The announcement came two days after Zambian President Edgar Lungu assented to a new bill that ushered in a new constitution which has come with amendments as well as new clauses.
The new constitution provided that elections will be held during the second Thursday of August during an election year. Previously, it was the president who used to announce the day of elections.
This year, the election will be held on August 11.
Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) Public Relations Officer said the electoral body will soon commence preparations which will take into account the new provisions in the constitution.
“Since the president just signed the constitution bill into law, the Commission will accordingly start preparations taking into account the provisions in the amended republican constitution,” he is quoted saying by the Zambia Daily Mail.
The preparation, he said, will also provide for a re-run of the presidential election in an event that no candidate gets 50 percent plus one vote.
On Wednesday, two of the country’s largest opposition political parties told Xinhua there were ready for the elections while the governing Patriotic Front (PF) has also indicated that it was ready for the polls. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
