Transparency International Zambia (TI-Z) is monitoring the electoral campaign activities
in the Kawambwa Parliamentary By-elections ahead of the poll day scheduled for 20th
December 2024. As part of this comprehensive monitoring of the campaign, polling day
and post-election activities, TI-Z has been receiving information on the happenings at
various electoral events such as campaign rallies across the entire constituency, and has
therefore, become aware of reports of electoral malpractices such as vote buying and the
use of government programmes to induce voters.
The Electoral Process Act No 35 of 2016 clearly defines the offering of money or gifts to
voters as an electoral offence. TI-Z is therefore gravely concerned about these
malpractices that have been going on in Kawambwa. We have received reports that
senior party officials of the ruling party have been engaging in the practice of dishing out
ZMW50 and other gifts to the electorate under the guise of empowering citizens through
government programmes. TI-Z would like to caution that giving money to the electorate
during the campaign period is not only a malpractice but also an assault on the integrity
of our electoral process. As TI-Z, we wish to emphasize that there is nothing normal about
electoral corruption and that these practices are wrong regardless of which party is in
government. As citizens, we should strongly condemn any attempt to normalize the
scourge in any way, and we therefore urge the public to be on high alert and report any
candidate or official engaging in such illegalities to the relevant authorities.
We further wish to encourage any aggrieved party in that respect to formally report to the
Electoral Commission of Zambia’s Conflict Management Committees, whose mandate
includes ensuring that disputes related to the conduct of political parties in such an
election is dealt with decisively.
Further, learning from previous elections, we have been assessing the implementation of
government programmes such as fertilizer distribution and other empowerment
programmes during the campaign period. Following this assessment, TI-Z would like to
challenge public officials, including Ministers and District Commissioners, to change the
current narrative of using such government programmes to induce or coerce the
electorate into voting for the ruling party. We therefore call upon the United Party for
National Development (UPND) to resist this temptation of abusing their positions through
distributing state resources with a view to coercing voters and therefore giving the party
in government an unfair advantage over other political parties who do not have access to
state resources.
By-elections are not the time to suddenly accelerate the implementation of empowerment
programmes since this could potentially coerce or influence voters and ultimately
undermine the integrity of the election.
We trust that as the people of Kawambwa go to the polls tomorrow, they will be able to
elect their preferred Member of Parliament on their own accord and merit, rather than
because they have been coerced in any way by any form of electoral malpractice.
Maurice K. Nyambe (Mr.)
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
