Fresh scrutiny has fallen on the ruling UPND following the detention of NGOCC chairperson Beauty Katebe and 14 others during last week’s nomination exercise linked to the August 13 general elections.

The incident unfolded during the filing process for Lusaka mayoral aspirant Ketty Nanyangwe, with Katebe alleging that police officers moved in to block the female candidate from successfully filing nomination papers. Katebe said the group was seized and later taken to Kabwata Police Station together with supporters and journalists accompanying Nanyangwe.

Speaking after her release on police bond, Katebe maintained that the group had not been formally arrested but had instead been “abducted” and bundled into police vehicles before being transported to the police station.

“We were bundled into that vehicle and brought here. You don’t even know where you are going,” Katebe said.

According to Katebe, the women’s movement believed Nanyangwe had already been cleared to proceed with nominations before events suddenly changed at the venue. She said police presence rapidly increased as the group prepared to leave the Town Clerk’s office before officers allegedly forced them into waiting police vehicles.

Katebe described the experience as humiliating and disappointing for women seeking participation in public leadership. The developments have placed renewed attention on the environment women are encountering during the 2026 electoral process, particularly after repeated public commitments by government leaders and the ruling party on expanding women’s participation in politics and decision-making structures.

Questions are also emerging over the contrast between official messaging on women’s empowerment and the treatment described by Katebe during the nominations. The issue carries additional political weight because constitutional reforms under Bill 7 were previously defended partly as measures intended to improve representation for women and young people in public office.

Katebe questioned how female candidates and supporters could find themselves in police cells while participating in what she described as a lawful democratic process.

She also pointed to what she viewed as unequal treatment during the filing process, alleging that another Lusaka mayoral aspirant received police escort to file nominations while Nanyangwe and her supporters were instead taken into custody.

“What kind of treatment is that? Do we call that democracy?” Katebe asked.

The incident has revived discussion around Zambia’s obligations under the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development, which calls on member states to promote equal participation of women in political and electoral processes. Attention has also shifted toward the broader conduct of the nomination exercise after isolated incidents of violence, confrontations and allegations of intimidation surfaced in several parts of the country during candidate filing.

The Law Association of Zambia has already condemned electoral violence surrounding the nominations and urged all stakeholders to respect the Electoral Code of Conduct.

LAZ president Arnold Kaluba said peaceful and credible elections remain central to democratic governance and warned that violence threatens both constitutional rights and confidence in the electoral process.

Nanyangwe’s failed filing attempt has now added fresh political attention to the handling of the 2026 election process, particularly on whether women seeking leadership positions are receiving equal protection and fair treatment within Zambia’s political environment.

The Tonse Pamodzi Alliance has announced it will take the Electoral Commission of Zambia to court over the disqualification of several of its candidates during the presidential and parliamentary nomination exercise, accusing the commission of rejecting aspiring candidates on the false grounds that they arrived late at nomination centres when they had in fact arrived on time.

The declaration came from Celestine Mukandila, who represents the alliance that has fielded Brian Mundubile as its presidential candidate and Makebi Zulu as his running mate. Mukandila went further than a legal threat, making the extraordinary claim that the August 13, 2026 general elections have already effectively been decided in the alliance’s favour. “The August elections have already been won by Mundubile and Makebi as President and Vice respectively,” Mukandila said, a statement that reflects the opposition’s confidence heading into the campaign period but carries no legal weight under ECZ’s constitutional mandate.

The disqualification dispute cuts to the heart of a nominations week that was marked by procedural complaints across multiple parties. The ECZ extended filing deadlines at several centres after technical failures in government online systems disrupted the process, drawing both praise and scrutiny. The Zambian Civil Liberties Union commended the commission’s flexibility in accommodating affected candidates, while the GEARS Initiative Zambia noted the commission acted professionally despite sporadic violence it attributed to parties mishandling their own internal processes.

For the Tonse Pamodzi Alliance, however, the commission’s conduct was far from professional. The alliance says its candidates presented themselves at nomination centres within the required timeframe and that ECZ officials wrongly recorded their arrival as late, effectively barring them from contesting seats they were entitled to contest. The alliance has not yet filed court papers but says it intends to do so before the week ends.

The legal action, if pursued, would be heard under the Electoral Process Act provisions governing candidate eligibility disputes. Zambian electoral law sets strict timelines for challenging nomination decisions, meaning the alliance’s legal team will need to move quickly to preserve its members’ candidacies ahead of the August poll. A successful court challenge could result in additional candidates being reinstated to the ballot, reshaping the competitive picture in affected constituencies.

The ECZ has not publicly responded to the alliance’s specific allegations of wrongful disqualification. The commission’s chief electoral officer had previously defended the extended deadlines as a practical measure to ensure inclusivity, not as an admission of systemic failure. How the commission responds to a formal legal challenge will be watched closely by opposition parties, civil society, and international election observers who have already deployed ahead of the August vote.

Zumani dismisses claims alliance failed to file in 75 constituencies

TONSE Alliance Secretary General Dr. Chris Zumani Zimba has dismissed reports that the opposition alliance failed to field parliamentary and council chairperson candidates in 75 constituencies, describing the claims as false and politically motivated.

Speaking in an interview in Lusaka today, Dr. Zimba said the figures circulating online were intended to create an impression that the Tonse Pamodzi Alliance had performed poorly during the nominations process ahead of the August 2026 elections.

“I want to put it on record that it is malicious, that is propaganda, false, and baseless. It is designed to mislead Zambians to think that the Tonse Pamodzi Alliance didn’t field candidates in many constituencies,” Dr. Zimba said.

He accused the ruling UPND of attempting to weaken competition in several constituencies through political intimidation and violence during the nominations period.

“The correct information is that the UPND had schemed to stage political violence and thuggish chaos in more than 85 constituencies countrywide. The scheme was to ensure that more than 85 UPND aspiring candidates go unopposed. But the Tonse Pamodzi Alliance president, Brian Mundubile and his running mate Hon. Makebi Zulu unearthed that scheme. They exposed the scheme. And they ensured that candidates were on the ground,” he said.

According to Dr. Zimba, the alliance only failed to field candidates in six constituencies where disruptions and confusion during nominations allegedly affected the filing process.

“As we speak, the correct position is that there are only six constituencies where the alliance didn’t field candidates. But that has not shaken us,” he stated.

Dr. Zimba said the Tonse Pamodzi Alliance had successfully fielded candidates in 220 constituencies across the country and was prepared for the campaign period.

“The Tonse Pamodzi Alliance has managed to field candidates in 220 constituencies countrywide who filed their nominations successfully. So we are in for the game, we are in for the political campaigns. We are geared to win the August 2026 election as the Tonse Pamodzi Alliance,” he said.

He further accused the UPND of circulating misleading statistics in an attempt to project an early political advantage ahead of campaigns.

“It doesn’t matter the fake information they spread, I can assure you that the Tonse Pamodzi Alliance president Brian Mundubile and his running mate Makebi Zulu will win the election. This is the winning ticket. And the Zambian people are resolved to vote out the UPND government. We know they are very much scared of our presidential candidates,” Dr. Zimba said.

The Electoral Commission of Zambia has not yet published the final constituency-by-constituency candidate list following the close of nominations.