THE Patriotic Front (PF) legal counsel has clarified that President Edgar Lungu is mandated by the party constitution to be in office for a full five-year term from the date of election during the November 30, 2014 convention.
The ruling party described as disgruntled and frustrated, members that are calling for a convention to be held before next year’s general elections.
The Constitution also allowed for another convention if the current party President was incapacitated and could not perform by virtue of mental or physical health, he decided to resign or through death.
Below is the full statement
LEGAL RESPONSE TO CALLS FOR A CONVENTION TO ELECT A PF PARTY PRESIDENT -BY PF LEGAL COUNSEL TUTWA .S. NGULUBE
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, this is my Legal response to the calls by some seemingly disgruntled and frustrated members calling for a Party Convention before Next year’s elections to elect another President of the Patriotic Front Party.
On the 30th November 2014 at the Mulungushi University I was privileged to officially handle the Bye election of the election of President of the Patriotic Front Party.
Eleven candidates had verbally expressed their intentions to stand as Presidential candidates but only president Edgar Chagwa Lungu met the election criteria enshrined in the Patriotic Front Constitution.
None but President Lungu turned up for the nominations just before elections and only President Lungu paid the none refundable fee of K20,000.00 required to be paid by all the candidates.
It was only President Lungu who even organised and presented 200 live supporters drawn from the 10 provinces before me the Returning officer after the announcement that all should do so. This means the rest of the candidates did not only fail to pay but even to present their 200 supporters.
President Lungu is the only candidate that filled in Nomination forms and declaration of intentions to stand as President during the bye elections.
Having been fully satisfied that only one of the 11 candidates was duly nominated and in line with the Constitution of the party I declared him unopposed and swore him in as President of the Patriotic Front Party for a term of 5 years.
According to the Patriotic Front Constitution the President carries a mandatory 5 year term from the date of election. This means that the President of Patriotic Front Edgar Chagwa Lungu was elected for a period of 5 years from the 30th November 2014.
This clearly does not make him eligible for another election before the 5 years mandate elapses.
The convention convened to elect a new president was an Extra Ordinary General Conference. According to the Patriotic Front Constitution all decisions of a General conference can only be overturned by another General conference.
The life span of a General conference is 5 years meaning that the next General Conference shall only be held after 5 years.What, then, will be the fate of the decisions made by the General Conference?
The decisions of the general conference equally have a lifespan that is untempered unless and until the said decisions are subjected to another General Conference for questions whether the said decisions should change.
A perusal of the PF Constitution reveals no short cut to the election of another president within a year.
What might be argued by fellow Legal minds is: But under what circumstances another election of the Party president can be held before 5 years?
My analysis is that only when the questions of :
(a) Incapacity to perform by virtue of mental or physical health of the Party President,
(b) Resignation of the Party President,
(C ) Death of a party President,
Other than these three I do not see how we can have calls for the election of a President when President Edgar Lungu remains PF PARTY president.
Let me state that there can only be an election if there is a vacancy in that office.
None of the three situations have arisen to create a vacancy and for as long as there is no vacancy, there will Not be another election of the President of the Patriotic Front Party.
The issue of who the rightful party President of the Patriotic Front is arose when a replica Convention was held by Dr. G. L. SCOTT on the 2st December 2014.
This question is now an academic one as President Lungu was subjected to the due process of the law and regulations and the High Courts and the Supreme courts of Zambia had occasion to adjudicate upon this question.
JUDGE I.C.T CHALI and JUDGE M.S. MULENGA presided over similar cases in the High Court.
The Judgment of Judge M. S. Mulenga at the Lusaka High COURT declared Edgar Lungu President of the Patriotic Front while judge CHALI dismissed the case for Miles Sampa saying it lacked merit.
The Supreme Court equally adjudicated upon this matter in a matter where Miles Emannuel Sampa appealed to the Supreme Court to challenge Judge MULENGA’S judgment and Judge Chili’s dismissal.
Both Appeals were heard together and refused and dismissed together.
He was unsuccessful. The supreme court refused to declare him President of the Patriotic Front because Judge Mulenga had already declared Edgar Lungu.
That Supreme Court judgment also heard the complaint by Miles Sampa that the procedure used to elect president Lungu was wrong. The courts did not agree with Mr. Sampa and the matter died having been fully determined by all the courts.
