Tuesday, March 14, 2006

50 percent-plus-one Rule

Zambian government said the 50 percent-plus-one rule for winning presidency will not apply in this year's tripartite election, The Post reported Monday.

Information Minister Vernon Mwaanga was quoted as saying 'the 50 percent-plus-one is a constitutional matter. It will be dealt with under the constitutional reforms. It is not feasible to implement it this year because it is a constitutional matter.'

The current constitution allows the victor in the presidential election to be declared via a simple majority vote rather than the 50 percent-plus-one proposed by a panel appointed by President Levy Mwanawasa and backed by opposition parties.

Mwanawasa has said that the 2006 general elections will be held under the current constitution.

Monday, March 13, 2006

A hard lesson

Cold Feet star, James Nesbitt, is in Zambia reporting for ITV News on child victims of aids in Zambia. ITV News will show reports about James Nesbitt's trip at 6.30pm from Monday, 13 March 2006 to Wednesday. Full storyRead more

National Democratic Front Alliance

The alliance named National Democratic Front (NDF) is consistedof the All Peoples Congress, the Party for Unity, Democracy and Development, the Reform Party, Zambia Republican Party and the Zambia Development Congress.
A memorandum of understanding among the five political parties was signed by the leaders of the parties.
Patriotic Front leader Michael Sata who was scheduled to be part of the alliance pulled out at the last minute.
The NDF is the third opposition alliance formed this month in Zambia. On March 1 and 7 two other alliances were formed to challenge the ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) in the elections late this year.

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Character Over Reputation

"Political and church leaders, actors and actresses, singers,
writers, athletes, professors, engineers, doctors, lawyers and
practically everyone (although they may not be even aware of
what it truly means) are undoubtedly concerned about their
REPUTATION.

Even if we give high regards to integrity and dignity as values
taught everywhere in the world, we have been continuously
startled by news of moral downfalls. We've all heard of
government officials being persecuted, famous professional
athletes linked to drug usage, popular actors involved in
crimes, businessmen proven to have committed unethical
practices, and preachers not measuring up to what is expected
from them. Sadly, the list seems endless.

More than ever, there is a necessity for us to instill in
ourselves not just good reputation, but more importantly, good
character. Most of us are so concerned about our image - on how
others may look at us. Let me make this clear though. I am not
saying there is something wrong in assuring that we maintain a
good image. A learned person knows better not to give more
importance to reputation than his character. There is a big
distinction between the two."

Author Codi Morieta describing the importance of character over reputation.

No Need for Foreign Monitors in Peaceful Zambia

"As far as I am concerned, there is no need to bring in foreign observers to monitor this year's elections because we are sure that Zambians are capable of handling such affairs without difficulties,"

French ambassador to Zambia, Francis Saudubray emphasising that Zambians were naturally peaceful people

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Bloggers Exempted From Election-law Regulations

A House of Representatives panel voted to exclude the Internet from the definition of "public communication" in the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002, taking a first step towards immunizing bloggers and other online pundits from election-law regulations that would have gagged them. It seems the House didn't buy critics' arguments that doing so would  transform the Web into one big bulk mail campaign fed by soft money. "We don't expect bloggers to check with a federal agency before they go online," said House Administration Committee Chairman Vernon Ehlers, a Michigan Republican, referring to the Federal Election Commission. "They shouldn't have to read FEC advisory opinions (or have) to worry about running afoul of federal election laws." Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald, a California Democrat, agreed. "Bloggers should be treated no different from talk radio," she said. "Talk radio hosts have protections under the First Amendment. While I may disagree with their positions on the issues of the day, I will nonetheless fight for their right to speak their mind."

Source: Siliconvalley.com