OMI CCJDP activities prior to 28/11 2006 tripartite elections 

Limulunga 

By Fr. Celestino Chishimba, OMI

We observed that people in remote areas in Zambia lack information on the
electoral process. They are always cheated and fed with wrong information by the Party cadres especially from the ruling party. The people usually believe this information because they are illiterate and don’t have access to civic awareness programmes.

The Zambian Delegation office of the Oblates together with Catholic Commission for Justice development and Peace (CCJDP) has made it possible for the civic awareness programme in these remotest and usually forgotten areas to be carried out.

We started with our home base, St. Lawrence Parish, by holding a civic awareness workshop on the electoral process on the 6th August, 2006. This is in a bid to help the electorate better utilise their power to vote.

This workshop was the first in the series of many others to follow in the township and we decided to start with our own people from the Parish of Limulunga. From here we are going to move to other denominations, markets places, schools, drama performances, radio programmes and to our outstations. Drama performances have proven to be effective educational tools.

We talked about:

How to choose a credible leader and where this leader comes
from.

During the workshop, we encouraged participants to vote for people whom they know very well and who come from the same community regardless of their political affiliations. However, this leader should be the one who understands and appreciates people’s concerns.

The right to vote.

The issue of hand outs and the ballot paper were discussed at length. The people were reminded that they had the right to vote for the candidates of their own choice without being intimidated. The issue of hand outs whereby aspiring candidates dished out food, gave out money and distributed t/shirts and chitenge materials was strongly discouraged.

We told the people not to accept bribes, because doing so they were being abused of their right to vote. They were reminded that this was not a long term solution to their problems, but rather a short term whereas choosing a credible leader would guarantee long term benefits.

We reminded them that what they should look for are leaders who will work with them to bring development to their respective areas.

How to rightly use the ballot paper.

During elections, ballot papers get wasted because people in the villages do not know how to use them. We showed participants how to rightly use the ballot paper.

We discussed that a lot of ballot papers are always wasted on the actual days of voting, and this is due to lack of education and ignorance. We have therefore embarked on teaching people about this issue.

Likapai Zone (Limulunga)

By Fr. Celestino Chishimba, OMI

We took advantage of the situation and held our second civic awareness programme on the 11th August, 2006 when Christians from Likapai outstation came to join their fellow Christians for joint baptismal Mass at Nangili Church.

The response was extremely good. The participants asked many questions with regard to elections.

Most of them said that they were tired of voting for people who did not fulfill their promises. In turn, we advised that they should never get tired of voting because it is their right. We told them that what is required is to know how to choose a credible leader who can be able to bring development in their areas.

They said that they were being told by some party cadres from the ruling MMD that the people who are to take up public offices have already been hand picked by the President. They are being told that they should automatically vote for the handpicked candidates at the time of elections.

We assured them that councilors and Members of Parliament are not chosen from Lusaka by the President but are chosen by the people themselves from the area, which they aspire to represent.

We further enlightened them that the President in Zambia is by law allowed to contest the position for two terms.

For the current President, this year's election marks the end of his term in office if he is voted into power. We reminded them that it is their right to vote for candidates of their own choice and that they should not allow anyone to intimidate them.

We also urged the participants to attend rallies organised by different political parties. It is from these rallies that they can be able to detect a credible leader. We explained how to use the ballot paper on the actual day of voting. This is in order to avoid wasted ballot papers on the polling day. We learned that many people in this area were told by party cadres that when they vote for the president of one party, they should automatically choose that party’s MP and Councilor. We rectified this by informing them that they elect candidates from different parties as long as they were convinced that they would bring development to their areas.

At the end of the meeting, the participants were extremely happy as they went back home knowing that they would strive to choose the right leaders to represent them in public offices.

 

 

Lukulu

Eighty - two thousand network in Lukulu stand ahead of the 19-member Catholic Commission for Justice, Development and Peace (CCJDP) volunteers as they kick started their voter education exercise in the area.

These are some of the challenges the group has faced as they have been working tirelessly to ensure that almost everyone receives some form of civic education before September 28.

According to Father Nacidze Singini, OMI, the Lukulu CCJDP Coordinator, the organization in Lukulu has educated its members on the electoral process as well as on how to identify credible leaders CCJDP has been holding meetings to teach people in the district.

The Lukulu CCJDP being the only registered Non Governmental Organisation operational in this area people turn out in numbers, whenever they are called, regardless of their religious and political backgrounds. It is also for this reason that CCJDP Lukulu is very well known in the district.

“We are the only civic education NGO in Lukulu and our goal is to teach everyone the basic human right so that they will know what to look for as they choose leaders to represent them at national level,” Said Fr. Singini.

He further said that it is common during the election year for political parties and independent candidates to take advantage of the electorate in Lukulu.

“As you might be aware, Lukulu is the biggest district in Zambia and it is also one of the highly impoverished districts in the country. Therefore, it is very easy for the electorates to sell their rights as they would want food in return.”

Against that background, the public is acquainted on the roles of elected members of Parliament by use of drama and pre- arranged meetings throughout the district.

During these meetings, the electorates of Lukulu are advised to watch out for electoral offences such as:

· Vote buying.

· Dishing out items such as cloths, salt, cooking oil, sugar, chitenge materials, money and other essential commodities.

· Buying voters cards.

· Grabbing voter’s cards from opponents.

· Using bad language. .

· Inciting Violence.

Among the tasks that lay ahead for the Lukulu CCJDP before election date is to organise public forums where the public will have a chance to assess the aspiring Parliamentary and Local government candidates.

At the moment, the main challenge which the Lukulu CCJDP is facing is lack of funding. This is in form of resources, coupled by the bad road infrastructure, to enable the group to move around the seventy six (76) outstations in the district. “Among the many challenges our group faces is Transportation. In this case, it is not only lack of resources that is the problem, it is also the deplorable state of our road network in the district,” he said.

According to father Singini, the group will need about K5 million to reach all the villages and carry out all their planned programmes before the country goes to the polls.

The Lukulu CCJDP civic educators are volunteers who meet at least twice weekly to teach people. They also walk long distances to far away villages to educate people.

 

 

 

 

 

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