Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Renowned constitutional lawyer John Sangwa
Renowned constitutional Lawyer John Sangwa says Government’s decision to take constitution amendments to Parliament goes against the wishes of the Zambian people to have a whole new constitution before the 2016 elections.
Mr. Sangwa says it is crazy to expect a new republican constitution to come out of the route the PF government has taken.
Mr. Sangwa says he is in fact doubtful the Zambian people will get a constitution they have been asking for.
He has told Qfm News in an interview that this is because Parliament which government wants to use does not have powers to come up with a new constitution.
Mr. Sangwa explains that Parliament only has powers to make amendments to an existing constitution.
He says this means that if government takes a constitution amendment Bill to Parliament, what Zambia will have is not a new constitution, but simply an amendment of the of the current constitution.
Mr Sangwa states that this will however be contrary to what the people of Zambia have been asking for that they have a new constitution.
He says this is why he thinks that by using Parliament as the means of delivering a new constitution to the people of Zambia, the PF government is only pushing its own political agenda.
Mr. Sangwa is of the view that if the PF government is so sure that by appointing a technical committee to draft the constitution a good job has been done, it must put the entire document to a referendum and let the people of Zambia decide.
He says the PF government needs to understand that making a new constitution is not a responsibility of a political party, but the responsibility of each and every Zambian.