‘Gov’t deliberately downplaying illegality of Technical Committee’

By HOPE MUSONDA

GOVERNANCE specialist Mzeziti Mwanza has accused the government of deliberately downplaying the illegality of the Technical Committee, arguing that the constitutional amendment process is meant to serve the interests of those in government.
Ms Mwanza says the rejected Bill 7 and its Technical Committee are undermining citizens’ constitutional authority because government was pushing its political interest at the expense of Zambians.
Ms Mwanza said attempts to justify the Technical Committee under Article 92 were misleading and only working to distract citizens from what he terms an illegal process designed to centralize constitutional power in the Executive.
Ms Mwanza has cited the Constitutional Court’s ruling, which has branded Bill 7 illegal, unconstitutional and a threat to democracy and was therefore null and void.

“Framing the Technical Committee as lawful shifts public debate from the core question of legitimacy to narrow technicalities, giving the appearance of legality where none exists. It is academic mediocrity to argue that the Technical Committee is legal because that thinking elevates theory over democratic principle and strips citizens of their constitutional power,” Ms Mwanza said.
According to Ms Mwanza, such reasoning was setting a dangerous precedent by giving one individual undue influence over constitutional amendments.

Ms Mwanza warned that encouraging citizens and civil society organisations (CSOs) to participate in the Technical Committee’s work was a political tactic meant to legitimise a predetermined government agenda.
“History shows that legality-based advocacy, particularly litigation has proven more effective than public statements or courtesy calls to State House,” She said.
She cited the halting of Bill 7, noting that while awareness campaigns played a role, it was constitutional litigation that ultimately stopped the process.
She observed growing divisions within civil society, stating that some organisations were submitting to the Technical Committee out of fear of being victimized and sidelined, while others are boycotting the process on principle.
A boycott should not be seen as silence but as a powerful political message that exposes attempts to manufacture public consent.

Ms Mwanza commended NGOCC and Caritas Zambia for refusing to participate, and welcomed the Oasis Forum’s call for peaceful marches and a legal challenge against the Technical Committee.
Expressing concern that some CSOs were undermining their own advocacy by engaging with a process they publicly oppose, Ms Mwanza warned that such inconsistency weakens democratic accountability and risks pushing the country toward authoritarianism.