Civil servants urged to remain non-partisan

The Civil Servants and Allied Workers Union of Zambia (CSAWUZ) in Muchinga province has called on its members to refrain from partisan politics ahead of the January 20, 2015 presidential by-election.

The call was made in Chinsali yesterday by Muchinga province CSAWUZ Secretary Patrick Mumbo during an executive committee meeting held at the union offices.

Mr. Mumbo said all the civil servants in the province should strive to be professional and avoid taking part in active politics during this transition period.

He said civil servants should always remember that their role was to implement government programmes and policies adding that they were therefore accountable to the people they serve.

The CSAWUZ Provincial Secretary said this was a very sensitive period in which all civil servants ought to be careful with how they conduct themselves and execute their daily duties.

Mr. Mumbo said civil servants should further ensure that they remain neutral while at the same time retaining their right to vote for a candidate of their choice on the election day.

And Mr. Mumbo has called on all political parties in the country to conduct peaceful campaigns ahead of the January 20, 2015 presidential by-election.

He said there was need to preserve the peace that the country is enjoying by ensuring that all political parties taking part in the presidential by-election exercise maximum restraint whenever they are provoked.

He said it would be unfortunate to sacrifice the peace which the country has been enjoying in the last 50 years because of careless talks or misconduct during this transition period.

Zambians go to the polls on January 20 next year to choose a new president in a by-election which was necessitated by the death of President Michael Sata on October 28, this year in London where he had gone for a medical check-up.