TODAY, almost every democratic country has a Constitution, which is a vital document according to which each nation carries out its operations.
A Constitution protects the rights of citizens of a concerned country, irrespective of their religion, caste, creed, sex or physical appearance, and it thus can be safely said to be a social contract between the Government and the governed.
It can also be deemed as the fundamental underlying framework of the Government for a nation.
Accolades have been showered on newly-appointed Justice Minister Edgar Lungu, who has set as a priority the hastening of the Constitution-making process.
This process generates keen interest not only from the Government but various key players who are closely monitoring the process, locally and internationally.
Mr Lungu has thus engaged Attorney General Musa Mwenye and Secretary to the Cabinet Roland Msiska to chart the way forward in the formulation process.
His earnest appeal was that the Government, as a key stakeholder in providing guidance, remains committed to deliver, and urged those involved to exhibit soberness.
The fresh breath of air added to this process indicates positive result and those involved, both Government and civil society groups, need to realise the importance of ensuring that the voices of ordinary Zambians are enshrined in this important document that helps govern this country.
The appeal for a sober approach means that the process of formulating the Constitution is not a time for a tug-of-war involving two or more parties.
Rather, this should be the time to give confidence to the Zambian people, that the long-awaited process is winding up and will benefit each citizen and the growth of this country.
Members of the Grand Coalition, which is a major shareholder in this process, are optimistic that a new window of hope to conclude the Constitution-making process has now come and this is a view held by many Zambians.
The importance of the Constitution is that every person is treated equally, regardless of his office or position and is expected to abide by this highest law of the land.
The primary function of this document is to lay out the basic structure of the Government, according to which the people are to be governed.
It is the Constitution of a country which establishes the three main organs of Government, namely, the Legislature, Executive and Judiciary.
The Constitution of a country defines the powers allotted to each of the three main organs and significantly makes a clear demarcation of the respective responsibilities.
It effectively regulates the relationship between these organs as well as the relationship between the Government and its people.
Since the country’s Constitution stands superior to all the laws framed within the territorial precincts of the country, any law enacted by the ruling Government has to be in conformity with the concerned Constitution.
As such, the citizens would, in turn, be abiding by not just the law, but working in sync with the demarcations of the Constitution laid by the country.
The Constitution does not simply provide a recipe for an efficient Government, but also deals with limitations on the powers.
Since power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, as they say, a Constitution is established to restrict the abuse of power by those who conduct constitutional functions.
The Constitution of any particular country lays down the national goals which form the basic edifice on which the nation rests.
Besides thrusting on the rights of the citizens of the concerned nation, the Constitution also has embedded in it the duties that the citizens require to adhere to as well.
Without the constitutions, democracies would not exist as there is no basic, commonly agreed-upon set of principles for the laws to be formulated from.
The more liberal a country’s Constitution is, the more progressive the society in terms of human rights, woman’s rights and other civil liberties, will be.
As the country journeys to conclude the process of making the new Constitution, support by all well-meaning Zambians is key while antagonistic and political stances should be avoided to ensure a successful end to this course. OPINION