NCC majority oppose 50 +1
20 January 2010
By Times ReporterTWO hundred and sixty delegates to the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) yesterday voted against the 50 per cent plus one clause on the election of the president while 184 voted in support of the provision.
Although those against prevailed they did not garner the two thirds majority required resulting in the matter being refereed to a referendum.
Announcing the results, returning officer from the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ), Jocelyn Mubita said that a total of 446 delegates voted and two votes were rejected.
Clause 95 (1) of the Willa Mung’omba draft Constitution says that elections to the presidency shall be conducted on the basis of a majoritarian system where the winning candidate should receive at least 50 per cent plus one vote of the total valid votes cast.
NCC chairperson Chifumu Banda later said that as per NCC rules, in order for the decision to pass, a two-thirds majority had to be attained but the issue would be taken to the referendum because the delegates had failed to attain that.
“In this case a two thirds majority should have been 297 votes and what this means is that the decision has not been made and the matter will have to go to a referendum,” Mr Banda said.
The voting which lasted about one hour had to be taken after the commissioners failed to reach a consensus on Thursday last week.
Earlier, a group of suspected University of Zambia (UNZA) students and other unknown people attempted to picket delegates at the entrance of Mulungushi International Conference Centre (MICC).
But alert riot police officers who were deployed at the entrances to the centre managed to block the protesters who were forced to backtrack on their attempt.
On the presence of police officers at MICC, NCC spokesperson Mwangala Zaloumis said it was because some people had said that they would disturb the deliberations.
Home Affairs Minister Lameck Mangani warned that the Government would not allow any person to destabilise the deliberations at the on-going NCC and peace of the nation.
In an interview, Mr Mangani said that the police would deal with any person found trying to cause anarchy in the country and urged people aggrieved to use proper channels to air their grievances.
He appealed to Zambians to guard jealously the peace the country had continued to enjoy and that they should not allow any person to cause confusion.
Opposition United Party for National Development (UPND) president Hakainde Hichilema was for the first time spotted at MICC where he went with a delegation to witness the NCC deliberations.
Earlier, the NCC adopted clause 113 (1), which calls for the establishment of a Political Parties’ Commission which would be responsible for the registration and regulation of political parties.
The president would appoint five part-time members of the commission and it would arbitrate on disputes between party members and among political parties.
The delegates also unanimously agreed that political parties would be entitled to financial support from the State through the Political Parties’ Fund which would be administered by the Political Parties’ Commission.
An Act of Parliament would specify the maximum donation that an individual, institution or body could make to a party and also specify the sources from which political parties would receive subscriptions, donations and contributions.
On the formation of political parties, it was agreed that any group of people who wanted to form a political party should ensure it had party structures in at least two-thirds of the number of provinces in the country.
A political party would also be required to have a national character and should not engage in violence, intimidation of members or establish a paramilitary force or militia.
There would not be disciplinary action against a member of a party for anything done or said by that member in the National Assembly or council.
[Times of Zambia]
