The Non-Governmental Gender Organisations’ Coordinating Council has demanded President Hakainde Hichilema apologise to the elderly mother of Mazabuka Central independent candidate Gary Nkombo.

The Head of State drew her into campaign rhetoric during rallies in Chirundu, Chikankata, Mazabuka, Namwala and Gweembe last week, describing Nkombo as a traitor and a sellout.

NGOCC board chairperson Beauty Katebe said the remarks were painful, troubling and unacceptable.

“The elderly mother is not a candidate. She did not seek public scrutiny, and she deserves none.”

Nkombo is contesting the Mazabuka Central seat as an independent in the 13 August general election.

Katebe said the woman had never sought public office and should never have been made the subject of presidential campaign rhetoric. She stressed that while political leaders were free to challenge one another’s records, policies and conduct, involving innocent family members undermined democratic values and shifted attention away from substantive national issues.

Women connected to politicians, including mothers, wives and daughters, were too often used as soft targets to inflict political damage on their male relatives, the NGOCC board chairperson said. Such conduct exposed innocent individuals to public ridicule, online abuse and safety risks.

“The NGOCC will not remain silent whenever such conduct occurs, regardless of the political affiliation of those involved.”

Katebe described the episode as political violence against women perpetrated by the Head of State.

“Zambians deserve a campaign of ideas, not insults aimed at family members who never sought the podium.”

NGOCC executive director Annie Anamela, in a separate statement, called on political parties and their leaders across the country to uphold civil, issue-based language as Zambia heads towards the 13 August polls.

Anamela said Zambia’s democracy was built on robust debate, and candidates should be free to challenge one another’s records, policies and conduct without resorting to insults.

She noted that women connected to politicians were frequently weaponised as soft targets to wound their male relatives, describing this as a form of gendered political violence.

“We urge all candidates across the political divide to immediately redirect campaign discourse toward the issues that matter to Zambians, and address jobs, the cost of living, agriculture, healthcare, education and national development at large.”

The NGOCC executive director recalled that a week earlier, the organisation had also requested political parties adopt a zero-tolerance approach to electoral violence and ensure their members refrain from violent conduct during the campaign period.

Neither the Presidency nor the United Party for National Development had responded to the calls at the time of publication.

The intervention comes with just over two weeks remaining before Zambians go to the polls, in a campaign already marked by sharp exchanges between the ruling party and opposition figures over policy, personal conduct and past political rivalries.

Nkombo previously served as a Cabinet minister and remains a prominent political figure in Southern Province, contesting his seat outside the structures of any registered party this election.

NGOCC has positioned itself as a consistent voice on gendered political conduct throughout the campaign period. Its latest statement extends that focus specifically to the treatment of family members not themselves standing for office.

Calls for restraint in political rhetoric are likely to remain a recurring theme as campaigning intensifies, particularly where the conduct of senior political figures is concerned.

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