UPND has asked the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to lift the suspension slapped on the party’s campaign activities in Lusaka’s Kanyama Constituency.
Last week, the ECZ suspended the UPND campaign activities in Kanyama after two PF supporters died when the two parties clashed.
But UPND lawyers have challenged the Commission to lift the suspension the same way they did for PF cadre Chishimba Kambwili.
The letter, addressed to the ECZ chief electoral officer Patrick Nshindano, was also copied to the Attorney General Likando Kalaluka and the Inspector General of Police, Kakoma Kanganja.
“Your manner of umpire in these elections has been seen to be highly skewed in favour of the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) at whose behest you have been unfairly suspending our clients’ political activities in the aforesaid constituencies without hearing their side,” read the letter signed by M Associates senior partner Marshal Muchende and dated August 3, 2021. “Our client has also complained about the PF’s destruction of their campaign materials and violence but their complaints land on death ears from your end. This could not be more unfair! We therefore urge you to lift the suspension of our client’s political activities in Ikeleng’i, Sioma and now Kanyama constituencies and call upon you to host our client for an urgent meeting on Wednesday August 4, 2021 at your convenient time, so that they can give their side of the story.”
The lawyers argued that the UPND had been treated unfairly by the Commission as compared to the way it treated Kambwili.
They explained that if they wanted to be professional, they could have also included their client’s narrative.
“Comparatively, when you suspended Dr Chishimba Kambwili for uttering hate speech against our client’s candidate, you quickly heed to the PF’s outcry and lifted his suspension, but to date you have not replied to our letter of Friday July 30, 2021 calling for you to lift the suspensions in Ikeleng’i to give our client an opportunity to be heard,” the lawyers added. “Please note that we have professionally restrained ourselves from publishing our client’s narrative in this letter to obviate jeopardising police investigations. Our client reserves his rights.”
The lawyers complained that the suspension of the UPND Alliance activities in various places had been done too consecutively.
“We refer to the foregoing and note that we hold a brief of the Secretary General of the United Party for National Development (UPND), Mr Batuke Imenda,” said the lawyers. “Our client has instructed that you have suspended their campaign activities in Kanyama Constituency shortly after making a similar decision in Ikeleng’i and Sioma respectively without affording them an opportunity to be heard.”