Dear LT bloggers,

I had a daughter out of wedlock born in 1996. I intended to marry the mother of my daughter but things could not work out as her parents could not allow her to marry someone from a different tribe.

I was charged damages which I paid in full. I took care of all my child’s financial responsibilities and shared custody of the child until 2002 when the mother got married to a fellow Tonga and moved to South Africa. Since then, I have not been allowed to support or even see my own daughter. I am also reliably informed that even her names have been changed. I have been very depressed at the situation as I don’t think it’s a fair deal.
Please, advise me on how I can get custody of my daughter. I have a good job, am well settled and I have a wonderful family. However, my conscious cannot let me be without my only child.
Depressed… Zambian  man.

Michael Sata has challenged Vice-President Banda to state publicly if he had officially resigned from UNIP. He said MMD had shown a lack of confidence in its party members by adopting Vice-President Banda. Mr. Sata  was speaking on Sky FM Radio in Monze yesterday.

He said Vice-President Banda has surrounded himself with all sorts of questionable characters. Sata said there were strong signs of regionalism and opportunism in Vice-President Banda’s camp. “Rupiah was born in Southern Rhodesia. He’s not brave enough. He’s never come out in the open to say he has come out of UNIP. President Mwanawasa once said that Professor (Clive) Chirwa should start from the branch; which branch is he, Vice-President Banda coming from? If he is elected President, Zambia will go back 360 degrees backwards,” Sata said.

Mr. Sata said he had a proven track record in public service as opposed to Vice-President Banda who served in several government positions but with nothing to show for it. Sata said recently, Vice-President Banda’s Cabinet approved hefty salary and allowance increments for constitutional office holders and senior government officials.

“When he was at NAMBOARD, he never employed anybody except people from Chipata. Rupiah Banda is a known tribalist and his tribalism is so cheap because he even discriminated against the people from Katete, Nyimba and Petauke. As far as he is concerned, they are supposed to be led,” Sata said.

He urged Vice-President Banda not to deceive himself into thinking that he would build on president Mwanawasa’s programmes because he was nowhere close to the late president.

He also said political parties and individuals who were questioning his health status were just scared of him.

“Rupiah Banda is older than me. I’m challenging all the political party presidents that we go and test for three things, HIV, Kaposi Sarcoma and let them examine our hearts,” said Sata.

Sata also said Lusaka lawyer, Dr Rodger Chongwe, was supporting Vice-President Banda’s presidential candidature on tribal grounds.

“Comrade Rodger Chongwe is trying to use tribalism thinking that if he comes in the open to support Rupiah Banda and when Rupiah Banda is elected, he is going to get his (Chongwe’s) US $2.5 million but that should not be our preoccupation,” said Sata.
He said former president Frederick Chiluba and president Mwanawasa refused to pay Dr Chongwe the US $2.5 million which he was claiming from the government after being shot in Kabwe on grounds that the judgment was obtained in a foreign country and the Zambian government had not been given an opportunity to defend itself.

Mr. Sata begins his campaign trail with a rally in Kafue this Thursday 11th September at 14:00hrs.
On Friday 12th September, Mr Sata will hold a rally in Chilanga, Lusaka at 14:00hrs.

Mr. Michael Sata has called for an indaba between PF and the Hakainde Hichilema-led United Party for National Development (UPND) to have a collective agreement on the way forward, especially on a plan to defeat the MMD government.

Speaking on Sky FM Radio in Monze yesterday, Sata said there was need for interaction and exchange of ideas between the leadership of UPND and PF.

