Tonse Alliance Faces Leadership Uncertainty

The death of former president Edgar Lungu has triggered a power struggle within the opposition Tonse Alliance, with smaller member parties demanding the right to vote for new leadership rather than accepting automatic succession by the Patriotic Front (PF).

Chris Zumani Zimba, who served as political adviser to Lungu, says it is member parties themselves - not him - who are calling for the alliance's chairmanship and presidential candidacy to be opened to democratic election.

According to Zimba, who claims to have drafted the alliance's constitution alongside politician Sean Tembo, the grouping was designed to navigate internal divisions within the PF party itself.

Crucially, the alliance does not include the PF as a formal party member. Instead, it comprises what Zimba calls the "ECL PF Movement" - PF members, councillors, and MPs loyal to the late president.

"The chairmanship and the presidency belong to an individual, it's Dr Edgar Chagwa Lungu; you read his name there," Zimba explained in a television interview.

With Lungu's death, smaller parties including the Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD), Kelvin Bwalya Fumbelo's party (KBF), and the Zambia Must Prosper movement argue they joined the alliance specifically because of his leadership.

Now they want a say in choosing his successor.

"Many of them are saying, 'let's open the chairmanship and presidential candidacy to us members so that we'll have a say, we vote,'" Zimba said.

However, PF acting president Given Lubinda has pushed back against the proposal, accusing some within the alliance of trying to change agreed arrangements that made the PF the anchor party.

Despite the demands from smaller parties, the mathematics favour the PF. According to the alliance constitution, PF-aligned members hold more than 60% representation in decision-making bodies.

"As long as PF says Honourable Lubinda is our candidate, we win," Zimba stated. "The reason why other stakeholders have engaged me is they're saying, 'now that the man we came for, ECL, has gone as chairman and candidate, we want to vote on the next candidate and chairman.'"

Zimba insists the PF could reject these proposals outright, but suggests the party should at least allow member views to be heard and put to a vote.

Zimba has proposed that the PF first hold its own national convention to select a leader before the Tonse Alliance holds its planned general congress on 29 November.

He maintains that his role is to help secure Mr Lungu's legacy, not to destroy it.

"I cannot destroy PF, I cannot destroy the Tonse Alliance because these are legacies of ECL," he said. "My job is to help Honourable Lubinda to secure the legacy and the vision of ECL in the alliance."