Show us money for new constituencies – Kampyongo
By Thandizo Banda
GOVERNMENT is gambling with public funds and must stop hiding the cost of the 70 new constituencies, says Shiwang’andu Member of Parliament (MP) Stephen Kampyongo.
In an interview with The Mast, Kampyongo said the creation of new constituencies carried heavy cost implications on the treasury that could not be ignored.
He wondered where the colossal sum of additional funding for the new constituencies and the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) would be sourced from, as it was projected to surpass the supplementary budget threshold.
“And worse still, Parliament has already approved the government’s borrowing plan for this year,” he said.
Kampyongo listed new Constituency Development Fund (CDF) allocations, construction of offices, vehicles and salaries for support staff as direct expenses the government would incur for each additional seat.
“You don’t just wake up and announce new constituencies without telling the nation how you will pay for them. Zambians deserve transparency on whether this will mean going for a supplementary budget, which in our view will amount more or less equal to the entire 2026 national budget,” he said.
He argued that existing constituencies were already struggling with delayed CDF disbursements and underfunded projects, wondering how would the government finance an increased workload when it was failing to sustain the current one.
Kampyongo warned that spreading the same budget thinner would weaken service delivery and turn CDF into a political gimmick rather than a development tool.
He challenged the Ministry of Finance to publish a detailed cost breakdown per constituency and indicate whether taxes will be raised or loans contracted to cover the expansion.
“We also question the timing, noting that the country is heading into the August 13, 2026 general elections, given the collapsed IMF deal. Is this about development or about creating seats for political convenience? Government must come clean,” he said.
Kampyongo also questioned the criteria used to pick new constituencies.
He cited Muchinga Province, where three constituencies were recommended for delimitation but left out in preference to others that were not earmarked.
“If technical recommendations are being ignored, then this is no longer about development. It’s about politics. The selective delimitation undermines public trust in the process,” he said.
Kampyongo said the Ministry of Finance should publish a detailed cost breakdown per constituency and indicate whether taxes would be raised or loans contracted to cover the expansion.
