Copperbelt Province Chairperson for United National Independence Party (UNIP) Mrs. Jermima Banda has disassociated the party from the statement issued by provincial secretary Isaac Zyambo on the resignation of Colonel Panji Kaunda from the party.

Speaking to Zambia News and Information Services (ZANIS) in Chingola, Mrs. Banda
said the UNIP provincial executive has not made any comment on colonel Panji
Kaunda’s reported resignation from the party.

Mrs. Banda said UNIP on the Copperbelt is not shaken by Panji’s resignation.

Mrs. Banda said UNIP on the Copperbelt had more serious issues to discuss with its
members such as the ongoing constitution making process and other matters pertaining
to the organisation of the party.

She said as a party, they are in support of government’s stand on the adoption of
the new republican constitution as they would also like to see a constitution that
will stand the test of time and not one that will please certain individuals.

Mrs. Banda has since strongly warned party leaders in the province to desist from
issuing press statement without the party’s knowledge as this would breed  anarchy
in the party.

MINISTER of Justice, George Kunda, has assured the nation that the proposed constitutional conference will not depart from the Mung’omba Constitution Review Commission (CRC) recommendations.And Mr Kunda said the CRC erred when it recommended that a constituent assembly (CA) should have final and binding decisions above Parliament.

Speaking on a Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation, Fifth National Development Plan radio programme on the subject: “The constitution and its impact on national development,” Mr Kunda was concerned that some people had not read through the CRC report.

He said the CRC was alive to the fact that legislative powers should not be given to the CA.

Mr Kunda explained that although the CA could be vested with legislative powers by amending Article 62 of the constitution which vested legislative powers in Parliament, there was no need to give a new body such powers for the sole purpose of coming up with a new constitution.

“The constitutional conference which we are going to create will have the characteristics of enabling people to debate the constitution thoroughly with the purpose of reaching consensus. The constitutional conference cannot make law,” Mr Kunda said.

He said the CRC made a mistake when it recommended that the CA would make the final and binding decision on the contents of the constitution.

The minister said two constitutional lawyers; professors Muna Ndulo and Patrick Mvunga also made this observation.

He said the supremacy of Parliament must be preserved.

“Indeed Parliament is supreme because it is vested with that supremacy by the constitution in Article 62. The people of Zambia created the constitution and (with) this clause, we can’t go anywhere else,” Mr Kunda said.

He explained that a national referendum was mandatory if article 79 of the constitution was to be changed.

“Professor Mvunga has said if the constitutional conference will do the same thing that the constituent assembly will do then well and good.

The constitutional conference is consistent with the CRC recommendations,” Mr Kunda said.

He said the Oasis Forum must convince politicians that their position on the constitution review process was the right one.

But Oasis Forum spokesperson, Musa Mwenye, argued that the CA provided the necessary safeguards against possible manipulation of the content of the constitution by politicians.

He argued that the difference between a constitutional conference and the CA in the manner the Zambia Centre for Inter-Party Dialogue (ZCID) had proposed it was that members of Parliament could change what the people recommended.

Southern African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes executive director, Lee Habasonda, was concerned that the constitution review process seemed to be driven by political parties.
Mr Habasonda said this had been done in the past and the results were bad.

ZCID spokesperson, Newton Ng’uni, said there was need to avoid a situation where Parliament was challenged because members of Parliament would not be comfortable if their powers were taken away.

The Consitinuent Assembly is not an easy route to take in making a costitution. 

The Chief Government Spokesperson said this is because setting up a Constituent Assembly will call for parliament to surrender some of its powers.

Mike Mulongoti said it is not likely that parliamentarians can agree to surrender their powers to facilitate the establishment of a Constitutent Assembly.

Mr. Mulongoti who is also Information Minister was speaking at a constitution seminar organised by the inter-religious federation for world peace.

He said the country might not have a new constitution by 2011 election if the constitution making process is done through the Constituent Assembly because it is a long route.

President Levy Mwanawasa has expressed sadness over the strike by unionised workers at Kansanshi mine in Solwezi in the North Western Province.

The President expressed the sadness today at Solwezi Airport on arrival from Lusaka
this morning on his way to Lumwana mine.

Mr. Mwanawasa, however noted that, for many years, Northwestern Province had been
called a Cinderella Province and the same workers on strike had no employment and
wondered what will happen to them and their families if Kansanshi mine closes down.

