Western donors urge Chiluba to bow out

In an unprecedented move, eight of Zambia’s most influential Western donors asked President Frederick Chiluba on Thursday to stick to his word and not to go for a third term of office, news reports said. According to the reports, this was the first time that Western donors, whose contributions made up about 53 percent of the country’s national budget, had spoken out on the issue. Their statement came as Chiluba’s ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) party planned to host an extraordinary convention at the weekend. Chiluba was expected to make his intentions known at the convention. The reports said that the US, Britain, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland, Ireland and Sweden had also expressed concern, in a joint letter sent to Chiluba, that the political mood in Zambia was volatile and not friendly towards social and economic development. Their letter had cheered some interest groups, who said the donors were sending a subtle yet strong message as to what would happen if the Zambian leader tried to bag a third term against the stipulations of the constitution. The donors last froze aid when ex-president Kenneth Kaunda was jailed for alleged involvement in a botched coup attempt in 1997. Meanwhile, the country’s Legal Affairs Minister Vincent Malambo has joined the MMD presidential race, as well as Education Minister Godfrey Miyanda. News reports on Friday quoted sources close to Malambo as saying that he had made up his mind and was confident of victory. “I will seriously consider all possibilities after getting to Kabwe,” Malambo was quoted as saying. He warned that those organising this weekend’s MMD convention in Kabwe could manipulate the party constitution, but would only sow seeds for a fight after the meeting. He said there had been complaints from various parts of the country by delegates who had been replaced on the delegates’ list. “But all they are doing is sowing seeds for a fight after Kabwe. We will not give legitimacy to the results they are preparing by eliminating those they perceive to be anti-third term. The people in Lusaka are weeding out some delegates from the list and it’s the motive behind that which we are questioning,” he commented.