Matale defends LAZ

Reverend Suzanne Matale: File Picture

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REVEREND Suzanne Matale says people are taking advantage of LAZ president Linda Kasonde because is a very strong young woman who cannot be compromised.

And Rev Matale says holding another Referendum to pass the Bill of Rights must be a matter of urgency.

Meanwhile, Rev Matale says the Ministry of Home affairs must control the mushrooming of churches because there is an influx of fake preachers.

Speaking when she was featured on Radio Phoenix’s Let the People Talk programme yesterday, Rev Mutale, who is CCZ secretary general, said it was important for people to understand that it is not the role of independent bodies to worship leaders.

“Well my take on the LAZ leadership, the president in particular, I believe sincerely that she is spot on and she doesn’t speak on herself, she speaks on behalf of LAZ and I believe there are some consultations that take place. Like most of us, we don’t speak without consultations, and therefore the criticism is because she is not speaking a language of certain people, and that happens to all of us, but I’m very confident that the young lady is succeeding. She’s young and people are taking advantage because she is young and some people are taking advantage because she is a woman, they are taking advantage because she stands very strongly on certain issues and she cannot comment on everything,” Rev Matale said.

“I’m standing with her 100 percent, because I know her, I speak with her, we share information, we share issues,. You rightly said LAZ is a constituent member of the Oasis Forum so I think I can speak very strongly and clearly and confidently on behalf of our other constituent members of which is NGOCC, Evangelical Fellowship, ZEC now ZCCB and CCZ that she is spot on, she’s doing a great job, at her age she has excelled beyond everybody’s expectations and people should not take advantage of that.”

And Reverend Matale questioned President Edgar Lungu’s statement that the Referendum on the Bill of Rights be set aside.

“The issues of the Bill of Rights at this time, they are very very critical that people must have rights. We have a few rights in the current Amended Constitution and in the old one but not enough to speak to the livelihood of the people these days, because we all agree that education is key and therefore, it becomes a right for every child in this country to get even a minimal education to make them literate, and therefore the question of not having money to hold a Referendum, I think we have heard so many times, it has become you know mundane that they should always use this excuse of money,” she said.

“If they intend to hold another Referendum alongside general elections again, that’ll not be noble. That’s why it failed last time. The Referendum should not be delayed because rights must be enshrined in in the Constitution.”

Meanwhile, Rev Matale said it was important for the Ministry of Home Affairs to monitor mushrooming churches to ensure that they were standing on biblical doctrines.

“Many of the churches it’s about money, and it’s true, they want big cars, they want lots of money. Thus why we are saying that we have to be watched as churches and the Ministry of Home Affairs must be on the case to ensure that churches are regulated because some of these so called pastors that are coming up don’t even have a proper track record. In this country we have a lot of preachers from outside of this country who bring in all kind of strange doctrines and promising people things they cannot give but obviously because like I said people are spell bound by them,” said Rev Matale who also insisted that the Ministry of Religious Affairs was unnecessary.