In a significant development regarding the eligibility of former President Edgar Lungu for the 2021 General Election and future electoral contests, the Constitutional Court has issued a crucial ultimatum. The court ordered that Mr. Lungu must file an affidavit in reply to the eligibility petition by November 17, 2023.
Constitutional Court Judge Palan Mulonda issued this ultimatum, further instructing the petitioner, Michel Chizombe, a prominent Lusaka businessman, to file a counter-reply by November 24, 2023.
This ruling comes in response to the petition submitted by Mr. Chizombe on October 9, 2023, which has raised significant questions about the former President’s eligibility.
In his petition, Mr. Chizombe is seeking a declaration from the Constitutional Court that former President Edgar Lungu was not eligible for the Presidential bid in the 2021 election and does not enjoy the constitutional right to contest future Presidential elections.
He also calls for the court to declare that Mr. Lungu’s participation in the 2021 General Election was unconstitutional. Furthermore, Mr. Chizombe argues that it was unconstitutional for the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to accept Mr. Lungu’s nominations during the 2021 election.
Mr. Chizombe’s case hinges on Article 106, Sub-Article three of the 2016 Amended Constitution, which he contends renders Mr. Lungu ineligible to contest the 2016 General Election. This assertion is based on Mr. Lungu’s two swearing-in ceremonies as Republican President in 2015 and 2016.
Additionally, Mr. Chizombe argues that the repealed Article 35 of the 1996 Amended Constitution excluded a person who had been elected twice from contesting Presidential Elections.
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Lungu done so much dishonest and dubious things , that now the past is comming back to bite him………..
Lungu was never straight forward, always lurking and operating between outright law breaking and semi legal status where different interpretations of the law would work…….. .
It’s amazing how Zambians take for granted what they are enjoying. The beauty of democracy. This can happens only in a few countries in Africa. Every citizen has a right to take his or her grievance to the court
It’s amazing how Zambians take for granted what they are enjoying. The beauty of democracy. This can happens only in a few countries in Africa. Every citizen has a right to take his or her grievance to the court. Is this not what we everyone preaches about?
He qualifies. He only served one term like Trump, the other one was Sata and Guy Scot.
The Constitutional Court has given Edgar Lungu the ultimatum purely because the petition it has received mentions him and therefore affects him. The court is merely saying that it does not want to proceed and conclude the matter without his reply. He doesn’t have to reply to it and frankly my expectation is that he will not. But it should be interesting to see how the court will determine this petition. Its work is already cut out.
@ Sipinya+Ndongo: Lungu does not qualify, he changed the rules himself to work in his favor. Logically, a person is not supposed to serve for more than 10 years. If Lungu did not want the Sata’s tenure to count, he would have let Guy Scott finish that term, and then do 2 full 5 years of each. However, because of greed and division in PF, they with Kambwili played mingaloto on Zambians. Lungu on normal terms is not eligible. Question to you. If he came back, will he step down in the middle of his so called claimed term, so that he doesn’t pass 10 year???
If the said superior court changes its mind and rules that ECL was not eligible to contest in the 2021 and future presidential elections, govt. machinery must now go back and declare those past elections in 2021 null and void and start all over again?? …
Courts change rulings all the time. We all know that the previous courts were under the control of Lungu. This new and independent court will rule that the buck-toothed Lungu does not qualify to run for president, and that will be that.
The only opposition leader with the right temperament for a leader in Zambia right now is Chishala Kateka. Apart from competency, capacity, IQ, EQ, and other leadership skills, measured temperament is critical at all times in leadership
I agree. But Chishala Kateka is under so much pressure to break bread with the likes of Fred M’membe, Kelvin Bwalya Fube, Wynter Kabimba and Edgar Lungu.
I can also mention Andford Banda and the other HH, Highvie Hamududu.
From where I stand this man was in every corner of the law eniligible to stand for Presidency in 2021. The Courts messed us so much and the outcome here will be legally very interesting.
The country is full of Alternative Reality which is not healthy. The whole nation has less than 10 good legal minds who can interpret the law. The laws get interpreted according to which political party that legal mind person supports. We know what results will come from the CC. Zambia is NOT operating under the 3 Branches of Government, Executive, Branch, Judicial Branch & Legislative Branch – but under one Branch called Community House.
Why is UPND having sleepless nights over Lungu? Just beat him at the ballot, because that’s the best way of silencing someone. Having said that, if Lungu wants to stand again, there is nothing that he will bring.
