The Zambia National Women’s Lobby (ZNWL) has charged that it is disheartening to note that the Patriotic Front government has continued to ignore calls for increased dialogue among stakeholders in the governance of the country.
Speaking in an interview ZNWL chairperson Beauty Katebe noted that dialogue among political stakeholders such as opposition political parties and the civil society organizations is one of the most important and critical component of a democratic dispensation which should be promoted by all well meaning Zambians.
Ms. Katebe said it is essential that issues affecting the country no matter how grave are tabled so as to ensure that all stakeholders are part of the solution.
She noted that it is not a good practice for a democratic government to close up on dialogue and just issue statements which sometimes boarder on disrupting the peace that the country has enjoyed for so long.
“For us as women it is very, very disheartening to find that we have a government today which does not necessarily open up to dialogue. I think in a democratic dispensation. What we expect is that anything, any matter no matter how grave must be discussed and discussed openly so that whether stakeholders are satisfied or not we still say this issue was tabled and this is what came out.
I think its not a very good practice to have a democratic country close up on dialogue, a government that does not want to discuss issues but maybe issue statements I think which I would say are not conducive and boarder on breaking the peace that the country has enjoyed for so long,” Ms. Katebe said.
Ms. Katebe added that stakeholders are also getting discouraged to engage government in any meaningful dialogue because it has decided to use the police to silence anyone with opposing views.
She noted that the police are deliberately being used to selectively implement the public order act hence killing of any interest that some stakeholders might have to engage government in any developmental issues of the country.
Dialogue and democracy went out with MMD; the present government is deaf to all but their own views and voices:
We have a parliament, if you need anything discussed lobby your local MP and have him raised it in parliament! Stake holders are voters not special interest groups sponsored by foreigners. No proper democratic country in the world can allow lobby groups to influence its laws or the way it governs. American governance is rotten because of many lobby groups corrupting it’s Senators with campaign money and many are powerless when they go into the house because they received the money. They tend to be puppets of the lobby groups who control them, that is why GUN LAWS in America cannot change no matter how many people die from guns because the National Riffle Association [NRA] corrupts many senators in the senate to make sure that older laws are maintained and guns are legal.