Claim
On 17th October 2024, the Zambian Post Facebook page posted an image of a red billboard with a label reading “Welcome To # BallyBelt”. The message accompanying the image claimed that the Copperbelt Province had been renamed Ballybelt and that hundreds of such billboards were being erected in the province. The post received mixed reactions from the page’s followers.
Rating Justification
iVerify Zambia fact-checked the claim and determined that it was false. A thorough scrutiny of the image in question revealed that it was a political advertisement by the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND), as official government billboards do not exclusively feature political symbols and often bear the official coat of arms.
Secondly, renaming a province is a constitutional matter which follows a laid-down legal process. Article 149(1) of the Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act, No.2 of 2016, provides that the President may, subject to the approval of the National Assembly, create, divide, or merge provinces as prescribed. Currently no such formal procedure has taken place, and no official government statement has been issued regarding the renaming of Copperbelt Province to Ballybelt.
Evidence and References
Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act, 2016
https://www.parliament.gov.zm/node/4834