WHETHER BE INDEPENDENT PEEPER OR OBSERVER , PLEASE USE NOT NAKACHINDA’S BINOCULARS, OTHERWISE YOU WILL NEVER SEE THE REALITY. PLZ COME AND GET PROPER POLITICAL AND CIVIL OPTICAL INSTRUMENTS FROM THE BENCH. AN LEGAL LITERATURE SHALL BE GIVEN TO YOU FREELY
@ LAWYER PAUL
What has Nakachinda’s Binoculars have to do with my comments? Do not spend your life manifesting hatefulness, resentment and wasting your energy. Do yourself a favor by evicting me from your head. I am living in your head rent free, which is not good & unhealthy for you. If you have a point to make, then raise it and the world will learn from you. No person owns the monopoly of wisdom. Enjoy The Evening !!
mr observer , have ever carried out specific national census to come up with such number regarding intellectuals in zambia? Do you have scientific tools for intellectual analysis ? Studies show that no any normal scholar, psychoanalyst or any cognitive scientist has ever counted the number of intelligent people in any given country. i st madness on its highest degree or what ?
Kikikiki…. # INDEPENDENT OBSERVER, you are very generous with your count of 10……..
My count is 3 lawyers #Eric Silwamba, #Makebi Zulu, #John Sangwa……….
The rest of the Zambian lawyers are useless, cowards, thieves, corrupt and not worth to be called legal minds including Ba Former President Mr Edgar Lungu………………..
UPND wants to play with courts.HH should be very careful.U think Judges are stupid or cadres?They are not like those cadres in high court in UPND regalia
You raise your stupid comments again after so long
go back to sleep and take your lawless PF with you
You think that judges are your political cadres. The previous court was wrong in ruling that Lungu could run in 2021. This court can and will fix that error.
the concourt had PF cadre judges until HH balanced things.
The case was disposed of so what is this nonsense? MUTTI is going to suspend all PF members of parliament so that the Upnd can introduce and pass a bill to extend the presidential term to 7years effective now. Turncoats like Miles Sampa will support the bill.
There will be no 7 years so lets drop the subject
Of course you know that’s not true. You do not even have the decency to accept it and apologize when time proves it false.
#Gunner in Zambia…has HH apologized for the Kwacha etc.
You cannot accept it. But when it comes you will have your usual explanations blah blah the man needs more time to fix the economy blah.
The Concourt revisited its judgement on ministers staying illegal in office when petitioned by the AG and PF.
The ECL case can be revisited in the same way
Is this not the same court that condoned this illegality and allowed him to stand? If so why are they even entertaining this petition?
As a Court of records, the ConCourt can proceed without the respondent filing any documents. My advice to ECL is that he shouldn’t file anything. Let the ConCourt proceed and revisit its own judgement so that we see what they’ll come up with. It’ll confirm whether they’re serious or just a bunch of spineless jokers. He shouldn’t give them a scapegoat to overturn their own ruling
I hv already said above that I do not expect Edgar Lungu to file a reply. The court has contacted him purely as a matter of procedure so that no one should accuse it of deciding a petition that concerns him without hearing from him. The court is capable of going ahead without a reply from Lungu. The PF set a precedent when it asked the same court to pronounce itself twice on the case of ministers who had stayed in office after dissolution of the 2011- 2016 parliament.
The petition is silly. It severely lacks clarity. What does it mean: “regarding the eligibility of former President Edgar Lungu for the 2021 General Election”? Firstly the guy hasnt said he will run for the presidency. He is just back in politics. Secondly are you demanding for Lungu’s eligibility to run for any political office from ward councillor through Mayor or Secretary-General? Since when did courts determine who runs for political positions?
Clarity of any law is tested by litigation. Let the petition be heard. If the petition is frivolous, let the Constitutional Court say so. Aren’t citizens often told not to take the law into their own hands? Any citizen can seek judicial interpretation of any part of the constitution that seems unclear to them.
Lungu does not qualify and these are the reasons why:
1. Article 106, Sub-Article three of the 2016 Amended Constitution – Anyone who has been sworn-in twice before as President of the Republic of Zambia shall NOT qualify to run for office again in all future elections (Jameson Chagwa Agwa Muthaware Lungu already has two swearing-in ceremonies as Republican President in 2015 and 2016).
The repealed Article 35 of the 1996 Amended Constitution excluded a person who had been elected twice before from contesting Presidential Elections – (Jameson Chagwa Agwa Muthaware Lungu was elected twice as Republican President in 2015 and 2016).
THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER MOST THE LAWYERS, JUST LIKE OTHER PROFESSIONALS, HAVE GREAT MINDS AND THATS WHY THEY EXCELLED …… THEREFORE, BY MAKING UNPHILOSOPHICAL CONCLUSIVE STORTI THAT THERE ONLY ‘ONY LESS THAN 10 PEOPLE IN ZAMBIA WITH GREAT MINDS’ ATTRACT POPS FOR ITSELF IS MONOPOLY IN NATURE
Perfect answer. MMD (=PF) wrote that law, and they are now going to have to deal with it. No 3rd term for Chagwa Lungu
Does not qualify for what?
