Maravi

Levy’s threats are embarrassing, says Sangwa

Levy’s threats are embarrassing, says Sangwa
By Wana Kalala
Wednesday October 17, 2007 [07:27]

LUSAKA lawyer John Sangwa has described President Levy Mwanawasa's recent treason threats against people opposing the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) as embarrassing. And Sangwa said his exchange with Heritage Party president Brigadier General Godfrey Miyanda over the NCC debate was exciting and healthy.

Responding to a question during a session on the NCC Act at Northmead Assembly of God Church on Sunday, Sangwa said President Mwanawasa's comments last Tuesday at the Lusaka International Airport were embarrassing because nobody was advocating destabilisation of the country.

"Sometimes it's embarrassing as a lawyer when you hear something like that. Why should the arguments for (the NCC) be okay and arguments against be treasonable? It doesn't make sense. That was a very embarrassing statement, but let's not be distracted by that," Sangwa said.

Last Tuesday President Mwanawasa said the NCC was now law and anyone daring the government over the issue was committing treason, and would be arrested and charged without bail.

But Sangwa said diversity of views enriches any society and the challenge was on being able to reconcile competing interests and still remain united.

"All we are trying to do is to create a very healthy exchange which is necessary for building any country because you can't have a country whereby everybody agrees with everybody else," Sangwa said.

Sangwa further welcomed Gen Miyanda's position on the NCC debate, in which the former vice-president called for the NCC not to be supported.

"There is no friction between General Miyanda and I but I think I welcome that. For me it's quite exciting because I expected a lawyer to respond to my article, but it fell upon General Miyanda to do that. But the point is that it's not an exchange that we can limit to just the two of us. It is good for us to be able to debate this thing openly so that other people can also benefit from that exchange," Sangwa said.

Sangwa said the debate he and Brig Gen Miyanda were dealing with was not a personal issue but a national one, which Zambians should be encouraged to actively engage in.

He also called on Zambians not to view the current debate as a competition, but about coming up with a document that was good for the country. Sangwa said people should not fear the 'in-built majority' that politicians are said to have in the NCC Act.

"It is people who are talking about boycott who are now bringing about divisions; it is they that are bringing about characterisations; 'it is the politicians versus the rest', but that's very divisive," he said.

He called on Zambians to be open-minded and sincere in approaching the NCC. He said in his opinion the NCC Act was Zambia's best opportunity to come up with a good constitution since independence.

"Let's give it a chance. Because again if the whole process collapses, it is again incumbent upon us to say well, this particular process was a fraud, therefore we are not embracing it we are chucking it out and starting again. We can do that although, of course, it is very costly but the point that is there is no situation where we can talk about winner and loser, but it is all a question of us coming together as Zambians and being able to find what is good for the country," said Sangwa.

And Northmead Assembly senior pastor Bishop Joshua Banda called for sobriety in the debate on the NCC. He said Christians should pray and actively get involved in the debate, and that the culture of name-calling should not be condoned.

Labels: GENERAL MIYANDA, JOHN SANGWA, MWANAWASA, NCC

posted by MrK @ 8:54 PM