The contribution of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia to political conflict resolution (1990-2016).
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Date
2022-07-30
Authors
Mwenda, Kenneth
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Publisher
The University of Zambia
Abstract
The study was conducted to investigate the contribution of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia to political conflict resolution. The objectives of the study were to establish the role of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia in resolving political differences among politicians, to analyze the role played by the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia in resolving electoral disputes, and to understand the key successes of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia in addressing political conflicts among political parties in Lusaka district.
The study employed a case study design which mainly involves qualitative methods. The sample included one Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia senior official, five political party officials, five pastors and three ordinary citizens, who were purposively sampled to participate in the study. Data were collected using interview guides and analysed thematically.
The study revealed that the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia has handled inter and intra-party political conflicts between the Patriotic Front (PF) and the United Party for National Development (UPND) and intra-party conflicts of Movement for Multiparty Democracy in 2014 and 2016 and the patriotic front (PF) in 2015. The credibility of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia is doubted by some of the people in society due to biased media statements purported to be issued by the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia Executive Director. The findings revealed further that, Zambia’s political conflicts cannot be solved without the inclusion and participation of the Church mother body. Furthermore the study revealed that, the perception that the EFZ is a political tool of some politicians is as a result of some media houses who twist information from EFZ to win public attention and to deliberately damage the image of the EFZ.
Based on the findings, the study recommended that, social media must be utilised by the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia and the Electoral Commission of Zambia to educate and sensitize the general public on the effects of media propaganda as it endangers peace in the society. As in most cases, social media platforms such as Facebook, twitter and whatsAPP which are mostly used in Zambia, have been abused to spread hate speech.
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Keywords
Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia. , Church controversies. , Conflict management--Religious aspects--Christianity. , Church management.