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Opposition: Zambian govt scared
09/01/2008 16:46 - (SA)
Lusaka - Zambia's main opposition group on Wednesday accused the ruling party of trying to block its leader from running for president by sponsoring a constitutional amendment that bars candidates over the age of 65.
Given Lubinda, spokesperson for the Patriotic Front (PF), told reporters that President Levy Mwanawasa and his Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD) party were running scared of 71-year-old Michael Sata who wants to contest the next scheduled election in 2011.
"They are scared of Sata's popularity and they now want to use the law to block him," Lubinda told reporters.
"This is very undemocratic. You cannot make a constitution targeting specific people."
Zambia's Defence Minister George Mpombo last week said he would support a proposal to preclude candidates above the age of 65 years from taking part in the presidential election.
A cross-section of Zambians are currently participating in a conference to draft a home-grown constitution that will replace the one imposed by the British colonial authority.
Sata and his party have boycotted the conference in protest against its composition, claiming it was biased in favour of the government, although 27 PF lawmakers have opted to attend.
Sata, runner-up to Mwanawasa in the last elections in 2006, commands massive support in urban areas, especially among the poor.
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