BILL 7 HAS NOT BEEN WITHDRAWN BUT ONLY DEFERRED
By Prof Michelo Hambulo, University of Harare
The air in the National Assembly hangs heavy not with the promise of progress, but with the chilling shadow of Bill 7. Let there be no confusion: this “evil Bill” has not been withdrawn; it has merely been deferred, a pause that feels more like a strategic retreat before a renewed assault on the foundations of our democracy.
There’s a whispered narrative, a disturbing truth, that President Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND have been misled by a dangerous illusion: the belief that they will cruise to victory in 2026, even if it means securing that win with a dangerously thin parliamentary majority. This, precisely, is why Bill 7 is being pushed with such relentless, almost desperate, vehemence. It’s a calculated move to redraw the very map of our nation, to gerrymander our constituencies, ensuring a numerical dominance in UPND strongholds and, by extension, an unassailable majority of Members of Parliament.
This isn’t about fair representation; it’s about consolidating power, and it chills the blood of anyone who cherishes democratic principles. But that, indeed, is a crisis for another day.
For now, this draconian Bill looms, and the nation’s only discernible bulwark in the National Assembly is the opposition Patriotic Front. Yet, since the 2021 general elections, the PF has been systematically dismembered.
We’ve witnessed the horrifying spectacle of “Imingalato”, the weaponization of the very institutions meant to safeguard justice and fairness: the judiciary, Parliament itself, the police, and even the Electoral Commission of Zambia. One by one, seats have been snatched Kabushi, Kwacha, Mfuwe, Kawambwa and Pambashe leaving the PF bleeding, its parliamentary presence diminished.
Today, the Patriotic Front, a party that should be a vibrant voice of dissent, is held together only by the sheer will of its members, not by its leadership. The state, it seems, has audacioussly imposed leadership on the PF by manipulating the Registrar of Societies. Robert Chabinga, often heard to openly admit receiving instructions from State House regarding the PF’s affairs in Parliament, the Courts, and the Registrar of Societies, stands as a stark symbol of this alleged political puppetry.
This is the party, hobbled and hijacked, that is meant to defend the Zambian people from the very draconian laws the UPND seeks to unleash. After enduring such an onslaught since 2021, can the PF genuinely muster the strength to fight Bill 7, or is it too broken to stand as a true guardian of our democratic ideals?
Our collective, almost visceral, hate for the PF a sentiment often fueled by past grievances, has blinded us to a terrifying reality: between 2021 and 2026, the Patriotic Front is the most significant parliamentary opposition we have. And yet, we stood by, even clapped, when the PF was pounced on, when its very existence as an independent political force was threatened.
Who, then, will fight for the soul of our nation in Parliament? Because, with few brave exceptions, the vast majority of UPND Members of Parliament appear to be tragically compromised, their loyalties seemingly tethered to their personal comfort and business interests rather than to the Zambian people they swore to serve. They are ready to support anything their party brings to the floor; when asked to jump, their only question is, “How high?”
We stand at a precipice. How have we allowed our beloved country to be pushed to the very brink of a one-party state, where the checks and balances vital to a functioning democracy are systematically dismantled, piece by agonizing piece? The revelations from individuals like Chabinga, alleging direct executive interference in the internal affairs of the opposition, paint a truly chilling picture of a democracy in peril.
This isn’t just about politics; this is about the future of our freedoms, our voices, and the very essence of what it means to be a democratic Zambia. The time to awaken to this danger is now.