BILL 7 – A POLITICAL STRATEGY FAILURE A SELF CREATED MONSTER TO DESTROY UPND
A KBN TV EDITORIAL
Having followed a number of stakeholder submissions, it’s clear that Bill 7, is not just a mistake, but a failure of political strategy, a disaster in waiting, a typical case of digging your own grave.
Yesterday’s launch of a coalition against Bill 7 by the Oasis Forum, is yet again another test case for the UPND administration to demonstrate its respect for democracy and the views of both ordinary citizens and stakeholders.
It’s worth noting that an endless list of stakeholders have raised concerns about Government’s determination to ignore advice and push through with Bill 7 using a process shrouded in secrecy.
The consultative process route they have chosen lacks transparency and accountability as it has been carried out selectively and behind closed doors.
As the coalition pointed out yesterday, it’s a mockery to democracy for the Minister of Justice to travesty the country alone, spending millions of public resources in holding consultative meetings with a few handpicked individuals and hoping to convince the citizenry of wide consultation.
Adopting such a process in the absence of an approved and participatory clear roadmap is not only a mockery, but it’s an insult to the collective wisdom of citizens.
To assume a superior posture and think that the Government will impose its undemocratic, treacherous, ill informed and lopsided process is not only dangerous, but suicidal for a Government desperate to win a second term of office.
The UPND can’t expect that the very people whose views they are so arrogantly and deliberately disrespecting will wake up early on August 13 next year to 8vote them back into office, that’s an impossibility, not the Zambians we know!
Bill 7 must be called out for what it is: a scheme to champion a narrow partisan agenda using women and youth opportunities as a smokescreen.
During a recent Members of Parliament workshop on Bill 7, the convenors failed to produce a delimitation report and show it to the honourable members of Parliament.
It’s deception of the highest order to pretend to be marketing a delimitation process when you know the real intention and motivation is to serve your partisan interests to increase parliamentary seats from perceived strongholds.
If it’s not true that Government is banking on Bill 7 to bolster its chances to increase its numbers in parliament, we challenge the UPND administration and the Electoral Commission of Zambia to publish the delimitation report for the proposed 55 new constituencies.
It’s not true to claim that the delimitation report is a preserve of the Electoral Commission Zambia. It belongs to the people of Zambia, to the voters.
Unless the UPND administration are telling us that all MPs are under a spell of “Do as I say” and their ability to think independently has been suspended, we don’t see them reasonably voting for a Bill that has been rejected by their constituents.
Bill 7 if not withdrawn, is another self created animal joining a list of things working against the UPND’s fast dwindling popularity.
Another example of Schemes by the Mingalatoon. He can never do anything straight. What he does is always laced with Dishonesty, Untruths, Insincerity and just outright crookery.
His Schemes over Edgar Lungu ‘s funeral has been defeated.
The Country will defeat his Schemes for a Political Hegemony of the Sacreds and Allied Sacreds..It’s a BID scheme and it will be defeated.
We will demand for the release of the Delimitation Report and full Census Report…The Mingalatoon won’t win the fight he has picked with the Zambian people.
@Zambia Old saint…. You are just a confused fellow who is bitter. HH is no LONGER an under Five. Let that stick in STONY skull.
Stop cheating and misleading Zambians. The majority are for the amendments, only the minority are against. If those men and women are really not able to see the benefits of amending the constitution it’s up to them. The majority will move forward.
Majority of UPND want constitutional amendments but the mighty majority of Zambians do not want this shredded constitutional amendment process as this is not driven by the citizens of this country but by very we know it all it and those who voted for them are less intelligent and useless to understand what the mingalato political party of the power hungry that are now corrupting the power and does not know that it’s better for power to corrupt you than you corrupting the power. The end is always sad and misery and messy so as UPND will regret just as Chiluba regretted and died a sad person. Listening is a most powerful attribute one can possess
Majority of UPND want constitutional amendments but the mighty majority of Zambians do not want this shredded constitutional amendment process as this is not driven by the citizens of this country but by very we know it all it and those who voted for them are less intelligent and useless to understand what the mingalato political party of the power hungry that are now corrupting the power and does not know that it’s better for power to corrupt you than you corrupting the power. The end is always sad and misery and messy so as UPND will regret just as Chiluba regretted and died a sad person. Listening is a most powerful attribute one can possess which the current leadership of UPND does not have
Lungu went ahead and signed a new constitution full of Lagunas without any consultation or seeking input from anyone and now you’re talking of Bill 7 being bad? Why don’t you say what’s wrong with the things you don’t like about Bill 7. Don’t talk about timing, the government is still within it’s mandated term with another 1 year to go. Most of those against Bill 7 are people looking for room to manipulate the constitution if God forbid they were voted into. They are aware if the Lacunas they put in the constitution, and they would ensure that no elections would ever take place again as they would keep on resigning. Just look at the majority of them. They are all criminals including the so called Tasila and that’s why they came up these rubbish stories of Lungu leaving instructions.