THE peaceful atmosphere under which the Kabwata parliamentary by-election campaigns are being conducted deserve special note, given where Zambia is coming.
Previously, by now Kabwata Constituency could have been a battlefield where machete and gun-wielding cadres could have been roaming the street harassing opponents and residents.
Similarly, the police could have by now been engaged in some running battles trying to prevent the opposition political parties from engaging the electorate in any way, sometimes even after sanctioning their interactive programmes.
Three days before the polls, in this seemingly tightly-contested election, Kabwata could have by now been experiencing bloodbath much to the terror of the opposition leaders who were mainly the targets.
It could have, by now, been a no-go area for any peace-loving citizens!
Apart from one or two isolated incidences by some suspected overzealous United Party for National Development cadres on the nomination day as well as last week, Kabwata has generally experienced unprecedented peaceful campaigns.
This is as it should be.
The pacific ambiance characterising the campaigns in the constituency, where leaders and cadres from competing political parties are freely crossing paths with one another, without causing any skirmishes shows the role of leadership in nonviolent co-existence.
A few disgruntled cadres, especially from the UPND who would have wanted to succeed the fallen Patriotic Front cadres as champions of political violence should by now be just gnashing their teeth in indignity.
This is because both President Hakainde Hichilema and Vice-president W.K Mutale Nalumango have continued preaching against such elements who thought they could thrive and rise to stardom through political violence.
Above all, both leaders have been practising what they preach by condemning political violence in public as well as in party caucus meetings.
One factor which has in the past helped to perpetuate political violence has been hypocrisy by some leaders.
These are the leaders who preached against violence in the day and sponsored it at night, much to the delight of the few disgruntled cadres.
That was further compounded by the discriminatory application of the laws like the Public Order Act (POA) which was never observed by members of the ruling class then but fell heavily on the opposition political leaders and cadres.
The heavy-handedness with which the POA was enforced on the opposition was partly the source of political conflicts then.
Political leaders, past and present, therefore, should learn from what is happening that life could remain normal amid political campaigns and that political violence does not pay.
All political leaders should resolve and work towards ensuring that Zambia should never again experience such high-level of political violence and intolerance as it did, not so many months ago.
Indeed, elections can be won without a wanton shedding of human blood through political violence.