STATE House says it is mischievous to drag President Hakainde Hichilema into the Patriotic Front (PF) leadership wrangles.

State House Chief Communications Specialist Clayson Hamasaka has noted insinuations and attempts to involve President Hichilema in the ongoing PF leadership disputes, especially following the expulsion of nine of their Members of Parliament.

Mr Hamasaka said the President has never been interested in interfering with how other political parties conduct their business, adding that one of his strongest pillars is his commitment to order and the rule of law in the country.

He said President Hichilema’s views on by-elections are well known, as he has repeatedly called on stakeholders to make recommendations on how to address the issue to avoid them and save resources.

“The PF exercised its legal and constitutional rights to expel their members from Parliament according to the provisions of their party constitution. They later took these matters to the courts, where decisions were made that resulted in the expulsion of their nine MPs.

Therefore, when a decision such as this results from the PF’s self-inflicted wrangles, the President’s hands are extremely tied despite his personal views against by-elections. There is no way the President can interfere with the independent arms of government, such as Parliament and the Judiciary,” he said.

Mr Hamasaka said if the President were to attempt to interfere with the provisions of the constitution, the same people accusing him would turn around and accuse him again.

“So far, the President has demonstrated willingness and courage to push for reforms in legislation he is uncomfortable with, such as defamation of the President and abolishing the death penalty. These are laws that did not require constitutional amendments, but those regarding by-elections are beyond him as they require consensus from many stakeholders to address the numerous lacunas in the current constitution that they themselves admitted to signing with their eyes closed,” he said.

And Mr Hamasaka said the internal fights between the PF factional presidents are historical, dating back to the time of the demise of the late President Michael Sata.

“Whether they fight, reconcile, fight again, and then turn to the courts for arbitration, President Hichilema has no business with that. They should resolve their issues and leave the Republican President out of it. President Hichilema is currently busy resolving more serious national issues created by the same people that are currently wrangling among themselves,” he said.