ZAMBIA POLITICAL ROUNDUP

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 LUSAKA 000434

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR ZA
SUBJECT: ZAMBIA POLITICAL ROUNDUP

Refs: A) Lusaka 316; B) Lusaka 218; C) 06 Lusaka 1560


1. (U) Topics Covered:

-- Minister of Information Sacked
-- MMD Succession Speculation
-- United Liberal Party Loses MPs to PF
-- Government Continues to Demolish Illegal Structures
-- State Wins Media Case
-- FOIA Tied To Media Ethics Bill
-- Parliamentary Election Petitions
-- PF Suspends Lusaka Mayor

Minister of Information Sacked
--------------


2. (SBU) On April 11, President Mwanawasa announced in a press
release that he had "relieved Honourable Vernon J. Mwaanga of his
duties as Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, revoked
his nomination as member of parliament and removed him as chief
government spokesperson and Parliamentary Chief Whip with immediate
effect" (Septel to follow). The President's decision does not come
as a great surprise. Mwaanga has been under fire in recent days for
statements he made to journalists in the DRC last week regarding a
law suit filed by DRC Kantanga Province governor Moses Katumbi, as
well as statements that appeared to question a task force on
corruption investigation of Kutumbi. In a statement recorded on
video, Mwaanga said that the Zambian government owes Katumbi USD
seven million for maize that he supplied to the GRZ in advance of
the 2001 presidential election. Commenting on the task force
investigation, he said that the case was an "ill-conceived
fabrication by a Zambian newspaper" and added that it would be
"unthinkable for us as Zambian government to consider a
distinguished and senior member of the government of the Democratic
Republic of Congo as a criminal."

MMD Succession Speculation
--------------


3. (SBU) Political parties and presidential hopefuls continue to
maneuver for advantage following President Mwanawasa's February 11
announcement that he would not seek re-election as MMD President.
Concerned about the political infighting within the party, the
President recently suggested that the MMD national convention be
postponed for at least a year, to take place one year before the
2011 elections. Delaying the MMD convention would reduce tensions
within the party and allow the opposition less time to attack the
putative MMD presidential candidate, the President explained.
Despite the President's caution against speculation, a number of
names have emerged as possible contenders for the MMD's top post.
Some of the more prominent names mentioned are:

-- Dr. Katele Kalumba, MMD National Secretary and Chief Executive
Officer. A Minister of Finance and Economic Development in the
Chiluba administration and the Minister of Foreign Affairs during
the first six months of Mwanawasa's administration, Kulumba is an
experienced MMD leader. However, he is hurt by the fact that he is
facing abuse of office and corruption charges for his alleged role
in funding the ZAMTROP account in London (Ref C).

-- Minister of Home Affairs Lieutenant General (Ret'd.) Ronnie
Shikapwasha. Shikapwasha is one of the best known names in
Mawanwasa's cabinet, having also served as Minister of Foreign
Affairs. However, there are rumors that Shikapwasha engaged in
corruption when he served in the Zambian Air Force, and some
consider the fact that he is related to First Lady Maureen Mwanawasa
to be a liability. Possibly seeking to preempt any attacks on his
integrity, Shikapwasha, who is also a reverend, recently revealed in
a commencement address at Lusaka Theological College that he had
been "a man of many women." In remarks widely reported in the
national press, he urged the graduating pastors to resist the
temptation of taking financial and carnal advantage of their flocks.


-- MMD National Chairman and Member of Parliament for Mulobezi
Michael Mabenga. Mabenga's prospects to lead the MMD are limited by
allegations that he stole 30 million kwacha (USD 7,500) from the
Constituency Development Fund in 2001. The allegations led the
Lusaka High Court to overturn Mabenga's 2001 election to Parliament,
which the Supreme Court upheld on appeal. Although both the Supreme
Court and the High Court directed that Mabenga be prosecuted for
corruption, the government delayed prosecuting the case. Following
the death of the key witness in January 2005, the GRZ claimed that
it could no longer prosecute the case due to "insufficient
evidence."

-- Reform Party President Dr. Nevers Mumba. In February 2007, Mumba
was reported to have met with President Mwanawasa "to reconcile and
resolve their differences" following his 2004 dismissal as Vice
President for "gross insubordination." Analysts believe that Mumba

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called on the President to solicit his support for a possible
presidential run in 2011.

-- President of the United Party for National Development (UPND),
Hakainde Hichilema. Following the President's February statement
that his successor should be sought from "within or outside the MMD
party ranks," speculation continues that Mwanawasa may support
Hichilema as the candidate to lead the MMD (Ref B). A Hichilema
presidency would appeal to Mwanawasa and the MMD for a number of
reasons. For Mwanawasa, Hichilema's greatest appeal may be that he
does not harbor a political grudge against the President and will
not antagonize him in his retirement. The MMD is likely intrigued
Hichilema's strong base in Southern Province, which would give the
ruling party a huge political advantage against the opposition
Patriotic Front (PF). While denying the existence of any pact
between the UPND and the MMD, Hichilema has continued to show
support for the president, saying that the UPND does not believe in
political attacks and that the party's efforts should be directed
towards alleviating poverty and underdevelopment, providing good
social services, and improving people's standard of living.

United Liberal Party Loses Members to PF
--------------


4. (SBU) The United Liberal Party (ULP) lost three of its members in
parliament when Henry Mtonga (ULP Vice President and PF MP for
Kanyama),Given Lubinda (ULP Chairman for Information and PF MP for
Kabwata),and Alfredah Mwamba (PF MP for Lukashya),declared that
they were no longer members of the ULP. Prior to the announcement,
ULP claimed the three as its members in parliament pursuant to an
"electoral pact" between the ULP and the PF. According to the terms
of the pact, it was understood that the three candidates would
retain their ULP membership, although they had run for office on the
PF ticket. After MMD Chairman for Information and Publicity Ben
Tetamashimba asked the Speaker of the National Assembly to declare
their seats vacant on the basis of dual party affiliation, the three
MPs quickly clarified that they were no longer members of the ULP.
The Speaker later ruled that the three were PF members and could
retain their seats in parliament. Following the defections, the ULP
now has three members in parliament.

