ECZ Asked To Limit Election Observers Due To Covid Risk

A collection of student and civil society organisations has urged the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to restrict foreign nationals from Covid-19 hotspots from coming to observe the general election in August. 

At a media briefing at the Mika Lodge on Friday, a group known as the Democracy and Motherland Defenders Coalition (DMDC) said it would be in the interest of both Zambia and the global fight against Covid-19 to limit the number of foreign observers coming from countries badly affected by the coronavirus. 

DMDC spokesperson Andrew Ntewewe has urged the ECZ and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to conduct consultations on how to manage the number of foreign observers coming from countries with a high number of covid infections.

The restriction of international observers would limit the transparency of August’s elections, which has already been cast into disrepute by the disastrous voter registration exercise last month. It would also add to concerns over ballot tampering, which previously came to light during the Lukashya and Mwansabombwe by-elections in October. 

Nevertheless the DMDC feels it can combat this by training and deploying 22,000 of its own election monitors to all voting stations by polling day on August 12. 

The DMDC has been criticised in the past for its unthinking praise of the ECZ, as well as its harsh line against UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema, who the DMDC said should be put under house arrest in 2017.

Their leader, Andrew Ntewewe is also president of the Young African Leaders Initiative and a major supporter of president Edgar Lungu.