UPND And NDC Plan Youth Rally Against ECZ

The opposition UPND and NDC parties have announced plans to hold a joint rally at the Freedom Statue in Lusaka next Sunday, 11th October.

Youth leaders of the two parties, Charles Kabwita and Gilbert Liswaniso, have written to the commanding officer of the Zambia Police Service in Lusaka to notify authorities of the planned rally. The young leaders say the rally will protest the Electoral Commission of Zambia’s disastrous online voter registration exercise. 

Furthermore, both parties have demanded that ECZ chair Esau Chilu resign with immediate effect, along with chief electoral officer Patrick Nshindano and commissioner Emily Sikazwe. 

In an interview Mr Kabwita said it was time to implement real change to safeguard Zambian democracy.

“We only have one country and as such their noble undertaking is to protect this great nation. To this effect, all well-meaning Zambians, the civil society the Church are invited to come and be part of this rally which will be held in Lusaka,” he said.

He urged all young NDC and UPND members across Zambia to attend the rally, adding that he trusted the police not to ‘play tricks’ by stoping the peaceful demonstration. 

“It is our sincere hope that [police Inspector General] Mr [Kakoma] Kanganja will not stop this noble undertaking for the betterment of our country,” said Kabwita.

His concerns have been echoed by civil society activist Laura Miti, who told Inspector General Kanganja that she expected the police’s “professional facilitation” of protests against the ECZ.

She added that the police had proved more than accommodating of CSOs marching on State House to demand an investigation into privatisation and concluded that “there is now enough personnel to police peaceful gatherings”.