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Zambia main opposition party says will not attend inter-party talks

Xinhua, October 12, 2016 Adjust font size:

Zambia's leading opposition political party said on Tuesday that it will not attend inter-party talks being organized by civil society groupings because nothing tangible comes out of such talks.

The Zambia Center for Inter-party Dialogue (ZCID) said it was organizing roundtable talks of all major political parties in view of the prevailing political environment after the disputed August 11 general elections.

Horrance Chilando, executive director of the organization said it was working with other organizations in organizing the talks so that contentious issues are tackled before they get out of hands and that it was making frantic efforts to ensure that all major political parties attend.

The organizers have however not yet set up a date for the talks.

But the United Party for National Development (UPND) said it will not attend the talks because nothing tangible has come out of such discussions in the past.

Stephen Katuka, the party's secretary-general said it was evident from previous talks that the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) has not taken the outcome of such gatherings seriously.

He further said it will be impossible for his party to attend the talks because of current court cases it was pursuing after the general elections.

The opposition party has refused to recognize President Edgar Lungu as duly elected and is pursuing the matter in court to overturn his election.

The Constitutional Court has already thrown away the party's petition challenging Lungu's election. Endit