Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
National Restoration Party (NAREP) President Elias Chipimo Junior has demanded that the Patriotic Front government makes a commitment as to when the new constitution will be introduced following the release of the final draft.
Mr Chipimo says releasing the draft document is not a commitment to implementing a new constitution, but only the first step and should not create undue excitement.
Mr Chipimo in a statement made available to QFM News says the PF should categorically state immediately, if the intention is for the new constitution to come into effect after the elections in 2016.
He notes that that way, the nation will know how to respond, rather than being left in limbo to guess as to how committed the PF are to concluding the process in a timely manner.
Mr Chipimo adds that the government should also make an assessment of the cost of implementing the new constitution and how the new government operations will be funded.
He notes that currently, over 70 per cent of the national budget goes towards consumption expenditure leaving only 25 per cent to address development projects.
The NAREP leader states that implementing the new constitution will result in even higher consumption expenditure that could result in nearly 120 per cent of the budget going towards consumption expenditure, leaving nothing for development and creating massive permanent budget deficits.
Mr Chipimo further notes the need to determine who will approve the final draft constitution before it is enacted.
He says this is because there will obviously be outstanding matters that need to be agreed on and possibly adjusted out of pure practicality such as how to adjust the document to take into account government funding for major commitments like the provincial assemblies.
Mr Chipimo notes that all of these issues must be addressed in a draft roadmap that should be concluded within the shortest possible time.
He has since urged the PF to show dedicated commitment to giving Zambia a new and meaningful constitution as its contribution to the next 50 years of the country’s development.