By MacDonald Chipenzi
PRESIDENT LUNGU IN VOTING BUYING DRIVE IN DUNDUMWEZI.
It is like the 235 votes he got in 2016 General Election in Dundumwezi constituency of Kalomo District have been unremoveable political dent onn his political cloak.
Since 2016, the President, with the help of the local chief in Dundumwezi, has frequented the place commissioning this and that project and donating this and that to try and impress the people esp the close to 40, 000 electorates there
It is good to make peace with your political opponents during campaigns to gain lost electoral support but must know the limit of that reconciliation lest one violates the law.
Yesterday, on ZNBC main evening news, a news item popped in that President Lungu had donated 45 bicycles to Dundumwezi constituency to ease transport challenges in the areas and that those bicycles would be shared among the subjects of Chiefs Chikanta and Siachitema.
Unfortunately, the donation of these bicycles is coming in the middle of the General Election campaign and, truly speaking, an Act of abrogation of the Electoral Code of conduct with impunity.
President Lungu, just like his outgoing vice-president, Bo Inonge Wina, is abusing the presidential office and regulation 15(k) of the Electoral Code of conduct with impunity.
Most probable, those bicycles are not secured from his pocket money since chief Chikanta admitted it was “empowerment” gesture coming during election campaigns but DMMU office.
It is important to remind President Lungu and the chiefs being used to prop up the so called politically motivated “empowerment” that empowerment actvities and donations during election campaigns are an electoral blackmail and part of voting buying strategy by politicians which are outlawed in the electoral code of conduct.
Such acts done during election campaigns attracts post election petitions from losing candidates and must be avoided.
As if that was not enough abuse and violation of the Electoral Code of conduct with impunity, suddenly, floods have resurfaced in Mpulungu District of Northem Province and already the DMMU coordinator, Chanda Kabwe, pops in.
The country is aware of the challenges being faced by the Mpulungu constituency parliamentary candidate, Freedom Sikazwe, to retain his seat.
The possibility that these floods are politically generated to help boost the candidate’s electoral chances is very high using DMMU as the institution that has played this role effectively in the past.
We need a fair and even play field during the campaigns not the use of subtle means to win electoral support riding on politically created transport challenges and floods in some constituencies to win votes.
I submit…Chipenzi