Op-ed: Zambia's population should be alarmed by president's proposal of constitutional change

As President Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia made his annual address to parliament on 13 September, he shocked many observers as he made a series of revealing off-the-cuff remarks on the topic of constitutional reform. “The country has failed to reach consensus on this very important national document over many years. As a country, therefore, we still need to reform our constitutional order,” he announced. “This government is committed to facilitate a least cost, efficient, and credible process [of constitutional reform] to address lacunae, omissions, or oversights in our constitution.” [ . . . ] Many organisations and individuals condemned Hichilema’s threats to change the constitution. Former president Edgar Lungu described his comments as “reckless” and urged Zambians to “stop this apparent dictator from tampering with our Republican constitution in order to extend his stay in power”. Opposition parties accused Hichilema of misunderstanding the constitution and of attempting to distract from issues such as mass hunger, the cost-of-living crisis, and power cuts lasting 21 hours per day. Since coming to power in August 2021, Hichilema has built a track record of undermining democratic institutions in a crude manner. If Zambians wish to reclaim their democratic institutions, they would do well not to underestimate Hichilema and the lengths to which he is prepared to go in his bid for absolute power. His comments about the constitution and misleading warning that Zambia could have no general elections for eight years should be seen as part of his wider strategy to stay in power beyond elections scheduled for 2026.
Read the full article here: The Standard