DEAL WITH THE P.O.A FIRST – PULE

By Lumbiwe Mwanza

IT is commendable that the Access to Information (ATI) Bill has been presented to Parliament but commitment should also be shown on having to amend the Public Order Act (P.O.A) and gathering bill, opposition Christian Democratic Party (CDP) president Danny Pule has said.

Recently, the Government presented the ATI bill in Parliament. The bill presented for the first time in the House has been referred to the committee on media, information and communication technologies. The committee will present its report on the bill on December 7, 2023.

But speaking to The Scoop, Dr. Pule said while this is a welcome move by the Government as the Bill had been gathering dust without much success over the years, its enactment will achieve very little as long as the monstrous and colonial P.O.A was not repealed.

“I am happy that the ATI Bill has been tabled in Parliament. The Public Gathering Act has been presented but there is no talk about it. I am glad that the ATI Bill has been presented to the House but we also have to ensure that the Public Order Act is repealed and abolished so that we are no longer oppressed by this old Act.

“I was in Choma recently for a press conference and the meeting took so long to start as we were asked to wait before we could take on. Nowhere in the country should the opposition be taking permission from the police to hold press briefings but because of this old public gathering act, we were asked to wait,” Dr. Pule said.

He further urged the Government to ensure that the high cost of living is quickly addressed in the country.

He felt that the cost of living had reached extreme levels and made it hard for ordinary Zambians to survive.

He said that the current hardships called for urgent measures to be put in place in a bid to allow Zambians to live a more dignified life.

He said that in short terms, the Government could ensure that some prices were reduced by giving subsidies and increasing payments for the vulnerable in society.

He said that taking into consideration the checks and balances provided by the stakeholders was also important as that would help build a more inclusive country.