BREBNER: Frank Talk with ECL
Courtesy of Conversations with Memorable Personalities
Lusaka based Human rights activist Brebner Changala last evening paid a courtesy call on former president Edgar Lungu with an open agenda touching on cross cutting issues with governance matters dominating the conversation. They also discussed the happenings during the transition period after he lost power to President Hakainde Hichilema in August 2021 emphasizing that he freely conceded defeat and offered to help his successor in whatever way possible to ensure not only a smooth transition but also thereafter.
The former president also touched on the 2016 elections concerning the debate that ensued suggesting that the Speaker needed to take over during the time the opposition UPND pursued, in the Constitutional Court, the petition against his re-election because his continued stay in State House with instruments of power was illegal. He said in this case, he was also ready and willing to handover to the Speaker and fly to Mfuwe to await the outcome of the court action against him.
Former president Lungu said in this regard, he summoned the then Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Patrick Matibini, to State Lodge with the view of handing over power to him but after a long discussion, Speaker Matibini advised against that because there was no legal basis. The Attorney General also shared this view.
“That’s how I continued during the period the petition was going on,” he said. “But people created lies that I was holding on to power illegally. To the contrary, I was ready and willing to handover to the Speaker if the law required me to do so. Matibini is still there you can ask him. Just like you can ask judge Esau Chulu who was the ECZ chairperson. He can confirm to you that there was no resistance. But people are always fed on lies. Like I heard from one of the televangelists that lies can quickly fly all over the world as the truth is tying laces but at some point the truth arrives no matter how long it takes.”
The conversation lasted for over three hours. So this is the nutshell for now.
Enjoy the first excerpt here below.
