Opposition Voices Reject Hichilema’s “Free and Fair” Election Claim Opposition voices rejected President Hakainde Hichilema’s assertion that Zambia held peaceful, free and fair elections. They pointed to the alleged killing of a former minister, the detention of opposition…

Opposition Voices Reject Hichilema’s “Free and Fair” Election Claim

Opposition voices rejected President Hakainde Hichilema’s assertion that Zambia held peaceful, free and fair elections. They pointed to the alleged killing of a former minister, the detention of opposition leaders and the closure of courts while election disputes were pending.

The President made the claim when he opened the First Session of the 14th National Assembly on Friday. He told Parliament that Zambia had conducted free and fair elections despite some challenges.

Opposition politician Mr Changala Siame described that assertion as a mockery. He asked how polls could be called peaceful when a life had been lost and electoral irregularities had been reported.

Mr Siame raised a series of questions he said Government had not answered: why ballots were allegedly stolen, why the announcement of election results was suspended, and why the courts were closed if the process was free and fair.

“A former minister was killed on alleged militia issues, and he says Zambia had peaceful polls?” Mr Siame said.

He also challenged the President over the detention of opposition figures Mr Brian Mundubile and Mr Makebi Zulu. “Why are Mundubile and Makebi in prison if Zambia had peaceful elections?” the opposition politician said.

He extended his criticism to the judiciary. Mr Siame said Chief Justice Dr Mumba Malila should have resigned on moral grounds for allowing the inauguration to proceed while an election petition was pending. Democracy, he said, rests on the credibility of elections.

Governance activist Mr Brebner Changala went further and linked the dispute to the President’s economic agenda. He said the post-election environment could not be ignored if Government hoped to meet its target of doubling the size of the economy.

“No amount of economic sloganeering will heal deep political divisions. Development demands political stability, and stability demands truth,” Mr Brebner Changala said.

The activist cited what he described as serious irregularities. These included the closure of courts at a critical moment when aggrieved parties sought legal redress, the killing of former transport minister Mr Mutotwe Kafwaya by soldiers, and the deployment of the military to intimidate voters in perceived opposition strongholds.

Mr Brebner Changala said the country’s divisions could only be resolved if the Head of State took a keen interest in concerns raised by international observers and the opposition. He questioned how the President could celebrate victory while his closest political rivals had been detained.

“We plead with our President to rethink on the evident standoff with the opposition and post election environment which has left the country divided,” the governance activist said.

Government’s position, set out by other officials over the same weekend, is that the elections were peaceful and that critics are trying to undermine public confidence. Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr Mulambo Haimbe, speaking at Parliament Buildings after the President’s address, said Zambia was coming from peaceful elections, yet some people had decided to discredit the peaceful atmosphere of the electoral process.

Mr Haimbe urged citizens to look beyond political divides and protect the country’s image. He said international confidence in Zambia had translated into jobs, business opportunities and partnerships.

State House Chief Communication Specialist Mr Clayson Hamasaka dismissed the suggestion that the Grow Zambia Agenda was empty rhetoric. He said it was not a political slogan but a measurable blueprint for national transformation, and urged citizens to ignore claims that it would fail.

“One thing I can assure everyone is that President Hakainde Hichilema will not govern the country based on social media commentary,” Mr Hamasaka said.

The next test of the electoral process comes on 5 November in Mandevu, where the Electoral Commission of Zambia cancelled the parliamentary vote during the general election after violence was recorded. Four candidates have filed nominations for the by-election. Mr Siame said Mr Mundubile and Mr Zulu remain in detention.