Zambia not dictatorship

Sun, 09 Jul 2017 11:29:39 +0000

WE agree with outgoing Africa Union Economic, Social and Cultural Council (AU-ECOSOCC) Presiding Officer Joseph Chilengi that there is no dictatorship in Zambia because this portrays a true picture of the state of the nation.

Zambians of good intent and the international community must now know that the dictatorship mantra is nothing but a mere political slogan that a handful of disgruntled individuals have adopted to advance their ill-conceived agenda.

“As African Union, we want to say that Zambia is not sliding into dictatorship. Zambia’s human rights and democratic credentials are very high and vibrant and they continue to be an inspiration to the entire continent and the world,” Mr Chilengi said.

This observation definitely rubbishes a heavy-handed political crusade in this country spearheaded mainly by losers of the 2016 general elections. They have resorted to peddling a tirade of falsehoods in a bid to gain cheap political mileage.

If Zambia was a dictatorship, leaders could not have been put in office in line with the Republican Constitution. Therefore, it is naïve to continue to trumpet the dictatorship mantra in a country whose government is legitimately elected and internationally recognised as such.

It is even more myopic for birds of omen to brand President Edgar Lungu a dictator for simply exercising his constitutional powers by invoking Article 31 of the Constitution Chapter 1 of the laws of Zambia which enables him to make a proclamation that a situation exists which if allowed to continue may lead to a state of public emergency. Do dictators rule by constitutional dictates?

History is replete with examples of presidents of democratic nations who have declared a state of public emergency as and when it was deemed necessary to preserve public security.

It is common knowledge that the President of the United States of America George Bush then declared a state of emergency on 14th September, 2001 following the deadly terrorist attacks at the World Trade Centre, New York on 9th September, 2001. He made this declaration on account of a situation that existed since the infamous 9/11 attacks.

Did this declaration make the former US President a dictator?

France equally declared a state of national emergency in November 2015 on similar grounds and has severally extended it every after three months. And last Thursday, the French Parliament extended the declaration of this state of emergency for the sixth time.

Does this mean the French President Emmanuel Macron is a dictator?

Well, we do not think so.

In our case, the Republican Constitution provides for the Statutory Instrument proclaiming a threatened state of emergency to be deliberated on by the National Assembly within seven days following the President’s declaration. It is incumbent upon the National Assembly to extend the initial seven days by three months.

The mere fact that the legislative arm of government is involved in the process not only goes to show how democratic Zambia is but also is an in-built mechanism to keep the executive use of this power in check.

In an event that President Lungu is believed to use this constitutional power arbitrarily, citizens are at liberty to challenge his action through the established courts of law.

We find it extremely difficult to understand how Zambia qualifies to be a dictatorship when the three arms of government are operating effectively and independently. The principle of the separation of powers is adhered to.

Assuming this to be so, then Zambia must be a very unique dictatorship where foreign investors after doing their due diligence find it an ideal destination for their investments.

If indeed there was political tension in Zambia, we do not think a consortium of investors drawn from all over the world could have expressed interest to invest in the Zambian economy.

For instance, last Friday, President Lungu commissioned Neelkanth Cables Limited on the Copperbelt, a company that will be manufacturing cables. If there was political instability, could the owners of Neelkanth have invested over US$100 million in Zambia and over US$14.5 million in technology to produce PVC-cable grade?

The fact that investors have continued to flock to this country means they are happy with the current political stability and Government’s stance on providing a high level of security for their investments.