Attorney General Kabesha says it is too early to say whether the presidential term limit should go

Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha has said that time will tell whether the presidential term limit needs to be removed from the Constitution. Speaking on the Zambia YMCA podcast on Saturday, he said government looks forward to possible constitutional amendments, and that it is too early to say whether scrapping the limit is necessary. Mr Kabesha told people who are debating the term limit to first ask themselves whether they are satisfied with the amendments introduced through Bill 7. He said debate should not be suppressed if citizens demand change, and argued that laws must be changing all the time to keep up with the needs of the country. The remarks matter because Bill 7, the Constitution Amendment Bill No. 7, was one of the most contested pieces of legislation of 2025. The Law Association of Zambia and church leaders publicly called for it to be withdrawn, saying it lacked national consensus and left out the views of ordinary citizens. The presidential term limit is a different question from the contents of that Bill, and Mr Kabesha did not say that government has a proposal on the table to change it. He did not say when any further amendments might be brought. The Constitution limits a President to two terms in office. Mr Hichilema was sworn in for a second term in early September after the August general election, which means this is his final term unless the limit is changed. ## Why it matters The Attorney General is the government's chief legal adviser, so what he says about constitutional change is read closely. His remarks did not rule the idea in or out, which means the question of whether a President can be allowed to stay beyond two terms is now openly on the table less than two months into the second term. For ordinary Zambians the practical question is whether the next round of amendments will be debated openly with citizens before it reaches Parliament. ## What happens next No bill or timetable has been announced. Source: News Diggers, 26 Octobe