(LUSAKATIMES) How can the NCC and our Law makers be so wrong and backward

How can the NCC and our Law makers be so wrong and backward
By Chanda Phiri-ex microblogger
Saturday, April 17, 2010, 12:03

Watching the first British prime ministerial debate on BBC world on DSTV, I was left with one question in my mind. How can our National Constitution Conference (NCC) delegates get it so wrong and appear archaic and backward in the way they have shredded the Mung’omba draft Constitution?

How in the world has Zambia spent so much money to allow a small group of people to produce an archaic document and claim that it will stand the test of time? It is really amazing to see what a rotten system can do to even the best minds.

There are a lot of vital clauses that the NCC has shredded and I will reserve them for a future blog by others more capable than me, but today, I have an issue on one of them and let me upack it. To begin with let me quote a story on Lusakatimes on Saturday, January 16, 2010 titled “NCC rejects articles aimed at making MPs vulnerable to recall”

“THE National Constitutional Conference (NCC) has rejected articles in the Mung’omba draft Constitution which would subject members of the National Assembly to a recall when they are not performing to the expectations of their electorate.The conference voted unanimously to have Article 188 and Article 189 deleted as they could promote anarchy in the country….”

Please note that this was a unanimous decision and all political parties are guilty of this crime except perhaps the Patriotic Front which is not taking part in this public spectacle.

This is what the the people whose forefathers gave us the kind of constitution the NCC want to perpetuate had to say in a live Debate when asked how they intended to re-establish the credibility of MPs in the eyes of the electorate, after all the scandals.

… I want to do three things to change the system. First of all, I want to give the right of recall to constituents. If your MP is misbehaving and is guilty of corrupt practices and parliament doesn’t act, you should have the right to recall that MP. The second thing we’ve got to do is give people the right to petition parliament so that your issues can be raised in parliament and that’s what we propose to do. Thirdly, and this is quite fundamental, and I don’t think David will support us on that, but I hope Nick will, we’ve got to reform the House of Commons and the House of Lords. We need a new House of Commons, a new House of Lords. We will have a referendum to elect members of parliament with more than 50% of the vote, and to have a House of Lords that is elected rather than hereditary or unaccountable. These are the changes we need…”- Gordon Brown, British Prime Minster

“Listen, none of this will make any difference if we allow this rotten system in Westminster to carry on where MPs have jobs for life, where they basically only need to get 20, 30% of your votes in their areas, then no questions asked, they don’t even need to bother until the next time there’s an election. There is a direct correlation between the hundreds of Labour and Conservative MPs who have got these safe seats, these jobs for life, and the levels of abuse in expenses.”-Nick Clegg leader of the Liberal Democrats

These are touch words uttered by people who have realised how flawed the system they have dumped on their former colonies has caught up with them. I say this because our constitution despite many changes still at the core reflect the traits of the one we inherited. People fail to realise that the colonial system was meant to disadvantage the locals and our politicians are using the same instruments to disadvantage anybody who does not sing their songs. In Britain one would argue that their system was meant to disadvantage those who were not in the elite circle. (I know I will be attacked on this one, I swear, but sorry I have issues with Monarchs.)

Thanks to the Zambian public for being way far ahead of their British Counterparts. They picked up on this problem long time ago and made sure that the Mung’omba draft Constitution had measures to curb such abuses.

What is upsetting is for the NCC to eat our hard earned taxes and shred what the people wanted and give us an archaic document. How can they be so wrong in this age of abundant knowledge and common sense. I bet most of these law markers have employees in one form or another. Are they telling us that if any of them gave their employee a five year contract and that employee stopped performing, would they continue to pay his or her wages? This is really common sense stuff and why can’t they see it?

MPs, the President included, are employed by the people. And if they are not performing, the people have the right to fire them even before the contract expires. What is evil and anarchy about that?MPs, the President included, are employed by the people. And if they are not performing, the people have the right to fire them even before the contract expires. What is evil and anarchy about that?

I have seen the economic indicators of our economy and they are good. But lets not mistake them for our good governance because they are nothing to do with the greatness of our leaders. They are all to do with China’s GDP that has kept our copper prices high. China’s GDP is 60% construction and I smell another housing bubble in the works and if that happens, God forbid, the copper price will nose dive and there will be no growth to talk about for Zambia. All the Infesters, oh sorry Investors will flee and all we shall be left with is our people.

That is why it is paramount that we invest in our people and the first step is a right constitution that will create fairness, equality and liberate our people to compete on the world stage. The World is flat and the world market is open to all and it is only the well prepared and motivated people who will take advantage. Zambians can compete with anybody anywhere in the world given an equal platform and it is incumbent upon our politicians to ensure that they deliver this for Zambians. True freedom and fairness. These two can unlock the potential of our entrepreneurs.

There are small countries like Israel that don’t have resources and yet what they have archived by just investing in people is extra ordinary. A must read book for our leaders, if they ever read, is a book by Dan Senor and Saul Singer, called Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle.

In conclusion, our valuable resource is our land and our people. We need to educate them, we need to free them from petty people holding our generation down because they want to protect their mediocre standards. Our children will no longer just compete with our next door Kasai neighbours in the north and Zimbabweans in the South. They shall be competing against the world!