Oasis Forum Press Conference to Criticize the President
Sources have revealed that the Oasis Forum will hold a press conference tomorrow, June 3, 2024, where they will focus on criticizing President Hakainde Hichilema, than on his opponents.
Accusations Against the President
The Forum will accuse the President of lacking inclusivity and marginalizing certain regions in the public service. They Forum will officially recognize the term “Zambezi Region,” coined by Fred M’membe and Sishuwa Sishuwa, alleging it as a region the President favors in appointments to government and quasi-government positions. The sources say the Forum will deliberately ignore historical perspective of a public service that was and is still dominated by everyone else other than from the newly coined Zambezi region.
Lack of Evidence
The source further reveals that the Oasis Forum will not present any evidence for the alleged biased appointments but will justify the recent “divisive” statements from the architects of tribalism and alleged unbalanced public service, as a protest against the so called marginalization of the North-East.
President’s Stance
The assertions from Oasis Forum will blatantly ignore that President Hakainde Hichilema’s administration has largely kept the civil service, local authorities, and quasi-government organizations intact with officials from the previous regime. This has continually drawn criticism from his party loyalists, but for the sake of national unity, the President has remained steadfast in this position.
Furthermore, of the 8 nominated MPs, the President has reserved 5 positions for the North – East Region, while elected MPs Chipoka Mulenga, Frank Tayali and Paul Kabuswe and Mtolo Phiri from the same area have been given Cabinet positions by the President. It would therefore be fair to say the North – East Region dominates Cabinet which government’s Supreme decision making body.
Divisive Statements
Sources said the Forum resolved not to publicly identify or shame the authors of what they discussed as ethnicity and tribal war mongering. They agreed to be diplomatic and termed the happenings as “divisive” statements but will not define the term “divisive.”
Ethnic Hate Speech
The source indicates that the Oasis Forum will attempt to equate ethnic hate speech directed at a tribe with hate speech against an individual. All this is in a bid to cast public doubt on the law enforcement clamp down on ethnicity divide which has heightened with the support of former President Edgar Lungu as an opposition political party member.
Policy Inconsistency
The sources said the Forum will also highlight what they perceive as policy inconsistency in President Hichilema’s government and cite the contradictory statements by ZESCO and the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) on tariff and fuel increments.
The source says one of the members objected to this being included saying this administration has encouraged Boards to be independent of politicians by removing Permanent Secretaries from the Boards. A heated discussion followed this guidance where it was pointed out that the ERB Board which passed a vote of no confidence in their Chairperson after such contradictions was an example of good governance and was actually deputised by seasoned lawyer.
Foreign Affairs Vacancy
At the planned press conference, the Forum will raise concerns about the vacant position of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, disregarding that this is at the President’s discretion. They will also accuse government of prioritising activities that alleviate citizens hardships as a result of drought and will say such monetary resources should have been used on constitutional reforms process.
Constitutional Reforms
The sources said this will embarrass LAZ, a member of OASIS Forum. The source said LAZ could not speak out on the matter, because at the 2023 LAZ AGM in Livingstone, constitutional lawyer John Sangwa and other lawyers recommended to government to prioritise economic stability and recovery against constitutional reforms. The sources said this resolution which will be ignored was widely reported in the media.
Composition of the Oasis Forum
The sources said the press conference tomorrow will largely be driven by over powering financial interests from certain voiceferous organisations which are suspected to be benefitting from known political groupings.
The Oasis Forum comprises the Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ), the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia (EFZ), the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ), and the Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops (ZCCB).
Post 2021 elections, citizens consistently called on civil society and religious bodies to lead in ensuring they are representative of the ethnic and tribal diversity of the Country.
Most associations in the Oasis Forum have failed to justify the ethnic composition of their leadership, resulting in a long standing perception that there are major and minor tribes in Zambia.
The sources say this perception accounts for the hegemonic agenda that President Mwanawasa suffered and now is against President Hichilema, who hails from the South.