Zambian President Lungu flays polls, ministers lose seats

Zambian President Edgar Lungu has declared the general election as not free and fair, as he trails his challenger Hakainde Hichilema.

Lungu is trailing Hichilema, according to official results released by the country’s electoral body from 31 out of 156 polling stations.

A total of 16 presidential candidates participated in this year’s elections.

The ruling party has suffered huge losses at the parliamentary level with several former ministers losing their seats.

President Lungu said the general election in three provinces were characterised by violence, rendering the whole exercise a nullity.

His Patriotic Front was consulting on the next course of action concerning the general election held on Aug. 12, he said.

The Zambian leader said the governing party polling agents were brutalised and chased from polling stations in Western, Northwestern and Southern provinces, a situation that left the ruling party votes unprotected.

According to him, two governing party officials in northwestern Zambia were killed by criminal acts.

“Right now, some of our agents and supporters are in hiding because of these criminal acts.

“How can the elections be fair when people have been murdered and many others are hiding after being brutalized,” he said in a statement released by his office.

He added that the absence of the ruling party’s agents in polling stations left the party contesting in seven of the country’s 10 provinces.

Meanwhile, the police in Zambia on Sunday appealed for calm following a spate of violence experienced in some parts of the country following elections held on Thursday.

Police Spokesperson Esther Mwaata-Katongo said the police have observed an emerging tendency where violence has erupted as a result of others failing to contain emotions and ending up attacking those seen celebrating the victory of their candidates.

“As members of the public continue receiving or waiting for results at different levels, we appeal to them to remain calm and celebrate their victory of their preferred candidates in a responsible and peaceful manner without breaching the peace,” she said in a statement.

The police spokesperson said supporters of the ruling and governing party exchanged gunfire in the northern parts of the country on Saturday leaving one person with gunshot wounds, while a similar incident happened in Lusaka, the country’s capital.

She added that supporters of the main opposition United Party for National Development, were attacked by supporters of the ruling party as they celebrated the victory of their parliamentary candidate.