DON’T ‘RAPE’ CONSTITUTION – Sichinga

DON’T ‘RAPE’ CONSTITUTION

… Sichinga warns Hichilema against last-minute electoral law changes that undermine Zambia’s supreme law

By Ludia Ngwadzai

PEOPLE’S Pact Movement vice president Bob Sichinga says the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) wants to rape the Constitution at the command of President Hakainde Hichilema.

In an interview with The Mast yesterday, Sichinga questioned the government’s rush for electoral reforms when Hichilema won the 2021 general election under the current electoral law.

He said the rush for reforms was a clear indication that the United Party for National Development (UPND) was desperate and scared to lose the election.

“He [President Hichilema] was elected on the same rules. What is wrong now? What is so wrong if he won as president on the basis of the current rules? What has changed now?” he said.

Sichinga warned Hichilema against setting a dangerous precedent that would consume him when he leaves government in August.

He said the current imingalato would come back to haunt him.

“If he were able to get to the presidency on the basis of the present rules, which have not been changed yet by the proposed bill, what is so pressing that he wants to change now? He feels the pressure, he is desperate and scared that he is going to lose the election because he has not performed accordingly and the only thing left is to rape the Constitution,” he said.

He said it was unreasonable for anyone who won an election under the current laws to change the winning system.

“It reflects a very bad person who does not want to respect the rights of other citizens and the governance parameters within which the country must operate,” he said.

Sichinga said it was not right to change the Constitution to fit a particular agenda, warning the ECZ not to fall into Hichilema’s trap.

He said changing the Constitution and electoral laws months before the election was a clear sign of desperation and manipulation.

“It is not right to change the constitution three months before Parliament is closed and before elections, it is not a good thing, it is not correct, the questions that we’re asking are that where have they been all this time? Where have they been if they thought there was a problem with the electoral process why were you not dealing with it? Then secondly, you know there is a series of activities whether it is Bill 7 whether it is the manner in which the processes want to be conducted in terms of timing it is a reflection and very bad picture on the UPND government,” he said.

Sichinga said the UPND government was worse than the PF in office.

“They are people who want to manipulate the constitution, they are people who want to rape the Constitution, there are people who cannot be trusted, they are people who are hell-bent on having their own way because they’ve got the numbers in Parliament, this is not a good government at all, they are worse than PF in their tenure,” he said.

He said Hichilema warned the nation that he would re-energise imingalato (tricks) in order to win the August polls and that was the benefit of the change of the laws.

“The president himself has said there is mingalato. Is this part of his mingalato? He said he bought the MPs for them to vote for Bill7, is that the right process for him as a president who swore an oath to uphold the constitution?” he said.

Sichinga said Hichilema had on various occasions breached the Constitution and warned Zambians not to trust him.

“Am taking about the President of Zambia who has sworn an oath that he will uphold the Constitution, he is an example of a person who cannot be trusted, who is desperate, who is so desperate that he can rape the Constitution openly and he doesn’t care less. And am directing myself at HH himself, it is him who is initiating these things, it is him who is responsible,” he said.