HH didn’t consult Zambians on removal of death penalty – Silavwe
By Fanny Kalonda
GOLDEN Party of Zambia leader Jackson Silavwe says President Hakainde Hichilema did not consult Zambians on removal of the death penalty, as majority submissions across the country want capital punishment maintained in the Constitution.
He argues that President Hichilema has imposed his will and that of the cooperating partners on Zambians on the death penalty removal.
Silavwe said he was one of the Zambians that support the death penalty for people who have been convicted of capital offences such as murder.
“[On Wednesday] I declined the invitation to attend an event at State House on the abolition of the death penalty for three major reasons. President Hichilema and his administration have not consulted the people of Zambia on the removal of the death penalty. This is against the majority submissions across the country by our people that capital punishment be maintained in our Constitution,” he said. “President Hichilema has imposed his will and that of the cooperating partners on the Zambian people on the death penalty removal. President Hichilema has gone against the wishes and aspirations of the majority of the Zambian’s on the death penalty. The procedure used was extremely ambiguous as the death penalty is still in the republican Constitution but removed from the Act/penal code.”
Silavwe however said repealing the defamation of the President law is a step in the right direction.
“I am one of those Zambians that support the death penalty 100 per cent for people who have been convicted of capital offences such as murder. As for the repealing of the defamation laws against the President, it is a step in the right direction, which deserves commendation,” said Silavwe. “I wish to encourage President Hichilema and the new dawn government to expunge all the defamation laws from the statute books to make this step meaningful.”