By Mildred Mulenga
30 January 2001
Lusaka, Zambia — Bishops of Evangelical churches in Africa have said they support the debate on whether Zambian President Frederick Chiluba should run for president for a third time.
The Times of Zambia newspaper Tuesday, quoted a statement issued by the secretary-general of Forum for Bishops for Peace in Africa, Rev. Lesego Kebonyemodisaas, as urging Zambians to continue the debate.
Kebonyemodisaas said the debate should be based on the political, economic, cultural and development needs of the country, the paper reported.
The Evangelical Church's executive board criticised other church organisations that called for an end to the debate, saying they were simply supporting the opposition against the government.
Three other mainstream church organisations in Zambia last week issued a joint statement against the debate on whether the President whose second and final term in office ends in March should stand again for the office.
The church leaders said they were opposed to plans to amend the Republican Constitution so as to enable president Chiluba to stand for a third term in office.
The leaders representing the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia, Zambia Episcopal Church and the Christian Council of Zambia said the debate was unconstitutional and undemocratic.
They also urged Chiluba to clarify his commitment to protect the constitutional provision limiting him to two terms of office.
But Kebonyemodisa said from the forum headquarters in Lobatse, Botswana, that the church in Zambia was good at criticising the government without offering alternatives or practical solutions to social issues.
"Your future as a nation is more important than listening to the empty sweet words of intellectual critics who do not offer best solutions to issues of the day, but cash in on the desperation and poverty of citizens.
"Mid last year, we wrote and challenged the citizens of Zambia to choose a professional president who will heal the economy of Zambia and who will deliver the dire needs of the people. Who is that person? Only Zambians know," he said.
Kebonyemodisaas, who advised Zambians against partisan politics, claimed that people who acted in the name of being "prophetic and guided by the spirit" caused the genocide in Rwanda
He cited the case of Zimbabwe where he alleged that some mainstream churches have been involved in destabilising the government of Robert Mugabe in the name of peace and justice.
He further claimed that investigations into the activities of the churches revealed that die-hard Rhodesian colonialists in the name of fighting for human rights were using church leaders and non-governmental organisations.
"In Malawi, we investigated the violence in Mzuzu and found that the mainline churches were involved in instigating priests and pastors of prophetic people of God, to caused violent conflicts," he said.
Kebonyemodisa also cited similar activities of the mainstream churches and NGOs in South Africa and Kenya.
Zambia's Republican Constitution amended in 1996 stipulates that the President can only serve two five-year terms.
Chiluba, who came to power in 1991, ends his second and final term of office at the end of the year.
But there have been intense campaigns by the ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) for him to run for a third-term.
MMD party militants have launched a countrywide campaign to win support for the cause.
Although Chiluba has repeatedly said he would not stand again for president, his silence on the growing calls from his party has raised suspicions.
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