FOUR DAYS TO POLLS,

CIVIL SOCIETY WARNS AGAINST VIOLENCE, POLICE BIAS — MWANZA SAYS ELECTORAL PROCESS IS GENERALLY ON COURSE BUT WARNS CREDIBILITY CANNOT BE TAKEN FOR GRANTED

By Francis Maingaila

Lusaka, Zambia24 – 9-8-2026 -- A major civil society consortium has warned that Zambia’s electoral process could lose public confidence in the final days before Thursday’s general election if political violence, alleged police bias and growing concerns over the conduct of institutions are not addressed.

With only four days remaining before Zambians go to the polls, Consortium Chairperson Isaac Mwanza said the electoral process was “generally on course”, but warned that the progress made so far should not be taken as proof that everything was guaranteed to go well.

Mr Mwanza, who delivered the Consortium’s pre-election assessment yesterday, said the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) and other stakeholders had done a lot of work in preparing for the election.

But he said the real test would be whether the same openness, fairness and respect for citizens’ rights would be maintained until the votes were counted and the results announced.

He said the ECZ should listen to concerns raised by political parties instead of dismissing them simply because they came from contestants.

Mr Mwanza said taking concerns seriously and explaining decisions openly was important in keeping voters confident in the electoral process.

He said the Consortium had followed the electoral process from the early stages, including constitutional reforms, ECZ preparations, nominations and the recruitment of election officials.

Mr Mwanza commended the ECZ for allowing independent civil society organisations, including SACCORD, GEARS Initiative and CPRA, to observe the printing of ballot papers in Dubai.

He said allowing independent observers to witness such important stages of the election helped to answer questions about the safety and handling of ballot papers.

But Mr Mwanza said political violence remained one of the biggest concerns as the country approached polling day.

He condemned political attacks and clashes reported in different parts of the country and commended President Hakainde Hichilema for speaking out against political violence.

Mr Mwanza said the President’s condemnation of violence was important, but added that words alone would not be enough if people involved in violence were allowed to go unpunished.

“We cannot condemn violence in the morning and tolerate it among our supporters in the afternoon,” Mr Mwanza said.

He challenged political parties to take responsibility for their supporters and stop violence before it happens.

Mr Mwanza also warned the Zambia Police Service that officers have a duty to protect all citizens and maintain order without taking sides in politics.

He said although opposition parties had generally been allowed to campaign, the Consortium had seen cases where police stopped lawful political gatherings on what he described as flimsy grounds.

Mr Mwanza urged the police to treat all political parties and candidates equally and reminded law-enforcement officers of President Hichilema’s directive that all candidates should be allowed to campaign freely.

He said applying the law differently depending on which political party was involved could damage public trust in the police and the wider electoral process.

On the media, Mr Mwanza raised concern over what he described as unbalanced coverage by some public and private media organisations.

He appealed to media owners to give candidates reasonable and fair opportunities to reach voters so that citizens could hear different political messages before making their choices.

At the same time, he criticised candidates who turn down invitations from media houses and later complain that they are not being given enough coverage.

Mr Mwanza said candidates should make use of genuine opportunities offered by the media instead of refusing invitations and later accusing media organisations of shutting them out.

He also warned against the spread of unverified information on social media.

Mr Mwanza urged journalists and members of the public to check information before publishing or sharing it, saying false information could unnecessarily create tension during an already sensitive period.

Meanwhile, the Consortium has deployed a large election observation mission, with 14,500 monitors expected to cover polling stations, constituency tallying centres and the national tallying centre.

Mr Mwanza said the monitors were deployed to observe the election on behalf of Zambian citizens and would not work for any political party or candidate.

He said the Consortium would provide an independent account of what happens before, during and after polling.

As the country enters the final days of campaigning, Mr Mwanza urged political parties, candidates, police officers and citizens to remember that the election would come to an end, but Zambia would remain.

He said political power was temporary while citizenship was permanent.

“Elections come and go, but Zambia remains,” Mr Mwanza said, urging political parties to compete strongly but peacefully.

He called on the police to protect every Zambian equally and urged citizens to reject violence regardless of the political party or candidate involved.

“Let us protect Zambia. Let us protect the peace. Let us protect one another,” Mr Mwanza said.