In conclusion, the calls for a convention to elect another party president are unfounded and unconstitutional and cannot be legally sustained. The President of the Patriotic Front Party remains Edgar Chagwa Lungu until the 30th November 2019.
I thank you all.
TUTWA SANDANI NGULUBE- ZAMBIAN
(LLB- UNZA)AHCZ, ASCZ
(AIHR,) GIZA, EGYPT.
LEGAL COUNSEL OF THE PATRIOTIC FRONT PARTY
This legal response sounds more cadre-like than an answer from a learned colleague. It was lungu this, it was lungu that bkabkabka
No one is interested in PF infighting rubbish, what is Tutwa Ngulube. PF is junk now.
HH & GBM are in CB, give use the opposition news.
The courts may have ruled; the question is, what do the general membership desire? They formed the congress and its rules, they are entitled and may reconstitute the rules of the congress if they so wish. The courts can not say no. There is no point in being academic if the practical action will deliver the desired results the party expects, ie. to continue ruling beyond 2016
If pf insists on using lungu as their presidential candidate, then the are headed for disaster, lungu won’t be able to sell, lungu is an incompetent leader, he can’t make his own decisions
Just watching from the terraces with excitement as the fire is burning.
So to get rid of this clown we need to ?????
(a) Incapacity to perform by virtue of mental or physical health of the Party President-
We all know his mental capacity is VISIONLESS
(b) Resignation of the Party President
Any person with brains would have realised he has failed to do the job and resigned a long time ago. This totally qualifies Lungu under (a)
(C ) Death of a party President
If he does not resign, that can be arranged!
question is do we have a credible opposition to wrestle power from this party?
INDEED YOU ARE IN SERIOUS DENIAL MY YOUNGER BROTHER. EVRY ZAMBIAN NOW KNOWS IT THAT UPND IS A POLITICAL FORCE TO RECKON WITH. UPND WOULD BE IN POWER BY NOW IF IF IT WAS NOT ROBBED OF THE SAME LAST JANUARY. ZAMBIANS LOVE HH TO BE THEIR PRESIDENT. ZAMBIANS LOVE UPND TO GOVERN THE NATION. VIVA HH VIVA. VIVA UPND VIVA.
Kwena iwe chi kaddaffi uli chipuba, can’t you see that the country has decided to change government? Where do you live kanshi? People are resolved to throw out pf.
14 ARTICLE 46 GENERAL CONFERENCE (1) The supreme policy-making organ of the Party is the General Conference. (2 The General Conference shall meet ordinarily every five (5) years but extraordinary session when convened as provided in this Constitution. May meet III (3) An extraordinary General Conference shall have the same powers as the ordinary General Conference. (4) The General Conference shall be attended by: (a) All members of the National Council; and (b) Up to 500 delegates from each province selected in accordance with rules made by the Central Committee. (5) The General Conference shall have the following functions: (a) To elect the President of the Party and Members of the Central Committee; (b) ….
MR NGULUBE QUOTED ABOVE IS THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PF. IT CLEARLY ALLOWS FOR…
MR NGULUBE QUOTED ABOVE IS THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PF. IT CLEARLY ALLOWS FOR THE CONVENING OF AN EXTRA ORDINARY CONFERENCE UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES. IT CAN BE ARGUED THEREFPRR THAT LUNGU WAS ELECTED TO COMPLETE THE TERM OF HIS LATE PREDECESSOR. NOW IT IS TIME FOR ANOTHER EXTRA ORDINARY CONFERENCE TO PROMOTE TRANSPERENCY AND TO CLEAR THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING LUNGUS PREVIOUS NOMINATION.
It’s mischievous to call for another convention. And expensive.
PF should concentrate on thwarting the machinations of the evil Mmembe and the tribalist Upnd. And continue with infrastructure development but leave out for now projects with no immediate impacts like Universities construction.
Period.
Mr Chishimba Kamwbili at his best. Though he has dimmed nowadays, i think he is smelling some coffee.
Infrastructure development is an item on the national agenda and the purview of government, not a political party. It, therefore, must not be used to win votes.
