By PASSY HAACHIZO –
THE Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops (ZCCB) has written to the Catholic Church to preach peace ahead of the general elections.
In a letter read On Sunday during a church service in Kabwe by Lukanga Catholic Parish priest Peter Tembo signed on July, 17, this year by ZCCB president Telesphore George Mpundu and other Catholic Bishops countrywide, they stressed the need to uphold peace before, during and after the August  11, general elections.
The bishops also called on different organisations that were involved in the electoral process to ensure that the election was free from violence.
The bishops called on the media to be impartial and ensure that it reported issues in a Godly manner.
The Church however, expressed dismay that despite the peaceful indaba organised for political party leaders by the Church early this year, violence seems not to have been buried but instead continued to spread at an alarming speed.
The bishops observed that social media and biasness in the manner in which issues were twisted and reported by different professionals and impostors, had left a negative scar in a democratic country like Zambia.
“We need a media which is not polarised. It is also a duty of the Police to be impartial and apply the Public Order Act fairly,” the letter reads in part.
The bishops also expressed the need for the Church to understand the referendum so that they could have an informed decision when voting ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to the Bill of Rights.
They preached against allowing apathy, describing it as the weapon that would allow inopportune politicians to carry the day.
The clergymen advised congregants to attend every rally and scrutinise all politicians in the few remaining days and choose God-fearing candidates.
“We now call upon monitors to be transparent and never cause alarm to the nation. For Catholic priests according to Canon 285, never are we as Catholics going to campaign or de-campaign any candidate,” the bishops said.