Zambian opposition chief Michael Sata, defeated in disputed national elections, positioned himself at the head of a ”people’s government” on Wednesday with plans to slash taxes in councils run by his party.
Patriotic Front leader Sata was forced to accept defeat in his quest to become the country’s president when incumbent Levy Mwanawasa was sworn in for a second term on Tuesday after a bitterly contested election.
However Sata, who claimed Mwanawasa ”stole” last Thursday’s ballot, now plans to ensure his election pledge to lower taxes will be realised in municipalities that ended up in the hands of the Patriotic Front.
”We are going to review the rates downwards within 90 days,” Sata said at a news conference attended by hundreds of his supporters.
”Local government is autonomous from central government. Mwanawasa can run his central government from State House and I will run my local government with the people,” Sata said amidst cheers from his supporters.
While Mwanawasa and his Movement for Multiparty Democracy triumphed in the presidential and parliamentary elections last Thursday, the tripartite ballot did leave some major municipalities in opposition hands.
Sata was able to build up a mass following among the urban poor with a pledge to slash taxes, build thousands of homes and embark on a mass job-creation programme within 90 days of coming to office.
The Patriotic Front now controls the municipal governments in urban areas such as Lusaka and the Copperbelt region, the country’s industrial heartland.
Asked if he was creating a parallel government structure, Sata said: ”This is not a parallel government. It is local government, which is independent of central government. I am only going to affect the autonomy.”
While local governments have the power to raise and lower taxes, their fate ultimately lies in the hands of the central government, which can order their dissolution if it can provide legal evidence of malpractice.
Sata, however, said that he was ready for any confrontation with the central government if it tried to block the local tax cuts.
”If Mwanawasa tries to interfere with our decisions, we are ready to face him. We shall take him to court,” Sata said.
Despite allegations by Sata of mass vote-rigging, Mwanawasa has tried to heal divisions with the opposition by praising his rival’s campaigning skills and urging a united front in the battle against poverty. — AFP
