By Burnett Munthali
LUSAKA — Zambia’s Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha has rejected claims by a group of civil society organisations (CSOs) that the country has descended into lawlessness, insisting that the government remains committed to constitutional governance and the rule of law.
Kabesha’s response follows concerns raised by the CSOs over the state of governance and the administration of justice in Zambia. The Attorney General described the organisations’ characterisation of the country as lawless as a broad and inflammatory assessment that the government does not accept.
According to Kabesha, the existence of disagreements over government actions, criminal investigations or legal proceedings should not automatically be interpreted as evidence that Zambia’s institutions have abandoned the law. His position places emphasis on the role of established legal and judicial processes in resolving disputes.
The Attorney General’s comments come amid wider public debate in Zambia over governance, accountability, investigations and the functioning of state institutions. The competing positions from government and civil society highlight an ongoing debate over how constitutional rights, law enforcement and public accountability should operate.
The government has maintained that legal matters should be handled through the appropriate institutions and procedures, while civil society groups have continued to raise concerns about governance and the protection of democratic freedoms.
Kabesha’s intervention therefore puts the rule of law at the centre of the debate, with the government rejecting the description of Zambia as a country that has descended into lawlessness.
