Friday, March 29, 2024

Constitutional Court throws out HH’s case over President Lungu not handing over power to Speaker

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The Constitutional Court has dismissed a case in which UPND Leader Hakainde Hichilema was challenging President Edgar Lungu’s decision not to hand over power to the Speaker of the National Assembly during the hearing of the Presidential election in 2016.

Judge Professor Margaret Munalula says in her judgment that both President Lungu and the Speaker of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini could not be held to have been in contravention of any constitutional provision when President Lungu continued to perform the executive functions.

Judge Munalula further ordered for each party to bear its own cost.

This is because of the importance of the issue raised as it is constitutional in nature.

In this matter Mr. Hichilema and his then Vice President then Geoffery Mwamba petitioned the Presidential elections and wanted the court to order President Lungu to hand over power to Speaker of the National Assembly pending the outcome of the petition.

Mr. Hichilema and Mr. Mwamba argued that the continued stay of President Lungu in the office, while his election was petitioned, is contrary to the provisions of the Constitution.

But, Attorney General Likando Kalaluka asked the court to dismiss the petition because Mr. Hichilema and Mr. Mwamba were not entitled to the remedies they were seeking.

In her judgment, Judge Munalula said the court entirely agreed with the position of the Attorney General.

The Court further said that it did not see a provision in the Constitution that allows the Speaker to assume Office of the President under the circumstances of the 2016 Presidential elections.

The other judges that heard the matter are judges Anne Sitali, Mungeni Mulenga, Palan Mulonda and Martin Musaluke.

49 COMMENTS

  1. Akainde is a joker. Next year he’s losing for the last time.
    Some crook Satamic masson has endorsed Kainde for 2021 and Zambians have rejected the Free Masson.
    Akainde go to hell. Panama. Privatization

  2. Under what circumstances was the power supposed to have been handled over to the speaker during the petition? Or is it at no time?

  3. Every Zambian knew the outcome and this l believe will be reversed after the immunity of the president is done after 2021 because the government of the day will be called former.

  4. Kwekwekwekwe!
    Yaba!
    “The dual were not entitled to the remedies they were seeking”, Likando Kalaluka.

    Judge Munalula said the court entirely agreed with the position of the Attorney General.
    The other judges that agreed to this were Anne Sitali, Mungeni Mulenga, Palan Mulonda and Martin Musaluke.
    Devastating outcome for u5 h² and his goons.

  5. Is that Judge Munalula??? The “judge of 2019” according to Sishungwa and news niggaz??? So this was a baseless petition??? The donkeys were in overdrive over this issue. It seems hh and his legal thieves like John Solye….ooops…Sangwa are forum shoppers just exciting and keeping their donkeys interested.

  6. The courts of law have made judgment. Slowly as we get closer to 2021, upnd are running out of excuses. This time we don’t want you to cry that elections were rigged. You can have 1 million observers at one polling station if you want. We are confident in our work and the progress we have made. Please tell baby hh not to cry because this time around I will ensure its white wash. Let us move on now. Kz

  7. The courts of law have made judgment. Slowly as we get closer to 2021, upnd are running out of excuses. This time we don’t want you to cry that elections were rigged. You can have 1 million observers at one polling station if you want. We are confident in our work and the progress we have made. Please tell baby hh not to cry because this time around I will ensure its whlte wash. Let us move on now. Kz

  8. Okay, finally I see how useless our constitution is. Its a worthless paper that should be ignored by all. In countries where coup detat has happened the dictators usually suspend the constitution, I think we are heading in that direction.

  9. Our constitution has been messed up by lungu even clear cut issues cannot be resolved. This court hasn’t come up with legal reason but an excuse using grey areas of our constitution

  10. @China Lungu has nothing to do with the messing up of the constitution. He found a messed up constitution. Blame Chiluba, Mwanawasa, Banda, Sata in that order. Lungu is of course a beneficiary of the mess

  11. Why does the court allow Mr HH to wastes its (Courts) time?? This man can’t live with/ accept the fact that the Zambian voters have rejected the idea of having him in State House. 5 times to be exact!!

