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New constitution isa must - Mweemba

http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=23480
New constitution is a must - Mweemba
By Speedwell Mupuchi
Tuesday March 06, 2007 [02:00]

HAVING a new constitution is a must, Oasis Forum chairperson William Mweemba has said. Commenting on President Mwanawasa’s statement on Sunday that he had been denied the chance to write a new constitution, Mweemba - who is also Law Association of Zambia chairperson - said the issue of the new constitution was unstoppable. He said from the time President Mwanawasa took office in 2001, people had been asking for review of the Constitution.

Mweemba said when President Mwanawasa appointed the Willa Mung'omba Constitution Review Commission, he clearly stated that he wanted a new constitution. "Why did we spend so much money on the CRC if we did not believe it was not good?" Mweemba asked. He said delaying a new constitution was a question of political will. He said the country could not say because there were floods this year there would be no constitution. "The issue of constitution is not stoppable. People want current Constitution repealed and reasons are very clear. It's not right for government at this stage to say ‘we can't give you a new constitution because of floods.’ Those are acts of God and we have no control over such," Mweemba said. "Are we also saying because of floods we will not buy ministers’ vehicles? Is that what we are saying? That statement from the President is a mere excuse and it's a bad excuse."

Mweemba advised the government to look at other areas in the budget which could be delayed instead of delaying expenditure on a new constitution. "The issue of a new constitution is not one of the issues that should be delayed. Now President Mwanawasa is showing that he does not have political will to have a new constitution," Mweemba said. He said it would be unfair to the people of Zambia for the government to backtrack on providing a new constitution. "There is no justification for President Mwanawasa or the government to backtrack on the new constitution," said Mweemba.

President Mwanawasa, addressing people at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross during the youth week prayers on Sunday, said he has been deprived of the opportunity to write a new constitution because of politicking. He said when Zambians elected him President, he considered it a privilege to guide the nation into writing a new constitution. He said since people were determined to concentrate on things that did not benefit the country he had been deprived of that opportunity. "The Constitution which you are fighting for, assuming the constitution is created and you have 18 commissions to make decisions and members of those commissions are paid huge sums of money; if you have a constitution which ensures every Zambian to be employed, eat, get education, have shelter, are you going to provide these things?" he asked. "Why is it that we are prepared to spend so much money writing a constitution when young people are dying for jobs? Why? Some times it makes me extremely worried. We have floods all over the country and somebody is mobilising for demonstrations over the constitution. People are dying, they have no food, they have no shelter. Wouldn't you find it more desirable that those billions set aside to write that paper called the Constitution, wouldn't you prefer that the money is used to build the bridges?"

President Mwanawasa said he had been practicing law for the past 34 years and knew areas that were effective under the constitution. He said he would have loved to leave a legacy of a good constitution and that he was not too sure the man who will come after him would be that willing to write a new constitution. President Mwanawasa said people were preoccupied with demonstrations against his government. He wondered why it should be so important to have a new constitution and for people to mobilise youths to fight the government. He also wondered why the opposition should only be preoccupied with wanting to make governance impossible.

"You are very preoccupied with politics, as if you are going to eat politics. Our young people want jobs. They want to eat, they want to be educated. But we are busy talking politics," he said. The government allocated K206 billion to the constitution-making process and had often stated the process would take long.

According to the revised government roadmap on the constitution, the country was to have a new constitution by 2009. President Mwanawasa's statement therefore means that he would not leave a new constitution in place.

Labels: CONSTITUTION

posted by MrK @ 5:48 AM