By McDonald Chipenzi
THE CALL BY POLITICAL PARTIES FOR THE ECZ COMMISSIONERS TO RESIGN 11 MONTHS TO THE GENERAL ELECTION.
YESTERDAY, political parties under the auspices of the Zambia Centre for Interparty Dialogue (ZCID), other than the largest opposition party UPND which pulled out of the Centres months ago, resolved to call for the resignation of the entire Commission for not listening to political parties concerns ahead of the 2021 General Election.
One concern cited has been the high nomination fees being imposed on the prospective aspiring candidates for any elective position in the country though ECZ argues that the fees were arrived at after consultations with all stakeholders.
The political parties, which included the ruling PF, resolved also to withdraw from the Political parties Liaison Committee of the ECZ.
This call from political parties on the Commission to resign has serious electoral ramifications and if not addressed quickly hinges on the credibility of the outcome of the 2021 General Election .
Firstly, the elections are just 11 MONTHS from this month and appointing a totally new team may have its own challenges though Malawi is a good example on how a new Commission can discharge its duty within a short period of being reconstituted.
Secondly, the fact that, even the ruling party led by a person who appointed these commissioners has joined the call for their resignation, shows the high levels of loss of stakeholders confidence in the ECZ and its Commissioners.
How, then, is the country going into a major election with such kind of stakeholders’ mistrust and loss of confidence in a commission?
The failure, according to political parties by ECZ not to listen to its concerns has caused this loss of trust and confidence not only from the opposition political parties alone but also the ruling party and appointing authority.
This is a serious point of reflection by the Commission to salvage its tattered public image from the 2016 General Election.
It is and must no longer be business as usual for the Commission. These are serious dents on its image and self-introspection is key by the Commission to trace where it has gone astray.
Even the bringing in of the so called “eminent persons” to advise the Commission will not save the Commission from this stakeholders’ backlash.
I submit