. Nawakwi

By NORMA SIAME
THE ensuing drama in the opposition Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) in the last few months has all the ingredients of a thriller – intrigue, conspiracies, public posturing, suspensions and expulsions.
Everything is in the open, playing out in real time in the media and the courts of law.
The drama seems to stem from the opposition party’s failure to successfully hold a convention last year in order to usher in new office bearers.
According to article 42 of the FDD constitution, the party president shall hold office for a maximum period of not more than two consecutive five-year terms.
Following the creed of the FDD as stipulated in the party constitution, Edith Nawakwi has served her two terms and her jig is up.
This could not go unnoticed by those who were posturing and priming themselves to take over the seat, like Ms Nawakwi’s deputy and once trusted lieutenant, Chifumu Banda who made his intentions known by quoting the party constitution clause that bars the incumbent from re-contesting.
If the current leader of the FDD wants to re-contest the party presidency, the constitution will have to be amended.
As things stand, Mr Banda, a prominent lawyer with more than 41 years at the bar, will not be at the convention because of disciplinary issues initiated by Ms Nawakwi herself.
The FDD leader lodged a formal complaint of gross misconduct and acts of subversion allegedly committed by Mr Banda.
Mr Banda is not the only casualty.
FDD deputy national secretary Kelvin Simuyemba and chairperson for disabled persons Bwalya Ng’andu, who have both been publicly critical of Ms Nawakwi, have been shown the exit as well.
It is obvious the party is divided and has factions.: one pro-Chifumu Banda the other pro-Nawakwi.
It is important to note that presidential races have a long history of dividing parties.
The FDD presidential battle isn’t the first – or even the worst – Zambia has seen.
Notable major-party schisms have been witnessed in UNIP, the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) and the United Party for National Development (UPND).
Wynter Kabimba’s Rainbow Party can be considered as a breakaway party of the PF and many remember the bitter battle for the UPND presidency that resulted in Sakwiba Sikota leaving to establish the United Liberal Party (ULP).
Though the rift between FDD’s top leadership might not be wide enough to create a split, the party remains deeply troubled.
The FDD once had stellar membership.
Seasoned politicians, like the party’s first president Christon Tembo, Dipak Patel, Chance Kabaghe , Simon Zukas, Richard Machingwe, Geoffrey Samukonga, among many others, were part of the mass exodus of officials that left the MMD after former Republican President Frederick Chiluba announced his third term bid.
It is of historic importance to note that the FDD was primarily formed by a group of politicians that were not happy with Dr Chiluba’s attempt at a third term.
That is why Ms Nawakwi’s critics wonder if her call to have the party constitution amended to extend her mandate remains true to the spirit on which the party’s foundation was laid.
The anti-third term clause was the FDD’s holy grail.
It lay in the very fabric from which the party was woven.
To go against it and advance a self-styled type of Chiluba-like third term bid negates the vision of the founders of the FDD.
That aside, the FDD constitution is not cast in stone and if it be the wish of the delegates to amend the constitution to allow Ms Nawakwi to stand, so be it.
However, the expulsion of Mr Banda is akin to the ousting the founders of the FDD faced at the hands of Dr Chiluba’s MMD.
In the interest of democracy, the FDD ought to reinstate expelled party members and let the convention decide the direction the party will take.
Anyone who has spent time studying the local political landscape cannot argue that Ms Nawakwi is a strong political force that has become a household name in the country.
She has traversed the width and breadth of this country and has gone as far as Namushakende.
But despite this obvious strength, her performance in subsequent general elections has been worsening, leading to some members of the party – including Mr Banda – to question if her stay as president is justified.
Under her watch, the performance of the FDD has gone down with the party only managing to have one Member of Parliament (MP) each elective cycle.
Maybe it is time for change. Mr Banda definitely thinks so.
He thinks the events that lead to his suspension and eventual expulsion are choreographed machinations he intends to challenge either in court or at the national convention.
“I can choose one or the other or indeed both courses of action,” he said.
He might be considered undisciplined by Ms Nawakwi but he too is an asset to the party.
Ms Nawakwi and Mr Banda need to both put service above self.
So for overall good health of the party, the duo must not be bigger than the party they represent. They should strive to live it better than they found it.
They need to put public posturing aside, go to the convention and let the delegates decide who will take the party forward.
One does not necessarily need to be the president to help a party grow.
General Tembo remained a loyal member of the party even after he withdrew his candidature at the FDD convention that elected Ms Nawakwi as its leader.
The FDD’s national policy council must not forget that a lack of unity can have a significant negative effect on its performance.
In-fighting and public disagreements can have a negative effect on a party’s vote share.
A lack of unity is more damaging when it involves high profile party members, rather than backbenchers.
Intra-party divisions like the ones festering in the FDD have the potential to cause the party to lose votes.
The basic point is that parties whose politicians openly feud for all to see can be electorally harmed if voters are left with the impression that division means dysfunctionalism, and an inability to focus on the important problems of the day.
It does not look good to voters when a party’s leadership are at odds with each other.
As a party consists of different personalities with different perspectives, some level of disagreement is normal.
However, when private disagreements are made public like in the FDD, or when a dispute manifests itself into something more sinister, it has the potential of damaging a party’s efforts to handle important issues.
Left unchecked, the current drama unfolding in the party will make the FDD perform even worse come next general election.