Acquire birth certificates-PS

PARENTS and guardians should endeavour to acquire birth certificates for their children, says Central Province Permanent Secretary Chanda Kabwe.

Mr Kabwe said birth certificates were important as the documents would help especially those aspiring to be republican presidents to easily prove their citizenship.

He said acquiring birth certificates was an important exercise which was non-political but which had been controversial of late when a person aspired to stand as republican President.

Mr Kabwe said this in Kabwe yesterday, when a delegation from the Department of National Registration, Passport and Citizenship) and UNICEF paid a courtesy call on him at his office.

He said he was happy that Central Province had been selected to roll out a pilot project where birth certificates would be issued in Kabwe.

He said the move would also cut down on transport costs for travelling to Lusaka for the documents.

Mr. Kabwe urged the traditional leadership, the church and civic leaders to take a leading role to inform the public about the need to acquire the documents.

Mr. Kabwe said he would engage his counterpart in the Ministry of Home Affairs and cooperating partners to help with logistics so that a mobile birth certificate registration exercise could be conducted to cover all the 40 chiefdoms in the province.

“This is a non-political issue, whether you belong to political party A or B or C, you are a Zambian and you need this document.

“We have seen from the time of first President Dr. Kenneth Kaunda, Dr. Frederick Chiluba and others who have followed all have been accused of being foreigners hence the need to have a birth certificate which will prove your true nationality,” he said

He said a birth certificate was as important as a National Registration Card.