In his response, immediately he said he was responding to disgruntled and frustrated PF members, he immediately rendered his response partial. Had he just explained the issue in a sober way, it would have sounded as a genuine legal interpretation and it was going to be respected.
The response seems more of being conscious of which side of your bread is buttered. It lacks professionalism. He diluted it, he could have just addressed it to party members as an enlightenment. Could it be issues to do with ZIALE exams?
Who told who that Sampa wants to be pf president in 2016? Just ask him. He has told us he is not interested.
Mr. Tutwa Ngulube should address the reasons why ECL was the only candidate who was able to present his nomination papers at the convention. Was it conducive for the other 11 candidates to present their nomination papers at that convention? Did not Willie Nsanda with his panga weilding cadres block off the area to all but ECL? Did that not constitute a breach of the rules you are quoting to make whatever decision that was finally made “null and void” and illegitimate? Can that be the reason the ‘disgruntled members’ are calling for another convention? You can fool some people all of the time but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. ECL is reaping what he sowed. Go to the convention and clear your names!
National challenges are not for weaklings, let tough get going and let the weaklings sleep quietly. You see when national challenges arise such as what the country going through now, it is an opportunity to identify true leaders, such an opportunity is rare. You will identify true leaders by their resilience, their steadfastness, their resolve, their inspiration, and greatest of all they do not give up or resign.
In contrast weaklings will throw their hands in the air in defeat before they even attempt, the major characteristic to observe about weaklings is that they take the easy way out and point fingers at others, blame others instead of sharing challenges with other citizens, in short weaklings throw patriotism to the wind.
To me Edgar falls in the first group, and our major…
To me Edgar falls in the first group, alone. The major opposition leaders are the second group, no need to mention mames you see and hear them everyday, doing exactly what I have described.
For me the choice of presidential candidate for 2016 is clear, God could not have made the choice simpler than this by exposing weaklings and pretenders, separating the men from the boys.
Why the bikering now? as the country burns. PF is worst government over.
I agree with msanide how do you respond by starting to say disgruntled members already that is biased,i never knew that some lawyers are dull mwee. where did comrade learn law?is it at Unza or where and did he pass ZIALE? I doubt the credibility of the institutions where he went .Does the PF constitution indicate that voting is by raising hands or what that is what he shud have delved in ?
In 2016 we need to breath fresh air. We need a new start and a new direction. We are tired of PF and MMD off shoots. HH is the only leader who fits this description.Since 1991 it has been the same people just changing sloguns and dull Zambians we are voting them in the name of Tribe. Abash stone age politics ,we are no longer leaving in caves ,but we are part of the Global village.
@ loadist
Imwe naimwe ba Loadist, just accept that you and your evil masters, the Under 5 are disappointed by the pronunciation that no job cuts will be effected because we all know that was your prayer to Satan that miners lose jobs for your political millage.
We are very optimistic that the copper prices will rebound because the usage of the red metal in many industries cannot be avoided. The problem that you wrong chaps have is that because of your selfish intentions, you dont even know the value of commodities you have like copper. Copper in its refined form has now substituted gold in electronics goods and almost all metal alloys, copper is used and not to mention the industry and manufacturing.
Response from a retard. Not worthy answering
@UFO. There was a pronouncement by ECL that “no jobs will be lost..”. BUT the fact of the matter is that JOBS ARE BEING LOST! Obviously you don’t live on the Copperbelt!
Useless PF!
I think Mr Counsel, we also need to ask under what sort of circumstances the convention used to elect ECL was held? Was it a peaceful and engaging atmosphere that allowed other candidates ability to register as candidates? Or was it intimidatory with other candidates and their supporters being beaten and chased away? Would you, legal counsel, in your honest opinion stake your career on the fact that the election of ECL as PF party president was free and fair?
Why do some people keep on saying the January, 2015 election were stolen from them. It pains them that ECL only campaigned for 3 weeks and won even though there was confusion in PF, bad press on ECL by the post and cartel and HH campaigned for a long period and lost for the 5th time. Was HH’s election to the presidency of UPND free and fair? Sichinga and Sikota were intimidated to leave UPND because UPND was a tonga party and thus should be lead by a tonga. Zambians will never forget that statement no matter what you say.
