SHOULD A BY-ELECTION GROUND GOVT WORK?
IT IS important to differentiate between a government and the ruling party or indeed political parties.
A government is an institution for all the citizens irrespective of their political affiliation.
By definition government is a people’s institution that sets and administers public policy and exercises executive, political and sovereign power through customs, institutions and laws within a state.
Government and political parties are two distinctive entities. A government is answerable to all the citizens while a political party is only answerable to its members.
To put it simply, what we have is a Government of the Republic of Zambia and not a government of individual political parties.
Government cannot therefore stop its constitutional and national duties of providing service, security and relief to its own people just because there is ka by-election in a particular district.
Government cannot stop development projects or halt the distribution of relief food to starving citizens, nor can it stop providing ambulances and medicines to the sick just because there is ka by- election.
The programmes of the government are indeed national programmes intended for all the people; Government programmes are not partisan; they cannot be reduced or tied to politics.
The people of Chilubi district in Northern Province cannot eat politics. They want and deserve food, water, shelter, roads, bridges, schools and social amenities and it is the duty and responsibility of Government to provide these things to them.
That is exactly why Government has continued with its programmes of providing relief food and general services to the people of Chilubi.
The distribution of mealie meal in Chilubi district, for instance started long before the member of Parliament died, and it will continue long after the by-election has passed.
Chilubi is among the 58 districts countrywide that are receiving relief food from the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit under the office of the Vice President.
This exercise started months ago and it shall continue for as long as the threat of hunger to the affected districts remains.
The provision of relief food and other services to Chilubi cannot be halted just because some well-fed politicians from Kabulonga or New Kasama in Lusaka are competing for votes in the district.
Government cannot neglect the great people of Chilubi, who are facing the threat of starvation as a result of the severe flooding they experienced last farming season just because some well-fed and well- off politicians driving posh VXs or GXs from Lusaka or the Copperbelt are playing ‘political sojo’ in the area. No.
Government has the solemn duty, a legal and moral obligation to take care of its people, whether there is an election or not.
After all the people of Chilubi cannot starve and die just to satisfy the political ambitions of some fat people from Lusaka and the Copperbelt. Ayo ni manyengwe.
Let the politicians continue to campaign as they have always been doing and let Government continue with its work of providing relief and other services to the good people of Chilubi.
Chilubi is among the 58 districts countrywide that are receiving relief food from the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit under the office of the Vice President. This exercise started months ago and it shall continue for as long as the threat of hunger to the affected districts remains.