SO FAR, SO GOOD

WE applaud the peaceful manner in which the filing in of nominations for the forthcoming tripartite elections have been conducted so far by the various political parties.

There have not been any serious breach of the law as the contending parties have trooped to the various nomination centres to lodge their candidature.

Credit must go to the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) which we must mention has been meticulous in the manner it has organised the filing in of nominations.

It has ensured that each party, including independent candidates are allotted time in which to lodge in their papers.

Despite the many number of parliamentary candidates for example, aspiring candidates have filed their nomination papers in an orderly and peaceful manner.

Not even their numerous supporters have been involved in scuffles.

We feel this is a plus for the ECZ that it is quite capable of organising this year’s elections despite the many negative statements issued against it in the past.

The organisation of the nomination process has been quite flawless and done in a professional manner.

We note for example that the Patriotic Front presidential candidate and his running mate, Mr Edgar Lungu and Nkandu Luo were given due respect in view of the presidential aspirant being republican president.

But he underwent through all the ECZ protocols that each presidential candidate has been subjected to – without any shortcuts.

It is in this vein that we demand that all contestants in the August 12 elections must subject themselves to adhering to the rules and regulations pertaining to the elections as regulated by the ECZ.

The ECZ, as we have pointed out before has a mandate to conduct the elections in the country. All it does is the paper work and ensure that systems are in place for the elections.

It does not involve itself in persuading people to support any of the parties contesting the elections.

The onus is on the political parties themselves to market themselves through their manifestos and convince the electorate why they deserve their precious vote.

The only ugly incident that has been witnessed during the nomination period has been the fracas that happened in Kalulushi.

This fortunately had nothing to do with the ECZ but disorganisation in one of the contending parties.

In this instance, two UPND candidates, Chikalaba Kaleta and Ngosa Daka, turned up at the Kalulushi Civic Centre with adoption certificates.

And naturally, the two camps could not see eye to eye and one person became the unfortunate victim of physical assault.

The victim, Mr Banda Sakanya, was in Mr Daka’s camp, but was attacked by those supporting Mr Kaleta. He sustained injuries on the head, nose and ear, cuts on the lips and suffered general body pains.

We hope that political parties will not contribute to any violence by being honest in their internal dealings. Why should two candidates each have an adoption certificate? It boggles the mind.

We must remind the nation that President Lungu has pledged to ensure that the elections are free and fair, that there will be peace before, during and after the elections.

But this entails that all Zambians must observe the law and not allow anyone to try and destroy the peace that the nation enjoys.

Just as the nomination process has been peaceful so far, this is how it should be throughout the campaign period and even after August 12.

The Zambia we all want is a country at peace.

PURSUING JUSTICE AND EQUITY WITH INTERGRITY