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Socialist Party president, Dr. Fred M’membe, has cautioned the government against proceeding with the delimitation exercise before addressing concerns raised over the 2022 Census of Population and Housing.
His warning followed criticism from historian and UPND Chairperson for Research Dr. Beyani Choolwe, who described the census report as “illegal, null, and void,” disputing figures from 15 wards in Southern Province for allegedly not aligning with Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) voter registration records.
Speaking to journalists in Lusaka on Monday after attending a court case at the Magistrate Court, M’membe said ignoring stakeholder concerns could lead to conflict.
He acknowledged that the delimitation process announced by President Hakainde Hichilema during his parliamentary address was crucial but insisted that unresolved statistical discrepancies must be addressed first.
Read More: Opposition, civil rights activist demand independent probe into 2022 census report
“You have issues with the statistics. Even they themselves are not fully satisfied with the figures they produced. We should tell them to wait. The process they want to undertake is based on these statistics,” M’membe said.
Read More: Opposition, civil rights activist demand independent probe into 2022 census report
He also urged Zambians to evaluate President Hichilema’s leadership based on economic performance rather than rhetoric, especially as the country prepares for upcoming elections.
M’membe argued that despite promises to revive the economy and create jobs, many Zambians remained in poverty with no tangible improvements.
“Judge Mr. Hichilema by his actions, not words. He has made many promises that he has failed to fulfill, and the list keeps growing. Zambians are still suffering, and nothing concrete has been done to turn the economy around,” he said.
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