Socialist Party leader, M’membe, says new ECZ boss, Kasaro, unfit; wants his appointment revoked

Socialist Party leader, Fred M’membe, has called for the revocation of the appointment of Brown Kasaro as Electoral Commission of Zambia Chief Electoral Officer labelling him a ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) cadre.

The ECZ Chairperson, Mwangala Zaloumis, on Wednesday announced the appointment of Kasaro as the new Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the Commission to replace Patrick Nshindano whose contract ended in 2022.

M’membe in a statement issued in Lusaka on Thursday said the appointment of Kasaro was inappropriate, unacceptable and should be immediately revoked.

He said it was not a secret that Kasaro was relieved of his duties from ECZ as Director of Information Technology after his alleged dealings with the UPND were uncovered by one of the state security wings.

“Kasaro stood accused of so many things, which portrayed him as a compromised individual and, therefore, made it impossible for him to continue his career with the Commission,” M’membe said.

He said keeping Kasaro in that job was a recipe for a disastrous and discredited electoral process in 2026.

M’membe claimed that if ECZ was not careful, it would set this country on fire and destroy the democracy for no reason, other than extreme desperation and uncontrolled appetite for money, power and control by President Hakainde Hichilema and his league.

“The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) is an important electoral management body whose primary mandate is to ensure that elections are conducted in a democratic, transparent, free and fair manner,” he said.

M’membe noted the powers of the ECZ as an independent and autonomous electoral body, are guaranteed in the Constitution.

He said it was, however, extremely concerning the manner in which the ECZ was conducting its affairs, particularly the recent appointment of Kasaro to serve as the commission’s Chief Electoral Officer.

“If only the people charged with the responsibility of appointing Mr Kasaro had cared to consult or conduct a thorough vetting process, they would have known and understood the circumstances under which Kasaro parted ways with ECZ in the first place,” M’membe said.

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