My sad observation of most observations is that most of them display ignorance of the PF constitution what happened at the convention or just visceral dislike of the PF. Surely anyone who has read the PF constitution – and I have a copy – cannot dispute what the PF Legal Counsel is saying. On the Mulungushi Convention issue, people are forgetting that it is Guy Scott, the Acting President of the PF then who insisted on holding it. But what happened, when all party members accepted his argument, he decided not to even set foot at the Mulungushi Rock of Authority where the convention was being held but stayed in Kabwe claiming that he feared for his own security when he was also acting republican president with a full complement of body guards, including the army to protect him!
The point is that Scott wanted to sabotage ECL’s chances of election at a time when ECL was the overwhelming favorite of all the candidates. To get his way, he decided to hold his own parallel convention in Kabwe after all the delegates had left at which Miles Sampa was elected “President“ of PF in flagrant contravention of all the provisions of the PF constitution. The point is that the people clamoring for a new convention are the same people who supported Scott’s bogus convention. Is this too complicated to understand?
Abena Maikalange, let us not have selective amnesia! Facts do not lie. This is what happened at the so called PF convention.
a) Willie Nsanda and his Panga wielding thugs blocked everyone but ECL from attending
b) When the other 10 candidates failed to enter the Mulungushi Conf centre, they camped in Kabwe
c) ECL was “voted” by acclamation, which was challenged in the courts by Miles Sampa
d) This challenge was “settled” by a dubious consent agreement
It is a fact that there were no conditions for a “free & fair vote” at ECL’s PF’s convention. Maybe this why you have “disgruntled” members? Please, examine yourselves!
“The Southern Province Party”,UPND should be the last cows to comment on issues of conventions and democracy. Kachemas with their TRIBALISM agenda have never been to any convention. What determines who qualifies to be president in the Tonga Party is First Tribe and how many cattles and wealth u posses. U ve no chance next year seriously.The copperbelt u claim to yours is going to shock u!
We don’t opposition in Zambia, whatever they are going to do the PF will still win in 2016. The opposition are very selfish in Zambia. For example, if they say Narep and upnd merge and Chipimo to lead the two parties,
do you think Munyamata wa chunsu will accept? The answer is no!
we don’t have opposition in Zambia period
I was getting worried that if PF will hold convention and wake up , maybe they could have stood a chance if the got another person to stand for elections……but now they have officially F@#ked themselves by maintaining a none performing no program person to stand on their ticket.
PF YOU ARE THE WEAKEST LINK
GOOD BYE!!!
Oppostion UPND is there. Ecl already admitted that the 2016 race will be between him and HH and it is the oppposition UPND forming govt in 2016. PF,s poor perfomance has put off many zambians, majority of who have opted to support UPND.
Isa,
“PF,s poor perfomance has put off many zambians, majority of who have opted to support UPND.”
Do you have figures and numbers to back your statement I have quoted above? Can you you give us the source of these numbers?
Evidence is that people in your PF strong holds are reluctant to register as voters including your claimed CB which is lying 5th on the log of voter counts registered.
I would never trust any lawyer who goes by the names TUTWA SANDANI NGULUBE. I mean, Tutwa means Giraffe in Rotse, Sandani means Skank in Youruba and Ngulube means Pig in Nsenga! Just to help aNgulube, Chagwa agwa because of reason number 1 you yourself stated above i.e. (a) Incapacity to perform by virtue of mental or physical health of the Party President, full stop. I mean, is turning to god for guidance not a sign of failure? In terms of health, is it not Lungu’s esophagus that is contracting refusing food and leading to collapse situations like happened at the Heroes Disaster Stadium like Chimbwili calls it? I mean, just impeach the diseased alcoholic, he’s an embarrassment to all Zambians.
As a matter of fact, the Copperbelt is not in any way for UPND as HH claims. All pointers are to PF and ECL. Please ba UPND stop dreaming. Winning for will surely a toll order
Comment:i can see that there is competition between money and wisdom. money doesnot talk nor act but wisdom made money and uses it in the best way. no matter what taicoons can do with their money wisdom shall prevail because money was madw by man and it made man mad. wisdom is Godly its naturally acquired unlike money others kill steal prosyitute launder etc to make money. now coment is God knows our next president votes will confirm its not by might or power but wisdom which is Godly