  12. @ Kaizer Zulu, this is the most consequential election. So as PF you should ensure that you don’t leave any stone unturned. You have done extremely well on the big things (Universities, Hospitals, Airports, Roads, Schools etc.).

    Now ensure that you also sort out the every day smaller challenges citizens are facing (prices of mealie meal, power, transport etc). Don’t give the opposition anything to campaign about.

    • NOT WHAT COUNTRY BUT WHICH COUNTRY DO YOU LIVE IN ??? YOU CAN BUILD ALL THE BUILDINGS YOU WANT IF THEY ARE NOT FULLY FUNCTIONAL IT MEANS NOTHING. ROADS ARE INCOMPLETE YET MILLIONS HAVE BEEN SPENT ON THEM……….

  13. PF propaganda to divert attention from seer 1 wanting his rings back from the pompwes……..

    Everyone knew this was a dead and buried case with Zambias rotten corrupted judicial system…..

    They are only bringing it out now to hide from seer 1

  14. So imwe ba hh bkoz u monopulated uyo kembo seer 1 to desolate our government by that threatens naimwe mwebele I now go ku court for petition hearing? Look let me tell u something u chap hh…. Whether seer 1 or seer 2…. Ni lungu chabe….. Iwe u are jst a cadre for upnd yourself!!! Olo tungabwesha one party system nd u go with a mosquito for elections automatically mosquito can win bkoz u know why? U are a failure tah!!!

  15. It’s astonishing how lazy we are at reading and making sense of the same. Have bloggers who are simply going along with the judgement and dismissing this as a waste of the courts time actually read the grounds for the same? I for one know on what the case was based on and have yet to find the actual wording and arguments of the decision to make my own objective view. This case relied on Article 104 of the Constitution, namely, that;

    3. Where an election petition is filed against the incumbent, under Article 103 (1),
    or an election is nullified, under Article 103(3) (b), the Speaker shall perform the
    executive functions, except the power to—
    a. make an appointment; or
    b. dissolve the National Assembly.

    It is thus important to get the judgement and assess the reasoning of the…

  16. THE PROBLEM WITH HH AND HIS UPND IS THAT THEY ARE VERY LAZY AT READING, THERES NOWHERE IN THE CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA WHERE IT SAYS THE PRESIDENT OF REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA SHALL HAND OVER POWER TO THE SPEAKER OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY WHEN THERES AN ELECTION PETITION! HICHILEMA IS SO TRIBAL THAT HE THOUGHT SINCE MATIBINI IS LOZI (TRADITIONAL COUSIN), THEN IT WOULD BE EASY FOR HIM TO ASCEND TO POWER IF HE (MATIBINI) STARTED ACTING AS PRESIDENT DURING HEARING OF THE PETITION! BUT BEING PRESIDENT CANT BE IMPOSED ON TO ZAMBIANS! ZAMBIANS HAVE BRAINS TO THINK AND CHOOSE WHO THEIR PRESIDENT SHOULD BE. COME 2021, EDGAR 95%, OTHERS (INCLUDING HH) 5%.

  17. You guys are not sufffering as you’re on the PF dununa reverse bandwagon. Another 5 years of dununa PF is too much to bear.Enjoy the cheap Chinese infrastructure with belly- empty stomachs.

  18. Well well well! Umulandu taubola. These are some of the matters that will be revisited when the right government is in power.UPND has some intelligent lawyers who could not have advised their President wrongly. Only time will make things right, no matter how long it takes

  19. Angoni: I know wht u had circulated on WhstApp last wk. U are a hard-boiled tribalist who argued in between the lines in your WhatsApp post that people from one half of the country hv no business aspiring to be president or vice-president in Zambia. Your knowledge of Zambian history is just from wht your forebears passed on to you and not written historical records.

