‘PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS OF DECLARED ASSETS WON’T BE RELEASED’

THERE is no constitutional provision that compels the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to publish the declared assets and liabilities of Presidential candidates, says ECZ.

ECZ in its submission to the Constitutional court contends that under the 1996 constitution, there was a specific provision under article 34(5)(b) which expressly subjected declared assets to public inspection.

The Commission argues that the current constitution (amended) Act number 2 of 2016 has no such provision.

Thus, ECZ has submitted that the court dismisses the petition by PeP president Sean Tembo over its failure to publish the statutory declaration of assets and liabilities for President Hakainde Hichilema.

Mr Tembo said the failure by the commission contravenes the constitution and is illegal.

He therefore wants a statutory declaration of assets and liabilities for Mr Hichilema as filed in the 2021 general election nomination process to be made public.

ECZ and the Attorney General are cited as the respondents in the petition filed into the Constitutional Court.

In its answer to Mr Tembo’s petition, the Commission admitted that the opposition leader did write to them demanding the publication of declared assets and liabilities for Mr Hichilema and responded to it on September 23, 2021.

“The first respondent will further aver that Regulation

20 (2) of the Electoral Process General Regulations 2016 requires the Returning Officer to publish the information contained in the nomination papers and affidavits relating to candidates but the said provision does not relate to Presidential candidates,” it argues. “That further, Regulation 22 of the Electoral Process General Regulations allows for inspection or nomination papers for Parliamentary and Local Government candidates but this does not extend to Presidential candidates,” it added.

ECZ has therefore denied breaching the constitution.