A bill to facilitate amendment to Zambia’s constitution, public order act, electoral laws and the regulation of political parties, has passed its third reading and is waiting for President Edgar Lungu’s signature.

The National Dialogue amendment bill passed its third reading on Wednesday and will be passed into law once Lungu gives the green light, the Lusaka Times reported.

The bill’s importance was earlier debated by members of parliament from the ruling Patriotric Front (PF) and independent and opposition parties. A lively exchange sparked a voting session on the bill with the PF scoring 91 votes and the opposition polling 52 votes.

However, at the time of voting only the 146 MPs present participated in the voting.

The sales tax bill is another contentious bill that has reached the parliamentary committee stage after passing its first reading.

The bill plans to introduce a sales tax on the supply of goods by manufacturers, producers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers and the importers of goods into the country.

The proposed Sales Tax bill will also stop escalating VAT refunds dating back to 2009 at an estimated cost of millions of dollars.