  20. SAD DEVELOPMENT AND IT IS NOT SHOCKING WITH THE OUT COME. THE PROBLEM IS CERTAIN PEOPLE FEEL THEY OWN ZAMBIA. ZAMBIA IS A BIGGER COUNTRY.THE SAME WAY U ARE BRINGING CONFUSION THAT IS THE SAME WAY YOUR CASES WILL BE. WHAT ATE CHILUBA WAS TO DO THE CONSTITUTION WHICH WAS TO SUIT HIM BUT WATCH AT WHAT GOD IS GOING TO DO.MWATI U WILL EVEN SEE BENE KZ, CHITOTELA ETC THEY WILL SHRINK.AND WANTING PEOPLE TO SYMPATHISE WITH THEM.

  21. Zambia is finished how can these judges go so low to become political cadres this issue was straight forward once the pention was logged the president was supposed to give way for the speaker I believe this issue will still come back in court after PF is kicked out PF should know that they will not be in power forever and these kinds of wrong doing will follow them umulandu ta ubola anyway let’s focus on 2021 no time for the pention now.

  22. This judgement was expected from a college of known unqualified and compromised “hang judges” appointed by the defendant in whose pocket the entire judiciary is couched. The dishonourable judges risked the axe if they ruled against him. But the law of gravity says what goes up must come down! Unfortunately for now, the circus continues………

  23. Hakainde is a serious joker. Next year he’s losing for the last time.
    Some crook Satamic masson has endorsed Kainde for 2021 and Zambians have rejected the Free Masson.
    He enjoys the smell of blood and the burning of markets. wait for GBM he is about to drop the bomb shell kaili
    HH thot he was clever pwaaaaaaaaaaaaa.
    Akainde go to hell. Panama. Privatization

  24. I wonder what wrong HH has done in Zambia. I also don’t know whàt else ECL has remained with to offer Zambia. Those of you doing fine under the current bad governance should reflect properly. Things are not fine in mother Zambia. I think we can do better.

  25. THINGS ARE NOT FINE IN ZAMBIA AND HH IS THE ONE WHO CAUSED THIS SCENARIO TOGETHER WITH CHILUBA BY SELLING PARASTATAL COMPANIES FOR A SONG, AND THAT IS WHERE HH STOLE THE MONEY HE BOASTS OF BEING RICHEST PERSON IN ZAMBIA. WHEN HE WAS DOING THAT HE THOUGHT HE WAS VERY CLEVER. IT HAS REBOUNDED ON HIM. HE WILL NEVER WIN ELECTIONS IN ZAMBIA. COME 2021 HH LOSES AND WILL BE RETIRED. THE OTHER WRONG HH HAS DONE IS TO MAKE SURE HIS SUPPORT IS TRIBAL, FROM TONGAS! OTHER TRIBES ARE NO COMFORTABLE WITH THAT! HOW CAN HE BE TRUSTED WITH NATIONAL POWER WHEN HES SO REGIONAL? SO MR. ELDER THESE ARE THE WRONGS YOUR HICHILEMA HAS COMMITTED!

  26. Corruption scandals: 48 Houses Social Security Cash Luxury Presidential Jet Ambulances Fire Trucks Mukula Trees Ndola-Lusaka Rd Malawi Maizegate Fuelgate Swaziland landgate Zesco Loans Corruption scandals: 48 Houses Social Security Cash Luxury Presidential Jet Ambulances Fire Trucks Mukula Trees Ndola-Lusaka Rd Malawi Maizegate Fuelgate Swaziland landgate Zesco Loans

    Very half baked article or judgment. No citation of what the Constitution actually says and how the respondents didn’t abrogate the said constitution article. The argument they were not privileged and not entitled to the remedies they were seeking sounds quite dodgy to me. What does even mean? Why is the ruling on the persons who took the issue to court and not those who were taken to court? It’s almost saying “we know the suspect broke the law but you are not the right person to launch a complaint”.
    Zambia is indeed a failed project… even straight forward issues that have no consequence or bearing on his current presidency they are chickening out to rule against their god Lungu. This ruling has a long term impact on future election petitions.

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