, the country has considerably lagged behind to jump on to the marijuana groovy train. This development will definitely remove obstacles to use cannabis for industrial, medical and research purposes.

The vote will encourage us to reevaluate how cannabis is classified on our national lists of narcotic drugs, paving the way for more investments and research into medical and industrial marijuana and its various uses.

While the move does not totally free cannabis from treaty control, it is a giant step toward the normalization of cannabis in medicine and industrial uses.

Decades of efforts have been necessary to remove cannabis from Schedule IV.

Drugs in Schedule IV of the 1961 treaty – where, until today, cannabis sat alongside heroin – are a subset of those already in Schedule I.

Schedule I – which includes fentanyl – already requires the highest levels of international control.

The schedules of the international drug-control conventions categorize drugs considering their medical utility versus the possible harm they could cause.

Only the 53 current member states of the CND had an opportunity to vote, but this decision applies to all signatories of the international drug control conventions.

By President Edgar Lungu

On Monday 23rd March, 2020, I called for an urgent Cabinet Meeting to discuss various cross-cutting policy matters aimed at strengthening multisectoral efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 in Zambia.

The key outcome of this Cabinet Meeting was the approval of the COVID-19 Contingency Plan, which received overwhelming support from all stakeholders including; Cooperating Partners, the Private Sector as well as Society at large. This ensured the effective implementation of my Government’s innovative Contingency Plan.

As a result of our above mentioned collective efforts, Zambia has been ranked among the only 6 countries in the world which have been declared ‘the safest travel destinations’ during this COVID-19 era. Zambia has been ranked the 4th safest travel destination, and it is the only African country among the 6 countries from different parts of the world.

According to the highly respected Travel company ‘Wego Travel’, which is used by millions of people worldwide each month, the above classification was based on: epidemiological criteria; the ability of countries to contain the pandemic; attained stability over a long period of time; and the efficiency of the health system, particularly, the clinical capacity for intensive care rooms and efficiency of the medical staff.

According to ‘Wego Travel’, the only six (06) countries which are safe destinations in order of ranking are: Australia which is ranked first, New Zealand in second, followed by Singapore in third, Zambia has been ranked fourth, Cuba is fifth, and Saudi Arabia is sixth.

In view of this, let me take this opportunity to commend our health workers who have demonstrated a great sense of responsibility, professionalism, selflessness and determination in our fight against COVID-19, in order to protect every Zambian life.

I also want to thank our cooperating partners, the private sector and all citizens who have exhibited high levels of collective responsibility and behavioral change, thus helping to prevent the unchecked spread of the calamitous coronavirus in Zambia.

As I conclude, let me remind each one of us that we are not yet in a post COVID-19 era.

I am, therefore urging you all to continue abiding by all COVID-19 preventative measures which my Government, through the Ministry of Health, has put in place according to best experiences in Global Health.

We are a nation of faith. Let us continue to face the future with renewed vigour, assured that we shall overcome our challenges and achieve the development goals which we have set for ourselves. Together, we shall achieve this, and so much more.

May God bless you all and keep you safe from COVID-19.