ALL MUST BACK KATANGA

DEPUTY Inspector General of Police (Operations) Charity Katanga has done well to assure the public that the Police Service will ensure that there is peace during this year’s general elections.

The Police Service has often been accused of being soft on the ruling Patriotic Front while being harsh on the opposition parties.

This is quite debatable for it could be due to misconceptions that the various stakeholders have of the police.

It is a fact that the opposition regard the police as being their “enemy” because they are not in government. It is always a question of “them versus us.”

They fail to appreciate that the police are there merely to enforce the law and ensure that there is order in the manner that the political parties carry out their activities.

When she paid a courtesy call on Central Province Minister Sydney Mushanga in Kabwe on Tuesday, Ms Katanga mentioned that the police would also engage political parties in the run up to the August 12 general elections.

This is a welcome move as holding peaceful elections is not a preserve of the government and the police.

It is also incumbent upon the various political parties that they regard themselves as key stakeholders in the electoral process.

If any political cadres choose to be violent during the campaigns, then they cannot blame anyone for the violence that could break out, and they found themselves being locked up.

Police and the political parties taking part in the elections must regard themselves as a team working towards a common goal.

We hope none of the political parties will misinterpret Ms Katanga’s statement that, “We will not entertain political violence before, during and after the general elections,” as being targeted at them.

This warning applies to all actors across the political divide.

If it is Patriotic Front cadres who want to break the law, then they will be asking for trouble and should not expect the police to turn their backs on them.

As we have stated before, Zambia has a proud record of holding peaceful general and by-elections. We are not saying there have not been a few ugly incidents here and there.

But they have been peaceful such that people have been able to go about their daily chores without hindrance.

In Kabwe, Ms Katanga assured that the service was ready to police the 2021 general elections in the same way they had done in the past elections.

“We policed the 2011 general elections, we also policed the 2015 general elections and in 2016. We will again police the 2021 general elections.

“I want to assure you that we will work as a team to ensure that political violence is not entertained,” she said.

President Edgar Lungu when delivering his state of the nation speech in Parliament last week stressed the government’s determination to ensure free and violence-free elections.

We challenge all the political players to pledge to uphold peace during and after the elections. That they must allow the electorate to elect who they want to hold the reins of power and respect their decision.

PURSUING JUSTICE AND EQUITY WITH INTERGRITY