RAINBOW Party general secretary Wynter Kabimba says in an event that President Hakainde Hichilema attempts to go for a third term, Zambians will stop him.

Commenting on Constitutional lawyer John Sangwa’s fears that President Hichilema would become a de facto life president, Kabimba argued that Zambians had always resisted a life president.

“The Zambian people have always resisted a life president, they have always resisted a one-party state as a people. If President Hichilema attempts to take that route, I know for certain that the Zambian people will stop him. And I hope he doesn’t take that route because he will be very disappointed like his predecessors have been disappointed. He may try to manipulate the organic structure of representation in Parliament through these by-elections that they have lined up,” Kabimba said.

“He may try to persuade some PF members of parliament and members to join UPND or join the rank and file of the UPND, but immediately it becomes clear to the Zambian people that he wants to make himself a life President, or that he wants to bring back the one-party state in whatever form of style, I know that the Zambian people will rise and resist that. And he will be defeated like other presidents before him were defeated. My view is based on historical facts.”

Kabimba cited examples of how Zambians rejected some past presidents’ third term bids.

“I want to take a different view from John Sangwa’s paper. John argues in that paper that UPND and President Hakainde Hichilema in particular may become a life president. The Zambian people have always resisted the one-party state themselves as a people. When Kenneth Kaunda sent the Chona Commission around, to go and sound the Zambian people out, whether or not Zambia should become a one-party state, the Zambian people overwhelmingly rejected that idea. Kaunda had to impose the one-party people on the Zambian people. When (Fredrick) Chiluba attempted to go for a third term which had all the semblance of him trying to become a life president, the Zambian people said no,” said Kabimba.

“And what stood in the way of Chiluba’s agenda were not political parties, it was the civil society organization that came together and garnered support of the Zambian people and Chiluba’s bid for a third term failed. This time around, we saw it with president Lungu, when Lungu created a controversy as to whether or not he was entitled to a third term, and that route he was taking was supported by the judgement of the Constitutional Court, the Zambian people stopped him on the 12th of August. So I take a totally different view from John Sangwa on this matter.”