Africa-Press – Zambia. Lusaka | Aspiring Munali MP and social voice Thomas Sipalo, popularly known as the Komboni President, has weighed in on the ongoing debate around constitutional reforms and electoral boundary adjustments—supporting delimitation, but rejecting a blanket endorsement of the Constitution Amendment Bill.
Speaking on the matter, Sipalo emphasized that while delimiting constituencies is necessary, it should not be bundled with unrelated or controversial changes to the Constitution.
“Delimiting constituencies is a step in the right direction, especially considering the vast sizes of some constituencies like Kafue, Chongwe, and Chilanga. But let’s not smuggle in things people haven’t agreed to under the excuse of progress,” Sipalo stated.
Delimitation is the process of redrawing or creating new constituency boundaries so that each MP represents a manageable population size. It’s basically like dividing a big class into smaller groups so each teacher (MP) can give better attention to their students (citizens). For example, Sipalo pointed out that Kafue Constituency stretches from Chilenje South to Chiawa, almost reaching the Zimbabwean border—making it difficult for one MP to effectively serve such a large and diverse area.
Sipalo said that as Zambia’s population rises, the number of constituencies should also grow to ensure each MP can serve their people more effectively. Smaller constituencies could allow for fairer allocation of resources and closer contact between MPs and citizens. He warned that vast constituencies like Chongwe, which stretches from Vorna Valley to Chiawa, risk having remote areas completely ignored.
However, Sipalo draws a clear line between delimitation and the full Constitution Amendment package, some parts of which he says are “not sensible.”
“Let them bring it back to the people so we choose what makes sense and remove what doesn’t,” he urged, calling for public participation and referendum-like transparency.
He also raised a critical concern about the cost of creating more constituencies. Rather than increasing taxes on essential goods, Sipalo proposed that the government find smarter ways to raise funds. One suggestion he made is to increase tax revenue from the mining sector. He also emphasized the need for greater accountability in the use of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), which he described as being plagued by discrepancies between planned and actual allocations.
“We must address the gap between what’s planned and what’s actually delivered. Monitoring and transparency in CDF usage must be improved,” he added.
As the delimitation debate heats up and constitutional reforms loom, Sipalo’s stance adds a voice of reason: support what’s needed, reject what’s sneaked in—and put the people first.
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