PF MPs defy Sata

Twenty-seven Patriotic Front (PF) members of Parliament (MPs) have registered for the National Constitution Conference (NCC) in defiance of Party President Michael Sata. The majority of the PF MPs who were found accrediting at the National Assembly building in Lusaka said they decided to attend the NCC to represent the interests of the electorate.
Sata said his MPs had failed to highlight issues affecting the people in Parliament and could not even put up a formidable counter against the NCC Bill in Parliament. He reiterated that MPs' conference attendance was not mandatory because the Republican Constitution, which he said was supreme to the NCC Act, gave the MPs the freedom of association. He also described the allowances for the NCC delegates as corruption, asserting that the participants did not deserve such amounts for what he said was just recommending the adoption of the draft. He showered praise on his vice-president, Guy Scott and party chairman for information and publicity. The PF currently holds 42 seats in Parliament. (The Times of Zambia, Ndola)