PRESS STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
LUSAKA — 3rd October 2020.
*WE ARE GEARED FOR THE PROTESTS – LISWANISO, KABWITA TELL KAPESO*
“AS long as we follow the laid down procedure, it is our constitutional right to assemble and protest against anyone who wants to disturb the peace Zambia has been enjoying since independence,” United Party for National Development Deputy National Youth Chairman Gilbert Liswaniso has told the Zambia Police Command.
Reacting to Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Operations Bonny Kapeso’s intimation that police are reluctant to allow the planned countrywide protests, Mr Liswaniso said it is every Zambian’s responsibility to safeguard prevailing peace in the country by stopping those scheming to disenfranchise citizens from voting.
This was at a consultative meeting called by the Zambia Police as a follow-up to the UPND and the National Democratic Congress notice to the Inspector General of Police Kakoma Kanganja on the planned countrywide protests against Electoral Commission of Zambia Chairperson Judge Essau Chulu and his Chief Electoral Officer Patrick Nshindano.
Mr Kapeso’s suggestion that the petition be taken to the two named individuals was also shotdown by Mr Liswaniso and NDC’s National Youth Chairman who noted that it was not the police’s role to suggest how the opposition should engage other stakeholders in the electoral process.
Mr Kapeso told the two youth leaders that the Zambia Police wanted to be impartial by being servants of the people as the country heads to the presidential and general elections next year.
He said the police command was willing to engage all stakeholders to clear any misunderstandings.
However, Mr Kapeso sought to arm twist the youth leaders by warning that police would unleash their newly acquired arsenal as a last resort if the two parties do not come to an agreement on the way forward.
Mr Liswaniso, however, told the command that the newly acquired war equipment by the police will not deter the Zambian youths in standing up for their birth and constitutional rights.
“We are pleading with our youths to follow the laid down procedures but they are willing to go on the streets without involving you. We see youths from the ruling party protesting on the streets without notifying the police and they have now started storming the police stations and beating our officers there. It is important we reach an equitable agreement the youths will understand, otherwise they will see us as sale outs,” said Mr Liswaniso.
Mr Kabwita said the youths of Zambia want to safeguard the peace the country has enjoyed since independence hence their decision to stand up against Judge Chulu and Mr Nshindano’s maneuvers to disenfranchise citizens in taking part in the electoral process of the country.
And UPND Lusaka District Youth Chairman Archritius Mwanakayaya earlier today delivered a police notification on the planned protests in Lusaka.
The opposition political parties plan to demonstrate what they termed as the “undemocratic and illegal decision by ECZ to discard the 2016 Voter’s register in preference for a completely new one.
The demonstration is also aimed at pushing for the resignation of the ECZ Judge Chulu as well as Chief Electoral Officer Patrick Nshindano for incompetence.
Addressing the media, Mr Mwanakayaya said Mr Chulu and Mr Nshindano are a danger to the country’s peace and its survival and wondered what mechanism the two hope to use to capture the targetted 9 million voters when the registration of the voters for 2011, 2015 and 2016 took a number of months to capture.
*(C) UPND MEDIA TEAM*