SA Envoy Sure of Country Holding Peaceful Elections

3 May 2011

SOUTH African High Commissioner to Zambia Moses Chikane has said he is confident that Zambia will hold peaceful elections this year.

He said in Lusaka at the weekend that Zambia had been a trendsetter in holding peaceful elections and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) was hopeful the record would be upheld this year.

Mr Chikane said Zambia had enjoyed peace since it gained independence in 1964 and countries in the region had been learning a lot, especially on the conduct of elections.

“Zambia has always been a peace-setter since 1964 in terms of holding peaceful elections and I am sure even this year, the country will demonstrate the same.

“As countries in the SADC region, we are learning from Zambia, that’s why we are calling on Zambians to continue with the same spirit,” he said.

He said Zambians should remember that what they do today would reflect in the future and urged the people to avoid acts of violence.

Mr Chikane said there were a lot of examples of countries where reckless conduct had led to a spiral of violence that had proved hard to stop.

He also said Zambians were better-placed to decide on whether to use the parallel vote tabulation (PVT) system in this year’s polls.

Mr Chikane urged Zambians to debate the issue of PVT with maturity to avoid violence.

He, however, warned that having many players with different opinions to announce election results might be a source of conflicts for the country.

“It is better for Zambians themselves to debate the issue but I would rather have one body instead of PVTs.

As you know, it is better to have one cook instead of two because they would spoil the pot,” he said.

And Namibian Ambassador to Zambia, Solomon Witbooi called for dialogue among politicians as the country heads for elections.

He appealed to Zambians to avoid politics of insults and character assassination to avoid violence that had rocked many African countries.

Mr Witbooi said it was up to the Zambians themselves to protect their country by not engaging in violence during the campaigns.

AllAfrica – All the Time