Political activist Mbita Chitala says President Michael Sata’s insistence that the draft constitution be deliberated on by cabinet before being handed over to the people is not only against citizenry consensus but also provocative.
Chitala, a former Patriotic Front supporter, said he feared for the future of the country at the rate things were going under the PF administration.
“Following the completion of the work of the Technical Committee on the Constitution, the view held by some of our compatriots that our cabinet must first deliberate on it and produce a White Paper is not only against the consensus we have made as a united people since 1991 but is also unnecessarily provocative,” he said.
“The consensual view is that the only role of those who are governing us is to facilitate us subject the draft constitution together with all clauses where there was no consensus, to a referendum of our people. The attempt to subvert this process is an exhibition in dishonesty and is unnecessarily divisive.”
He said, “I fear for the future of my country if this intransigency is allowed to frustrate our yearnings. However, I am steeled in the fact that the people in their unity of purpose will still triumph to peacefully change the current one party discriminatory constitution and have a more democratic constitution of their choice.”
The Patriotic Front has reneged on its promise to deliver a people driven constitution by insisting on making amendments and not the complete overhaul that had long been the cry of the Zambian people.
A draft constitution submitted by the Technical Committee set by President Sata was leaked to the public on Tuesday night – two weeks after it was delivered to State House – but government expressed ignorance about it.
The post Sata Stance on Constitution Provocative – Mbita Chitala appeared first on Zambia Reports.