JUSTICE minister Given Lubinda says the collapse of Bill 10 is a temporary setback for the nation but it will bounce back in 2021.
Lubinda says the failure of Bill 10 is a plus for the ruling PF and vowed to use it to decampaign the opposition in next year’s Presidential and General Elections.
Lubinda was addressing the press at the Ministry of Justice where he announced his reconciliation with PF cadre Martin Mambwe who was recently pardoned by President Edgar Lungu after he was sentenced to two years imprisonment for assaulting the justice minister.
He told Mambwe, “From now on I am putting you as my bodyguard. You might not be near me or always with me but I am putting you as my bodyguard of peace”.
Lubinda claimed that he wept following the sentencing of Mambwe for two years because he felt sorry for him.
He said he forgave Mambwe the very day he saw him at court.
Lubinda asked Mambwe and youths in the country to stay away from violence.
“From now on I am putting you as my bodyguard. You might not be near me or always with me but I am putting you as my bodyguard of peace. When you see something is about to happen please run away. I wept that day in court because I felt sorry for you and I went to the President, I wept, asking him to pardon you and thank God he listened,” Lubinda said.
And Mambwe, who was accompanied by his mother, thanked President Lungu for pardoning him.
At the same briefing Lubinda said the Constitution amendment bill would bounce back in September 2021.
“Is the collapse of Bill 10 a successful failure? For the country it is sad. However, it is a temporary setback – temporary setback, for one year from now President Edgar Lungu and his government will start again. So for one year, the Zambians will have to live with the difficult circumstances but as a political party, as the political player and a political strategist, I can say to you that this is a good thing. It’s a good failure. A good failure because now I have something to go and tell the people. I’ll go to the people and say please look in their eyes. Why did they stop this? Let them explain, so as a politician I am happy because it’s not us on the defence,” Lubinda said. “So in this particular case the question to be asked is what was it that was earned by those who are celebrating? What was it worth that Bill 10 was to do which was to disadvantage them? Because for them to celebrate, it means that there is something that they earned. What is it that they gained from the collapse of Bill 10? If there is anything that was in Bill 10, which was meant to disadvantage them, did they speak about it? If there is something that I’m not happy about in any particular law and I’m a member of parliament, what can I do? I’ll speak about it and when given an opportunity as a parliamentarian I will go to Parliament and argue that case. I will not just sit back and say ‘well, let me wait and see whether you succeed or not’.
Because that is resigning yourself to your responsibility.”
He said number one role for a parliamentarian was to legislate.
“That’s the number one function of any member of parliament. If I abdicated on that one fundamental responsibility of a member of parliament, to refuse to take part in legislating the supreme law of the land – it’s not anything to celebrate. It is not anything to celebrate,” Lubinda said. “To refuse on one hand to debate the Constitution of the land and then the very next day to ask the Minister of Finance, ‘Minister when are you going to release CDF (Constituency Development Fund)? That is a mockery. That shows you how some of my friends consider their responsibilities to their country. They would rather use Parliament to ask the Vice-President questions like Madam Vice-President, when is the bridge on the stream in my constituency going to be constructed?’ Meanwhile, when the Constitution was brought they decided not to take part and yet at the same time, they are claiming that the Constitution is bad.”
He challenged UPND members of parliament to be bold enough and tell Zambians what they have gained from the collapse of Bill 10.
“So the question is can they be bold enough to say what is it that they gained from this? What is it that they got to cause them to celebrate? To celebrate drinking, I saw in one video, drinking Mosi, drinking Castle, drinking Four Cousins wine and dancing like they were really on top of the moon. What is it at again…?” Lubinda wondered.
He said he would ask President Lungu to allow him proceed to present the political parties’ bill.
“I can assure you come September 2021, we’ll go back to these matters under the tutelage of President Edgar Lungu. We shall do that. Some people have been asking me what about the public order Act? And these are members of the opposition asking me after the collapse of Bill 10. They have come to me, asking me. What about the public order Act?” Lubinda said. “What happened in Parliament, Leader of the Opposition, leader UPND [Jack Mwiimbu] stood up and said ‘Mr Speaker, we don’t want to present that bill until after we’re finished with Bill 10. Let us do the Constitution amendments first. That’s when you bring the public order Act’. You can’t have the cake and eat it at the same time. So we shall wait for the amendment of the Constitution before we amend the public order Act. But the one thing I can assure you is that I am going to request His Excellency the President to allow me to proceed with the political parties Bill because it’s provided for in Article 60 of the Constitution amendment number 2 for 2016, it’s there…If I don’t do that people can go to court and say he hasn’t prescribed because the Constitution says they shall be prescribed by law to govern article 60 and that’s the political parties bill. So my dear friends that bill as soon as I get authority from His Excellency, I’m presenting it to Parliament. So those parties that were thinking they’ve run away from having democracy because of Bill 10, shall now be obliged through the political parties’ bill.”
Lubinda said, “I’m doing this because the party to which I belong is determined to continue to be a democratic party, to have regular elections to allow women to participate, to allow youths to participate in the leadership of the party and the leadership of the country”.