Government Continues to Demolish Illegal Structures
-------------- --------------


5. (SBU) Minister of Local Government and Housing, Sylvia Masebo,
said that the GRZ would continue its campaign to raze illegal
structures begun in Lusaka (Ref A) and would extend the exercise to
other cities and municipalities. Since razing the Kalikiliki
housing compound structures, the government has razed makeshift
vendors' stalls in central Lusaka and has slated illegal housing in
several townships for destruction. Although there have been reports
of bottle throwing and minor disturbances associated with the
destruction of properties, the government campaign has not sparked
widespread unrest. Many of the displaced vendors, who were
relocated to sites west of the city center, reoccupied their
previous positions over the long Easter weekend. In response, the
Lusaka City Council said that it would begin to prosecute illegal
vendors.

State Wins Media Case
--------------


6. (SBU) On March 15, the Supreme Court ruled that the Independent
Broadcasting Authority (IBA) and the Zambia National Broadcasting
Corporation (ZNBC) Acts of 2002 do not require the Minister of
Information to submit to parliament names of nominees to sit on the
IBA and ZNBC boards. Under both Acts, independent media bodies are
to recommend to the Minister of Information members to sit on the
boards of the IBA and ZNBC. After then-Minister of Information
Mutale Nalumango refused to submit the names of the recommended
board members to parliament for ratification, the media bodies sued
in the High Court in June 2004. After hearing the case, the High
Court issued an order in December 2004 to compel the Minister to
submit the nominees to parliament. The GRZ then appealed the High
Court decision.


7. (SBU) The Supreme Court reversed the High Court decision, finding
that the IBA and ZNBC Acts only allow the media bodies to provide
"recommendations," which the Minister is free to reject. To force
the Minister to submit the names would illegally remove his power of
discretion, the court said. As a consequence of the ruling, the
media bodies will be required to submit a revised list of board
members, presumably in consultation with the Minister of
Information. Media leaders have criticized the Supreme Court
decision, noting that it undermines the Acts' goal of establishing a
more independent media.

FOIA Tied To Media Ethics Bill
--------------


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8. (SBU) Following the Supreme Court ruling on the IBA and ZNBC
Acts, just-fired Minister of Information Vernon Mwaanga (see para 2)
observed that many in Parliament believe that there is a need for
greater statutory regulation of the media. Indeed, many opposition
MPs who attended a recent Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA)
workshop on the need for a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Act in
Zambia, declared that they would not support the enactment of the
FOIA bill unless a media ethics bill was also introduced in
parliament. The MPs appeared to be particularly concerned about
reporting in the independent daily Post newspaper, which is often
highly critical of government officials and which, the MPs said,
frequently exceeds ethical boundaries.


9. (SBU) In his statement, Mwaanga did not indicate whether
government would introduce a media ethics bill, but he suggested
that the government and media bodies should discuss ways to
cooperate to improve the media laws. Mwaanga lamented that during
the time he served as editor of the Times of Zambia, the media
regulated itself and he encouraged the media leaders to follow his
example of self-restraint. On a recent MISA program on good
governance that was aired live on Zambia National Broadcasting
Corporation (ZNBC) Television, Justice Minister George Kunda argued
in favor of a media bill that would regulate the conduct of
journalists. Media leaders have argued that a media ethics bill
would stifle press freedom and promote censorship.

Parliamentary Election Petitions
--------------


10. (SBU) In the first court decision based on the merits of a case,
rather than technicalities, on March 30, the Lusaka High Court
nullified the results of the parliamentary election in Kapoche
constituency, which was won by current Deputy Minister of Community
Development and Social Services, Nicholas Banda. In his election
petition, ousted Kopoche MP, Charles Banda, who ran on the United
Democratic Alliance (UDA) ticket, alleged that the MMD candidate had
engaged in unfair campaign tactics, including enlisting a local
chief to threaten subjects with eviction if they did not vote for
the MMD candidate. The court found that the election was "marred
with illegal practices thereby depriving the majority of voters from
electing their preferred candidate." The MMD MP, Nicholas Banda,
will be allowed to retain his seat in parliament pending appeal of
the High Court decision.


11. (U) Losing candidates in the September 28 parliamentary
elections have now filed petitions contesting election results in 50
constituencies. As reported in Ref B, petitions in Lukashya,
Kabushi, Milanzi and Isoka West have been resolved. The High Court
also recently dismissed a petition in the Mangango parliamentary
election petition, finding that losing UDA candidate, Webster
Mulubisha, failed to prosecute his claim.

PF Expels Lusaka Mayor
--------------


12. (U) The opposition Patriotic Front party expelled Lusaka Mayor,
Susan Nakazwe, and Councilor, Borniface Musondamwaume, from the
party on March 31. Nakazwe and Musondamwaume were among the
dignitaries that welcomed Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Lusaka
International Airport on February 3, in defiance of a party
directive not to attend any State functions involving the Chinese
leader. In her defense, Nakazwe argued that, as Mayor of Lusaka, it
was her duty to represent the city of Lusaka at State events.
Nakazwe and Musondamwaume have sued the PF in the Lusaka High Court,
where they are seeking an order to force the PF to reinstate their
membership. The High Court will hear the case on April 13. Should
the court rule that the PF decision to expel the two was legal, it
will force by-elections that will likely be won by PF candidates in
the two opposition-dominated wards.

MARTINEZ