“All I am appealing to my brothers and sisters all over the country, I  have put a proposal publicly today, if we have to have anything meaningful, the entire 22 members of parliament from UPND and our members of parliament from PF our Central Committee, the National Management Committee of UPND, we must have an indaba” said Mr.Sata

“But if Michael Sata agrees, yes, I am going to be in the background and comrade Hakainde becomes president .  I have once had that same thing, we agreed with the Catholic church – ZEC, CCZ, EFZ, NGOCC, Women for Change that unless we amended the NCC to suit the people of Zambia we will not go to NCC. My 22 members of parliament defied and went to the NCC because there is money. Our colleagues in UPND at first said they will not go but they went but it doesn’t matter…I need this time a collective agreement between UPND and PF, not between Michael Sata and Hakainde Hichilema.”

He was commenting on numerous appeals from listeners for the PF and UPND to join hands if the MMD was to be dislodged during the October 30 presidential election.

“What I want is that what we agree is not just for the two of us but an agreement for the people who are the representatives of the people who are the owners of PF and UPND,” Sata said.

Sata further said he was the only person who had president Levy Mwanawasa’s vision because the two had a two-hour discussion and during that meeting the late president told him about his vision.

“I am very devastated because as far I am concerned the differences I had with Levy are behind us and it is me today in Zambia the only person with Levy’s vision,” Sata said. “If I would have been a Michael Sata of yesterday, I would have revealed what plans he had for some of his ministers. But we talked, he is not here, he did not implement what we discussed so therefore I don’t have to talk about it.”

The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) has set September 23rd to 26th 2008, as dates for nominations for the forthcoming presidential by-elections slated for 30th October, 2008.

ECZ Director, Danny Kalale said, on the nomination dates presidential candidates, are required to present 200 supporters each, who should be registered voters.

Mr. Kalale said the presidential candidates would also be required have to pay a non-refundable nomination fee of K20 million.

He said aspiring candidates would be required to lodge in their nominations to the Chief Justice, who will be the returning officer at the Supreme Court, to validate them.

He noted that according to the law, only the President and the Vice President were allowed to use government resources during campaigns.

“Government officials willing to campaign for the party should use their own resources. According to the law, only the President and Vice President are allowed to use public resources,” Mr. Kalale said.

The official campaign period will commence soon after the filing in of nominations.

Mr. Kalale further disclosed that the commission would have the ballot papers printed in South Africa.

He said the commission was currently scrutinizing various tenders from South Africa.

He said all the political parties would be required to follow the electoral code of conduct and end their campaigns on the 29th of October, 2008 at 18:00 hours.

Meanwhile, the commission has set September 27th  2008 as the nominations date for the Ndola Central and Mwansabomwe parliamentary by-elections.

Mr. Kalale said on the same date, aspiring candidates for the 13 local government by-elections across the country would file in their nominations in their respective wards and districts.

He noted that the by-elections for the parliamentary constituencies and 13 local government seats will take place on the same date as the presidential by-elections.

And the commission as set September 12th to 26th, 2008 as dates on which Zambians who have lost their voters cards would register for replacements.

Mr. Kalale said the ECZ was currently in negotiating with Ministry of Education on the possibilities of turning schools country wide as registration centers for the acquisition of new voters’ card.

He said the commission would ensure that those who lost their voters card registered at the nearest school centre so that their cards could be ready and collected between the 20th  and the 25th October, 2008.

Meanwhile all the 72 districts in the country have received the transparent ballot boxes for the forth coming presidential by-elections.

Mr. Kalale said the commission had reached an advanced stage in delivering election materials in the various districts.

He noted that out of the K231 billion needed for conducting the elections, government has so far released K56 billion, adding that a further K93 billion was expected to be released by the end of this month to enable the commission prepare for the elections adequately.

Mr. Kalale said ECZ would strive to conduct free and fair elections, adding that to that effect, the commission would soon installing  generators and lamps in all polling centres to facilitate smooth counting in case of  power failures.

He added that FAX machines have since been distributed in the districts to enable the electoral officers transmit results to the commission as quickly as possible.

He added that the Mulungushi International Conference Centre (MICC) will be the final announcement centre.

The opposition Patriotic Front (PF) in Serenje district has claimed that the October 30, 2008 presidential by-election will be the end of the MMD government because the later will be defeated.

