By Brian Matambo | Media Director – 22 June 2026

The Electoral Commission of Zambia has concluded its consultative meeting with presidential candidates without publicly releasing the detailed campaign calendar that prompted the meeting, leaving political parties uncertain about where and when they will be permitted to campaign.

ECZ Chief Electoral Officer Brown Kasaro announced that all 14 presidential candidates, either personally or through representatives, had agreed in principle to a coordinated presidential campaign timetable. The Commission said the calendar would allocate provinces to candidates at particular times, but the actual dates and provincial assignments were not announced or published by the close of the meeting.

The meeting followed an abrupt ECZ directive issued on 18 June, allowing presidential candidates to continue with programmes already scheduled only up to Friday, 19 June. ECZ argued that uncoordinated presidential campaigns could produce overlapping rallies, logistical difficulties and conflict among political parties.

The intervention comes as the Tonse-Pamodzi Alliance and the National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity have built significant political momentum behind presidential candidate Brian Mundubile and his running mate, Makebi Zulu. Mammoth crowds attended the alliance’s rallies in Kitwe, Kabwe and Petauke, establishing the Mundubile-Zulu ticket as a visible force in the August election.

Kitwe Playing Fields was filled by thousands of supporters when the alliance launched its national campaign on the Copperbelt. The momentum continued in Kabwe, where another large crowd gathered in Makululu, before moving east to Petauke, where thousands packed the Tasala Primary School grounds to receive Mundubile, Zulu and other alliance leaders.

The sequence of rallies gave Tonse-Pamodzi something every opposition campaign seeks but cannot manufacture through press statements: visible national momentum. The crowds crossed provincial boundaries and demonstrated growing public interest in the NRPUP ticket. Kitwe provided the Copperbelt signal, Kabwe confirmed Central Province mobilisation, and Petauke demonstrated that the alliance could draw a major audience in Eastern Province.

That momentum was interrupted in Chipata, where heavily armed police officers sealed off Mpezeni Park and prevented the planned Tonse-Pamodzi rally from proceeding. Police blocked Mundubile and Zulu from addressing supporters, saying they were enforcing the ECZ directive suspending presidential rallies until a new timetable was developed.

The Chipata operation immediately raised questions about proportionality. A political rally was stopped using heavily armed officers, even though the campaign had already notified authorities and deployed teams and resources. Tonse-Pamodzi argued that cancelling programmes at such short notice caused substantial financial losses and unfairly disrupted an established campaign itinerary.

The controversy deepened after ECZ disclosed that President Hakainde Hichilema would not be bound by the new timetable in the same way as the other 13 presidential candidates, reportedly because of statutory provisions governing his official responsibilities. ECZ has not publicly identified the precise legal provision being relied upon or explained how official presidential travel will be separated from UPND campaign activity.

This creates a serious question of electoral equality. Opposition candidates may be confined to provinces allocated by ECZ while the incumbent continues travelling throughout the country under the banner of presidential duties. Without transparent safeguards, the arrangement risks giving President Hichilema unrestricted national visibility while his challengers operate under a controlled calendar.

ECZ Chairperson Mwangala Zaloumis defended the timetable as an instrument for order, fairness and peaceful campaigning rather than a restriction on political competition. However, fairness cannot rest on assurances alone. It requires published rules, equal application, clear legal authority and a transparent distinction between state duties and party campaigning.

The Commission must now publish the complete calendar without delay, explain the legal basis for restricting presidential campaigns and clarify why the incumbent candidate will apparently receive different treatment. Until that happens, the timing of the intervention, following the major Tonse-Pamodzi rallies and the police blockade in Chipata, will continue to attract legitimate public scrutiny.