A Lusaka resident and Civic Activist, Joseph Busenga has sued the Attorney General in the Constitutional Court seeking interpretation of Articles 106 and 70 of the Constitution which deal with the question of eligibility of Presidential candidates and Parliamentary candidates respectively.
Busenga in public interest seeks clarification as to whether a person that has been elected twice, sworn in twice and has exercised the powers of President is eligible to be elected a third time in view of the clear provisions of Article 106(3) of the Constitution which provide otherwise.
He is further seeking interpretation of Article 70(2)(f) vis a vis eligibility of a convicted person who is serving a suspended sentence to be elected as Member of Parliament.
F00lish bought tribal thug. How much is upnd paying these desperate morons. Moonyel0 wakay
Since Constitutional Amendment 1996 applies to RB’s Rule and the first term of ECL’s Rule we want to know why RB’s 2years,10 months and 22 days is considered a Term while ECL’s 18 months Rule is being questioned as a Term. RB was elected the 4th Republican President in 2008 and although he held Office for less than 3 years he is receiving his full benefits as a former President. ECL held Office for the first time from 2015 to 2016 as the 6th President of Zambia and served for 18 months. ECL held Office for the second time from 2016 to 2021. Therefore ECL held Office twice,was elected and sworn in twice and therefore is ineligible for Election for a third time in terms of Constitution 1996 and 2016. Chiluba wanted a Third Term but was denied so why is ECL being allowed to breach…
Nice try let’s see the seriousness of the Constitution and especially try to understand the minds of those who pen documents meant to guide governance and national existence norms.
KZ, How much was Nawakwi paid by your master??? Muzamuziba yesu this time around
Instead of giving money to his village, he is giving to lawyers .
Clearly a paid PF stooge… to muddy the waters and mess up the case before prominent Constitutional lawyers jump in to articulate the Constitution and embarrass the ConCourt judges. These f00ls think they can f00l all the people all the time!
If the new law on cyber crimes and cyber security is in force, someone needs to be picked up for promoting tribal hatred.
Well done Petitioner! Let Concourt sort our out this problem which they created via the Dan Pule and Others Judgment. The fact is RB held Office for less than 3 years and is receiving his Pension Benefits as a former President. In his first Term ECL held Office for 18 months which is also less than 3 years. The 1996 Constitution apply to the period 1996 to 2016. ECL held Office for the second time from 2016 to 2021. In brief ECL held Office twice,was elected and sworn in twice and is therefore ineligible for election as President for the third time.Concourt should deal with ECL’s Eligibility Petitions and impartially interpret, defend and enforce the Republican Constitution. Will Concourt standby ECL or breach the Constitution?Concourt is between a Rock and a Hard Place. The whole…
The failure of Bill 10 is fatal to PF. Bill 10 had Repealed Article 52 which was meant to stop all these Petitions challenging ECL’s Eligibility. The Constitution is very clear. “A Person who has held Office twice is not eligible for Election as President”. ECL held Office twice,was elected and sworn in twice and is therefore ineligible to stand for a third time.RB held Office for less than 3 years but is getting his Pension Benefits as a former President. We see no reason why RB’s 2 years,10 months and 22 days in terms of the 1996 Constitution constitute a Term of Office while ECL’s 18 months in office is being questioned as a Term of Office. ECL has served his Constitutionally stipulated Two Terms and must Retire from Politics. Failure to do so will lead to Social Strife in…
People should just forget about this eligibility issue, lungu does not respect any laws…….
He is a crooked fraud convict lawyer already…….
Most , if not all judges appointed by him are compromised……..
Any judgement they pass that seems on the side of the law is just meant to dupe Zambians and lure them into a false sense of normasey in the judicial system…..
IT IS ESSENTIAL TO TRY ALL LEGAL MEANS WHATEVER THE OUTCOME
In all fairness, does Lungu qualify for anything? Who in their right senses would hire ECL even for babysitting or garden boy? The guy is not presidential material even for a JETS club at school. His grade 12 certificate is an empty document with all fails. Choosing Lungu makes Zambians as dumb as lice or cob worms that stick to dead people until they are buried together or stays in a cob until they are cooked together. Why are they even discussing Lungu? The number one criminal of Zambian political record.
It’s all rigged alread?
This is nothing, personally, I don’t trust this summons to seek Concourt’s interpretation. It’s PF strategy to block John Sangwa `s upcoming petition.
Nothing to be excited about.
Who is this Civic Activist, Joseph Busenga? Never heard of him… We know this pre-emptive tactic they used it in the past where they usually their silly tool Dan Pule … When SC Sangwa files his case at Concourt they will say there is already a similar case will are looking at.
Bwana Busenga i can explicitly say the law DOES NOT allow Lungu to run for office again this time.But well done nonetheless we need a concourt disqualification.
I have time and again advised people that law is not applied retrospectively but prospectively. Meaning when you amend a piece of legislation, you cannot use what was repealed together with the new law. This issue of sworn or elected twice does does not determine the term but how long someone has served is what determines a term in the current constitution. If in the remaining 3 months the opposition can convince Zambians to vote for them it will be more beneficial than wasting time on legal jargon.
There’s no need to call anyone names here. Any citizen, even if u hv never heard of them, has the right to move the Constitutional Court at any time. I don’t think that the Busenga case will hv been decided by the time John Sangwa files his own petition. Sangwa will therefore be advised to apply to join the Busenga case and attach new particulars if he will hv any. Some simple questions are automatic here. For example, was Edgar Lungu serving as president of Zambia with full powers during the less than 2 years after Sata’s death? Was he sworn into office? Can u assent to laws from parliament without being president of Zambia? Wht was the real intention of the framers of the term limit clauses? I know that in the last question, that is where it gets subjective. The nxt few weeks will…
..be interesting politically and legally.
Just stop these useless petitions until after 14 May. I hate to say this but i think law is meant to be like this so that people do not abuse it but promote justice for all. Our able lawyers will deliver to Zambians the much needed justice. This time around we need a clear reason so that we are all satisfied as laymen in the judicial jargon.
Please mobilise your prospective voters. Align them well instead of folding your arms expecting the court to nullify Edgar Lungu’s candidature. The question is: Does UPND have the electoral numbers required to beat PF in the current form?
Joseph Busenga, Dan Pule, the Law Association of Zambia or John Sangwa may just unwittingly be doing a devitalizing disservice to UPND
Hi KZ,
How is that you have never said anything meaningful and your language is ever toxic, are you human? Do you listen to yourself?
In arriving at their decision the concourt should consider what the drafters of this legislation wanted to achieve. the idea is that no one person should hold the office of president in excess of 10 years. Therefore, allowing ECL to stand defeats the purpose of the article. The article cures the thirst for 3rd terms.
BM, exactly. If Edgar Lungu gets another five years, he will hv been president of Zambia for more than 10 years in 2026, assuming of course that he wins in August this year. The Constitutional Court is the only legally-mandated body to decide. No doubt the judges know that their decision is eagerly awaited.
The truth is ECL made up his mind a long time to seek a Third Term in 2021. He has invested alot in this Third Term Project and is determined to stand for Re-election even it means breaching the Republican Constitution. The question is what can Zambians do about this errant President? On August 12 Zambians must vote wisely to get rid of this Dictator. Failure to do so means Constitutional Democracy is dead in Zambia and Emperor ECL will reign in Zambia 4 a long time. People will suffer under an ECL One Party State Dictatorship. The writing is on the wall.
No Musevenism in Zambia , anyways let those mandated to make decision do it without fear and favour. MAY 14 will be a big day!