Zambians yesterday went to the polls, shaken by an election campaign of “unprecedented” violence that could threaten the nation’s relative stability and its democratic record.
Just 18 months after Zambian President Edgar Lungu narrowly won office in a snap election, he and his main rival, Hakainde Hichilema, face off again in a field of nine candidates.
Only 27,757 votes separated the two candidates in last year’s ballot.
Photo: AFP
At least three people have been killed during the campaign, with regular clashes erupting between supporters of Lungu’s Patriotic Front (PF) and Hichilema’s United Party for National Development (UPND).
Ahead of the vote, the election commission issued an emergency statement describing the unrest as “unprecedented” and warning it had “marred Zambia’s historic record of peaceful elections.”
Last month, campaigning was halted in Lusaka for 10 days to reduce the violence.
However, skirmishes continued until polling day, including fighting in the streets and vehicles overturned close to Hichilema’s final rally on Wednesday in Lusaka.
UPND supporter Patricia Situmbeko, 50, blamed the violence on Lungu, who she said had failed to rein in his supporters.
“Zambia was peaceful, but the president got his cadres excited and they attack the UPND people,” the mother-of-five said at a voting station in the low-income Mtendere district of Lusaka.
“We voted UPND for real change... The youth are unemployed, there is too much violence and the cost of living is rising so fast. Sugar is nearly up by three times in price over recent years,” she said.
However, accountant Tembo Mabvuto, 34, said the president needed more time to make a tangible difference.
“There have been a lot of promises and people are expecting a lot from this election, but I think that people might want to stay with the same president for now... I don’t sense the people all demanding a new president yet,” he said.
Constitutional changes mean that the winner must now secure more than 50 percent of the vote, meaning a second round run-off could be held within weeks, raising the specter of further hostilities.
“The PF government of President Lungu is starting to panic as the UPND campaign gains sustained momentum,” said Robert Besseling, of EXX Africa consultancy.
“The probability of a contested election result is growing, which would undermine the credibility of the vote and trigger more widespread partisan violence,” he said.
Zambia, in contrast to some of its neighbors, such as Angola and Zimbabwe, has escaped war and serious upheaval since independence from Britain in 1964.
It last held a peaceful transfer of power to an opposition party in 2011, when Michael Sata took office.
Sata died of an undisclosed illness in 2014 and last year’s election gave Lungu, 59, the right to finish Sata’s term.
At his final rally, Lungu mocked Hichilema for being a wealthy businessman who is making his fifth bid for power.
“We have to understand where this arrogance and nonsense is coming from,” Lungu told thousands of supporters at a dusty venue in Lusaka.
“He is hoping he will get to the [presidency] ... because he wants to make more money,” Lungu said.
Hichilema has repeatedly accused the authorities of turning a blind eye to attacks on UPND supporters and of undermining the opposition campaign by banning its rallies.
The UPND’s vice presidential candidate was arrested and released twice earlier this year, and his house was raided by police.
The Post, an influential independent newspaper, was also forced to close in June over alleged non-payment of taxes — triggering appeals from media rights’ groups and the US embassy.
On the campaign trail, Hichilema, 54, has stressed his business credentials as an asset to turning around the stalling economy.
“We will bring knowledge to the table; we are business people,” he said on the eve of voting.
“Because Lungu doesn’t understand the economy, he does not know that people are suffering,” he added.
Zambia also voted to choose lawmakers and local councilors. as well as in a referendum on an amended bill of rights.
Polls closed at 4pm yesterday. Results are expected late today and tomorrow.
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