Speaking in an interview with ZANIS today, district party chairperson, Martin Chikate said he was confident that the PF would win the forthcoming by-election because chances were now higher than in the previous elections.

Mr. Chikate, who could however not completely rule out acting President Rupiah Banda, said if the MMD wins the presidential by-election, it could be by a small margin.

He said PF campaigns in the district have already started and were so far going on well.

“We are already in the field and working hard.  Things can go either way but the opposition stands a better chance,” he said.

Mr. Chikate has since urged PF cadres in the area to go flat out campaigning and leave no stone unturned.

He said he had no problem with the urban electorate because even in the last general election, PF presidential candidate did well.

Mr. Chikate said the only problem would be in the rural areas where the PF needed to worker hard to ensure victory.

And The Patriotic Front, PF, has extended an olive branch to its Members of parliament who are taking part in the National Constitutional Conference.

PF spokesperson, Given Lubinda, says the MPs are free to return to the party and be incorporated in the presidential campaign team.

The PF had differed with some of its members of parliament after they defied an order to shun the National Constitutional Conference.

The opposition party expelled the MPs for disobeying instructions.

However, the rebel MPs contested the action in court and were granted an injunction restraining their party from harassing them.

However Mr. Lubinda told journalists in Lusaka, Monday that the MPs are now free to return to the party.

He said the MPs should campaign for party President, Michael Sata, ahead of the Presidential by-election, scheduled for October 30th.

ZANIS/KC/CMM/KSH/ENDS.

-Acting President, Rupiah Banda, has advised the MMD on the Copperbelt to base campaign for on truth in during the run up to the October 30, Presidential election.

Mr Banda said this when he arrived this morning at the Ndola International Airport on his way to Chililabombwe where he is expected among hundreds of Zambian soccer fans at this afternoon Zambia-Togo World Cup qualifier.

“We should not tell people lies, tell them the truth, projects that we have embarked on are their for them to see, lets campaign gently, humbly and persistently,” he advised.

ZANIS Sports staffer, Penlop Chansa, reports from Ndola that Mr Banda said the MMD has a huge task of ensuring it emerges victor of the election.

He advised the party to focus the energy at regaining support from the people of the Copperbelt province in line with late President Mwanawasa’s wish.

“Our late President (Dr Levy Patrick Mwanawasa) had always told me how much he wanted to win back the Copperbelt Province,” he said.

Mr Banda also wmphasised the need for members of the paty to sustain the unity in the MMD.

And speaking earlier, MMD Provincial Chairman, Joseph Chilambwe, said Mr Banda was the only capable leader to lead the nation until the 2011 elections.

The Acting President this  afternoon officiated at the Zambia vs Togo match  at Chililabombwe’s Konkola stadium.

Striker Felix Katongo’s thunderbolt kick in the 32 minute brightened Zambia’s chances of qualifying to the 2010 World Cup Africa will host in South Africa.

Felix, young brother to Zambia’s skipper Christopher, utilised the scoring opportunity with a thunderbolt kick out side the box into Togolese net to send the crowd including Acting President Rupiah Banda into ululation.

Felix’s goal puts the Chipolopolo boys back in the saddle of qualifying leading the group with seven points with group leaders Swaziland in second position with four points.

Playing without their skipper and England based stiker Emmanuel Adebuyor, the Hawks of Togo where a shadow of themselves when the allowed the Chipolopolos to enmjoy ball possession and goal attempts.

Zambia gave a message to the visitors through left wing striker Rainford Kalaba in the 17 th minute when he perfectly passed on his stylish and perfect kick to Felix who headed out side the box.

Kalaba’s perfect pass in the 19 th minute to king pin striker Collins Mbesuma failed to yeild results when he (Mbesuma) headed the lover the bar with a keeper to beat.

The match was televised on multi choice’s Super Sport channel 3 across the continent.

ZANIS/MM/ENDS