President Michael Sata has commended ECZ, the Electoral Commission of Zambia for postponing the Livingstone parliamentary by-election.
The president says that the action taken by ECZ shows that they value lives more than elections and that this is an indication that the electoral body is operating independently and that violence will not be condoned.
President Sata has charged that it is disgraceful and cruel that those who killed want to pretend to be victims.
This is according to a Press Statement issued by President Sata’s Special Assistant for Press and Public Relations, George Chellah.
He says that the PF lost a member in Rufunsa at the hands of UPND while the ruling party has lost another member in Livingstone at the hands of UPND yet again.
President Sata says the UPND leadership ought to be mindful that violence breeds violence and no one will benefit from a culture of bloodshed in politics.
The Head of State has urged PF members and other law abiding citizens to desist from retaliatory actions but let the law take its course.
Meanwhile the Council of Churches in Zambia CCZ, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia EFZ, and the Zambia Episcopal Conference ZEC, say that they are extremely disturbed and greatly saddened by the violence and loss of precious life in the heat of the recent campaigns for the Livingstone parliamentary by-election.
The three church mother bodies say their hearts and prayers go out to the family of the deceased and all victims of violence.
They have condemned in the strongest terms possible, any form of political and electoral violence.
The clergy men also state that they wish to appeal for calm and maximum restraint from the various political parties in Livingstone and also from the Zambia Police Service.
This is according to a statement signed by Rev. Suzanne Matale general secretary for CCZ, Rev. Pukuta Mwanza, Executive Director for EFZ and Fr. Cleophas Lungu Secretary General – ZEC.
They have also stated that it is incumbent for all parties involved not to do or say anything that might worsen an already volatile situation.
The church mother bodies also says that it is not the time for finger-pointing and that what is needed now is for all stakeholders to do some serious soul-searching on the level of politics in Zambia.