BULL s.h*1T baffles brains
The truth and the whole truth must now be exposed. Can Edgar Changwe Lungu tells us the truth.
From which village in Zambia did he originate from?
Why is it that he was in position of 2 different numbered registration cards instead of one registration card?
Zambia no longer has a judiciary. We have upnd cadres masquerading as judges. Let us take up arms because this country is under seige
ITS A PF LEGACY
He will be barred from running on three accounts:
1. He has already been elected twice
2. He was twice sworn in as president
3. His paternity is clearly alien, his father hails from Mozambique.
@Kaizar – you are a clown and a hidden bisexual. ECL is toast.
SOME PEOPLE HAVE A LOT OF MONEY STILL PARKED IN UKWA BAGS HIDDEN IN HOUSES OF THEIR RELATIVES AND GIRLFRIENDS. SO J7ST ALLOW THEM TO STAND FOR THIS WILL FORCE THEM TO THROW THE MONE`INTO CIRCLATION, WHILST KNOWING THAT THEY WILL STILL BE VERY FAR FROM WINNING ELECTION FOR EVEN DOGS ARE AWARE OF THEIR CORRUPT AND THIEVERY ACTIVITIES
Lungu Edgar warned judges in solwezi not to do what judges did in Kanye otherwise the war it will erupt however we had two judgement one for hildah chibomba majority ruling which supported third term while munalula said know and people praised because stood for the truth in his ruling.Hilda chibomba and the group voted they had to put aside our nation constitution and cadres camped some where even taking beer.This time we want laka 2 ruling not madongodongo
Why are people failing to see that the petition is for the PAST election? The petitioner wants to challenge Lungu on his eligibility for the elections that he lost.
The same constitutional Court in the case of Danny Pule v AG cleared Lungu to run for what was essentially a third term. We disagreed with the ruling but they reinforced it in another case of Sishuwa v AG and stated that Lungu could stand for elections.
Why is the same court now asking Lungu to show cause for why he was legible to stand then?
Wouldn’t a normal court have dismissed this petition? Shows you how the concert is a political court since they are now UPND friendly. One wonders what the purpose of this case is now.
With so much problems facing our, someone decides to waste time on a non issue. Whoever is sponsoring these people must be as dull as them.
The Court has to listen before making a determination. It cannot dismiss a case before listening. And listening means listening to both sides.
This article is too complicated for the illiterate kaponya Kaizar
He corrupted the Judges, especially that one who was on holiday who talked to him on phone.
This is just the beginning, Lungu should have stayed away from politics, but because he is hungry for power, he will lose the little respect that is left in him.
Let him fight…..if he has the guts ! But please, do not insight Zambians to help you in that fight.
People must recall that the ConCourt judgement on ECL’s eligibility was not unanimous . Judge Munalula gave a dissenting judgment. Will the new ConCourt judges agree with the majority judgment or the minority judgment ?
Fortunately In the case of the ministers staying in office illegally, the concourt ruling was unanimous.
Lungu’s alcoholic, promiscuous, dubious and thieving life is going to catch up with him this time. He will be left crying “monga kamwana kamtoto” when his nomination papers are rejected. He will also see, he must brace himself for a series of arrests and cancelation on any political engagements in his quest to illegally ascend to the throne yet again. Besides, he still has the first hurdle to wrestle Pf from Sampa and from what I can see, kaSampa is busy entrenching himself, Muthaware Lungu will need Israeli like bull dozers to uproot that boy from office.
My view, there are clauses that allow him to stand but those that bar him from standing are clearer. In this instance, the Court can rule differently depending on what clauses are being petitioned. This leaves ECZ in an awkward position of power because they are allowed to interpret the law themselves. They can choose not to accept Lungu’s papers.
Azachiona chinalesa Galu kusavala kabudula Chagwa, azagwa kilikiti!
Kaizar Zulu. Taking up arms will be the most stupid thing to do. You are just a arm toddler with no war experience. Some of us lived for years in the bush and fought in the armed struggle alongside Umkontho we Sizwe and ZANU. You take up arms. You will last only for a few days before you are captured. Just go and enjoy yourself in Dubai with expensive fake whisk.
Kikikikikikiki!
The ultimatum is good. This issue will make many things to come to light. The suspicious death of a CJ in Egypt could be linked to document lost.
Everyday Lungu…
Under5…stay focused
fullfil your promise to the people of Zambia.
Mealie meal is K 305.00 instead of K 50.00
Infact liars must never ever again allowed to govern any position in society because one can’t tell their position.