Sun, 04 Jun 2017 12:44:37 +0000
THE seething rancour on President Edgar Lungu’s sole candidacy for 2021 general elections within the governing Patriotic Front (PF) is neither here nor there.
We observe that the statement by PF secretary general Davis Mwila urging those with ambitions for the party presidency to shelve them until 2026 as the party already had a candidate for 2021 in President Edgar Lungu, opened a Pandora’s Box.
This mainly, the rank and file who feel the debate is sterile and therefore, distractive and ultimately destructive to party unity.
On the other hand, Mr Mwila’s declaration has drawn sharp reactions from PF party members like the Roan Constituency lawmaker Chishimba Kambwili who has for a long time expressed interest to contest the party presidency.
It is public knowledge that Mr Kambwili overtly launched his presidential bid in December 2014 as the party was in the process of finding a suitable candidate to contest in the impromptu 2015 presidential elections which were occasioned by the demise of its founder leader president Michael Sata.
Ever since President Edgar Lungu was adopted as PF presidential candidate, Mr Kambwili has clearly shown that he still eyes the party presidency though in a wrong way.
Mr Kambwili does not need to be antagonistic with the party structures for him to be considered to contest as PF presidential candidate, that is, if that time will ever come.
To suggest that declaring President Edgar Lungu as PF sole candidate for 2021 is a shortcut to the PF presidency and undemocratic is not only myopic but grossly misleading.
We think Mr Kambwili ought to distinguish circumstances surrounding the adoption of the PF presidential candidate in the 2015 elections from the manner the party has decided to arrive at its candidate in preparation for the 2021 general elections.
At the time, the party did not have a party president due to what had transpired, hence there was urgent need to fill the position whereas under the current scenario, the PF has a party president in Edgar Lungu. Therefore, this jostling for the party presidency is otiose.
What Mr Kambwili ought to understand is that there is an unwritten rule in politics that you do not challenge an incumbent. For example, the United States of America, which is a model of democracy, whether it is the Democrats or Republicans, the incumbent is almost always adopted to re-contest in the general elections.
We note that the last time this issue came up, it was at Southdown Airport in Kalulushi when President Lungu simply expressed his opinion that he had read the Republican Constitution, and that he is eligible to re-contest in 2021.
At the time, a cadre of scholars forcefully rallied behind President Edgar Lungu’s position stamping his eligibility to re-contest the general election.
As would be anticipated, some parts of the country began to endorse his 2021 candidacy citing various reasons which trend has resurfaced.
Is curtailing this debate in order? Why should party members be gagged?
The reality on the ground is that whether this debate is postponed to a later time or not, the party has already taken a position that President Edgar Lungu will re-contest the 2021 general elections on the PF ticket.
Therefore, we urge PF members with presidential ambitions to support the position the party has taken. Their time to contest for the PF presidency will surely come and being antagonistic does not make them popular in any way.
If anything, being populist only reduces the chances of such power hungry individuals from showcasing true leadership that the party and Zambians in general can trust.
