ELECTION FEVER

SOON, politicians will be on the campaign trail, traversing the width and breadth of the country in their spirited urge to get as much support as possible for the August 12 general elections. Yes, politicians will have the chance to interact and address the people beginning May 12, the official day for kick-starting campaigns. The bitter rivalry is between the Patriotic Front (PF) and the United Party for National Development (UPND) and it is the hope of the people that the two front-runners will maintain the peace which this country has cherished thus far. Political parties and the public in general should not look at this contest as a “do-or-die” but must regard it as a normal political process for the Election Day is not an end in itself. Elections come and go but the governing process continues and this must be done in accordance with the statutes, with the Republican Constitution being supreme. All politicians, therefore, must bear in mind that Election Day is just but a date on the political calendar when people cast their vote to choose leaders of their choice. The most important is the political process which shapes the country’s destiny; governing process which inevitably has to be done to the satisfaction of the people for prosperity. During the process, leaders must decide on behalf of the people and thus must be held accountable. Patrick Murphy, a former Democratic congressman for Florida  in the United States once said: “The political process does not end on Election Day. Young people need to stay involved in the process by continuing to pay attention to the conversation and holding their leaders accountable for the decisions they make.” Therefore, the focus is not the Election Day, but the political process which is expected to improve with time. The PF has advanced in the adoption process, the Presidential candidate, Edgar Lugu having been given the adoption certificate already while adoptions for Western, Southern, Central, North-Western and Muchinga provinces have been completed. Other parties are also in the process of announcing their candidates. Our appeal to all the politicians is that they must aspire to improve the polity of the country and also yearn to become the best. “Politics is the art of the possible, the attainable – the art of the next best,” once said Otto von Bismarck, founder and first chancellor of the German Empire. All winning teams must be bonded to a condition that they are there to serve the people and not themselves and should be held in servitude until the living standards of Zambians improve significantly. Being a politicians is offering oneself to serve the people selflessly and should not be looked at as a lucrative “profession” for survival. Individuals who get into politics for their survival usually fail to perform and resort to underhand methods and insults as a way of outwitting their opponents. Therefore, there should be sober and mature politics, whereby political stakeholders must focus on sustainable development for the country and citizens therein. Opposition political leaders must work with those in the ruling party and vice-versa, without looking at one another as enemies. Thus, there is no reason for tensed political fever as an election is part of the normal political process.