Lungu knows he has lost – Akafumba
Source The Mast By Oliver Chisenga
THE statement issued by State House on behalf of President Edgar Lungu clearly shows that he knows that he has lost, says National Democratic Congress leader Josephs Akafumba.
In a statement on Saturday, President Lungu claimed that the general elections in Southern, North-Western and Western provinces where characterised by violence, rendering the whole exercise a nullity.
In the statement issued by his Special Assistant for Press and Public Relations Isaac Chipampe, President Lungu indicated that the PF was consulting on the next course of action concerning the general elections held on August 12.
President Lungu further claimed that PF poling agents were brutalized and chased from polling stations, a situation that left the ruling party’s votes unprotected in the three provinces.
He also cited the killing of PF North-Western chairman Jackson Kungu during voting, and Simon Chihili shortly before voting, as criminal acts that rendered the general elections not free and fair.
“Right now, some of our agents and supporters are in hiding because of these criminal acts. How can the elections be fair when people have been murdered and many others are hiding after being brutalized. In that democracy, we have written to the Electoral Commission of Zambia but they have continued announcing the results. So we are consulting on the next decision we have to make,” read President Lungu’s statement.
But Akafumba, whose party is a member of the UPND Alliance, said President Lungu might eventually miss out on a chance to bow out as a statesman if he continues to insist on something that is not attainable at law.
“The noble thing for President Lungu is to let ECZ do its job, announce the winner and after the winner is announced then if he so desires, he can now petition giving those reasons he has put in his statement. It’s utter shocking that State House can issue such a notice on which they are alleging violence and that their polling agents where chased from polling stations in Southern, North-Western and Western [provinces] and that their provincial chairman was killed and it is on that basis that they had asked ECZ to stop announcing the results and that he surprised that they have gone ahead to announce the results,” Akafumba said.
Akafumba, a former justice permanent secretary said President Lungu is a lawyer who knows very well that what he is trying to force the ECZ to do is legally unattainable.
He noted that President Lungu was just a candidate like any other of the 16 who took part in the general elections conducted by ECZ.
“The ECZ have done their part, they have conducted the elections and the Zambian people across the divide have voted and now we are in the process of announcing the results and 31 constituencies have so far been announced and now he then blows the whistle that they must stop announcing … they cannot and there is no provisions of the law that can support what he is trying to do because him being a candidate he cannot stop ECZ from announcing the results and no other candidate has those powers to stop ECZ from announcing the results,” Akafumba said.
He advised President Lungu and any other candidate to allow the ECZ announce all results, declare the winners and if not satisfied petition the Constitutional Court citing his reasons and proving that indeed the violence was so widespread that it affected the outcome of the elections.
“How does he know that at the end of it all, it’s him who is going to be declared winner? Is he indirectly telling us that he has had sight of results and that he has lost and now wants to stop the will of the people from being pronounced by ECZ? The ECZ must continue doing their work but for us in the UPND Alliance we are aware of the results that President Lungu has fared extremely very bad,” he said.
Akafumba wondered what explanation President Lungu has for the Chililabombwe and Kalulushi results.
He wondered whether even in other constituencies where the President has lost, the PF agents were chased as well.
“How about in Northern Province, Luapula and Muchinga where he fared badly and Chingola – where their agents chased from the polling stations as well? Sometimes it’s only fair when your time is up you leave the stage when a few people are still clapping. For now what we know and what President Lungu knows very well is that he has lost these elections and it’s only fair for him to just call it a day and let ECZ complete its job to declare president HH as a winner and then we move forward as a country,” he said.
Akafumba said analysing the statement from State House, President Lungu knows very well that he has lost and has conceded.
He wondered how a winning candidate would stop announcing results at 31 constituencies, leaving 156 more in limbo.
Akafumba said what President Lungu wants done is unheard of in any democracy in the world.
“As in the Alliance we are comfortable that our candidate is comfortable in the lead and you can see that from the 31 constituencies announced so far, he is at 62 per cent and Lungu is somewhere around 31% or so. So inshita nga yafika, ninshi yafika; just leave peacefully. Nabalusa, it happens. He is not the first one in this country to lose an election. President Kaunda lost, Ba Rupiah [Banda] lost the elections so it’s also his time. He has had seven years with the Zambian people so he must leave peacefully than cause all these unnecessary problems,” Akafumba said.
He warned that it was such maneouvres that can annoy people to go on the streets.
“There is no way one candidate out of the 16 who says stop the election when others have even conceded and congratulated the winner president Hakainde Hichilema; how can ECZ do that unless they want to cause a problem. He cannot stop the people’s train; naiya kale,” said Akafumba.