Stop bullying HH, Bishop Chihana tells Lungu

President Lungu

Bishop Chihana

Lusaka Clergy Bishop Simon Chihana has urged President Edgar Lungu to stop threatening and bullying his main challenger in the August election Hakainde Hichilema.

On Sunday, President Lungu threatened that he will deal with Hichilema who heads the main opposition party, UPND if he refuse to accept the results of the election.

But Bishop Chihana said though President Lungu is fearing of losing power, there was no need for him to start threatening opponents.

Below is Bishop Chihana’s statement to Zambian Eye:

There is totally no need for President Edgar Lungu to be threatening, intimidating or indeed bullying other presidential candidates in this time and era.

What profit is the President going to get from such bullying words as Head of State, except acrimony and anarchy, and democracy is a life of numbers and not threats.

We agree that as a reigning president, he is facing a very big challenge especially that it has been very brief in office and the experience of losing power immediately makes him extremely uncomfortable and threatening to his way forward.

But as a  Church,  we want to remind our President that Zambia as a Christian nation was founded on the principles of love, peace and equity. Our founding fathers ruled on the give and take basis, and that is why President Kaunda had to allow the will of people have its way and hence handing over the nation to his predecessor in one peace and MMD by the hand of Mr. Rupiah Bwezani Banda also handed over power to the late Mr Sata in one peace also, though all of them did it under very challenging circumstances, but they allowed the will of the people to prevail.

President Lungu must allow the voice of the voter and not impose his own will on the Zambian people.

The bullying words against Mr Hakainde Hichilema are unfortunate and can only be treated as mere propaganda in a democratic state such as Zambia.

We must remind the President and his main competitor Mr. Hichilema that the will of the people must be respected on 11th August and that Electoral Commission of Zambia must not be seen to play the casino games that they have been accused of in the past. The Zambian people have entrusted their lives into their hands by trusting that they shall be transparent and overseer the elections with credibility and sustainability.

Let each political leader who has entered the race campaign with Zambia at heart and not for self gain, because the majority of the Zambian people are suffering adversely, having only one meal per day and they need a leadership that shall end their woes of poverty.

STATEMENT BY – BISHOP SIMON CHIHANA

IFCC President