By NATION REPORTER
The Church has chastised Speaker of the National Assembly Nelly Mutti for adopting draconian system of presiding over legislative matters and threatening Raphael Nakacinda with unknown reprisals for exercising his right to refuse to read an apology he did not author.
The Bishops Council of Zambia (BCZ) says it is against ecclesiastical norms and parliamentary privileges for Ms Mutti as Speaker of the National Assembly to engage in altercations with private citizens for merely exercising their freedom of expression.
BCZ general secretary Bishop Able Kaela said in an interview that silencing citizens who were expressing their opinion over the speaker’s conduct of business in the House smacked of intolerance and dictatorship.
Bishop Kaela stated that it was unfortunate that the UPND government has had personal vendetta against selection citizens and would go to any length to victimize and harass citizens expressing their rights to freedom of speech.
Bishop Kaela said dictatorial rule had long beaten the dust and was not tolerated even in the church where pastors were attempting to exhibit dictatorial tendencies to their congregants.
“It is like this government has come with a personal vendetta of silencing everyone. They want to be the only ones to have a say and that is dictatorship. Even in church, when a pastor like myself will not last if I am going to use dictatorship as a way of shepherding my congregants. You have seen pastors being beaten in churches and some are blocked from entering the church because dictatorship cannot work,” Bishop Kaela said.
Bishop Kaela has advised Ms. Mutti to take a serious introspection on how she had been conducting business in parliament and ensure that she guards against overzealousness.
He has also warned against what he described as verbal war among political leaders because if not curbed it would be destructive to the growth of the nation and the peace and unity the country was enjoying.