He said resorting to strike action would not solve anything but distortion of the
mining company.

He said he would wanted to visit Kansanshi mine but this time he could not go there
when workers have withdrawn labour.

The President said he would only visit Lumwana Mine to inspect progress there and
encourage the management to continue with their plans and work.

The strike action at Kansanshi Mine started on 11/07/2007 when workers strated
demanding to be paid their 25 percent wage increase.

The Africa Union (AU) says Africa needs billions of dollars to mitigate the challenges of post conflict reconstruction and peace building on the continent.

AU Commission Post Conflict Reconstruction and Peace Building Expert, Dr. Naison
Ngoma said resources that have been provided on the continent in comparison to other
region, was insufficient to meet its needs.

He stated that although the response from the international community has been
overwhelming more needs to be done.

The AU Expert said effective strategies needs to be put in place to ensure that
countries engaging out of conflicts are assisted.

Dr. Ngoma was speaking during a press briefing ahead of the AU Post Conflict
Reconstruction and Development Policy Workshop scheduled for next week.

He noted that Commission seeks to embrace all stakeholders in implementing the AU
Post Conflict and Development Policy.

And speaking at the same function, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa
(COMESA) Civil Society Expert Elizabeth Mutunga said the region having countries
that have emerged from conflict was party to policy formulation.

She said COMESA has since taken up the initiative to translate the policy to
actionable programmes.

The state has submitted that the arguments raised by lawyers representing former President, Frederick Chiluba not to register the London High Court judgement are misconcieved and misleading.

The state submitted that all laws in Zambia which include statutory instruments are judiciary noticed and that it is not for the State to show that a statutory instrument was passed.

This was during a continued hearing of a preliminary motion raised by Dr. Chiluba’s lawyers before Lusaka High Court Judge, Japhet Banda challenging the registration of the London High Court Judgment in Zambia.

The state has since asked Judge, Banda to dismiss with costs the motion of the preliminary issue.

But Dr. Chiluba’s lawyers argued that to accept what is being proposed will open up to any commonwealth country to come and register judgements.

He has asked the court that the preliminary issue be upheld and the order of registering the May 4 judgement be set aside with costs.

Lawyer John Sangwa said the state has not complied with part two of the foreign judgment reciprocal act that requires a presidential statutory order before attempting to register a foreign judgment in Zambia.

Judge Banda has reserved ruling to August 10.

ZNBC

African Union (AU) Commission Expert on Post Conflict Reconstruction and Peace Building has supported the idea for the formulation of the Africa Union government.

Dr. Naison Ngoma observed that countries on the continent if they are configured
underone Government, they would be effective in addressing, economic, political and
issues of security and defence.

The AU expert stated that countries as single states are vulnerable to various
external factors.

At the just ended AU summit in Accra, Ghana, African leaders failed to reach an
agreement on the establishment of the African government.

The Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and other AU countries said the
continent has not yet attained higher levels of political and economic integration
to warrant this.

President Levy Mwanawasa who also attended the AU Summit in Ghana recently said
Zambia would consult widely before committing itself saying the proposal had serious
implications on political structures.

President Levy Mwanawasa has sent a congratulatory message to newly appointed  British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Mr Brown is also the new leader of the United Kindom Labour party.

President Mwanawasa has also sent a message to former British Premier Tony Brown. 

In his message to Mr Brown, the President said he trusted that his Government will
maintain the warm  bilateral and multilateral relations that exists between the two
countries.

This is contained in a statement issued to ZANIS in Lusaka today by Special
Assistant to the President for Press and Public Relations John Musukuma.

Mr Mwanawasa assured Mr Brown of the Zambian government’s commitment to maintaining the good relations between the two countries. 

And in his message to Mr Blair, the President said on behalf of the Goverment and
people of Zambia, he appreciated the role the former UK Prime Minister played in
alleviating the challenges facing the African continent.

President Mwanawasa noted that Zambia has been a beneficiary of the causes Mr Blair
personally championed during his term of office as Prime Minister of the United
kingdom and during his presidency of the European union and G8.

Mr Mwanawasa wished Mr Blair well in his future endeavours and hoped that he would
continue to champion the cause for Africathat is our cherished vision that the people of Africa continent saying the continent envisaged that one day its peoplewill have access to basic necessities of life.