Tonse Alliance Challenges Constitutional Court Ruling on Lungu’s Eligibility
The Tonse Alliance filed in a petition before the Constitutional Court seeking to overturn the court’s December 2024 ruling that barred former President Edgar Chagwa Lungu from contesting future presidential elections.
The alliance argues that the court’s decision in the Michelo Chizombe case was unconstitutional, legally flawed, and inconsistent with its own precedents. The petition seeks to clear the way for Lungu’s potential candidacy in the 2026 general elections.
Below is the full statement:
Tonse Alliance Statement on the Filing of a Petition Regarding the Eligibility of Dr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu to Contest Future Presidential Elections
Liberty House, 25th March 2025
- The Tonse Alliance confirms that this morning, we successfully filed a petition before the Constitutional Court of Zambia regarding the eligibility of Dr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu to contest future presidential elections.
- The petition seeks the court’s intervention to overturn its ruling of 10th December 2024 in the Michelo Chizombe case, where the court declared Dr. Lungu ineligible to stand for future presidential elections. Our petition is based on three key grounds:
1. The Court Contravened the Constitution
- Our petition argues that the Michelo Chizombe decision violates Article 52(4) of the Constitution, which prohibits courts from determining a candidate’s eligibility unless they have already filed their nomination with the Electoral Commission. This principle was upheld in the Christopher Shakafuswa case (2018), where the court declined to rule on Shakafuswa’s eligibility for mayor since he had not yet filed his nomination.
- Despite this precedent, the Constitutional Court proceeded to rule on Lungu’s eligibility in December 2024 even though he has not yet submitted his nomination for the 2026 elections.
- This constitutes a clear breach of the Constitution and an unexplained departure from the court’s own jurisprudence.
2. The Judgment Was Per Incuriam (Made in Error)
- The Michelo Chizombe decision is legally flawed because the court failed to consider Article 267(3)(b) and (c) of the Constitution. Had these provisions been applied, the court would not have reached its conclusion that Lungu is ineligible.
- The judgment is therefore per incuriam (rendered in error due to overlooking critical law).
3. The Court Misrepresented Its Own Precedents
- In its December 2024 ruling, the Constitutional Court claimed it was overturning its previous decisions in the Legal Resources Foundation and Dr. Dan Pule cases because it had not considered Sections 2 and 7 of the Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act No. 1 of 2016.
- However, a review of those judgments shows that the court did reference these sections (pages J35, J45, J70-J71).
- There was, therefore, no valid legal basis for the court to abandon its earlier rulings.
Conclusion
- As the Tonse Alliance, we are confident that our petition will be considered expeditiously. Clarity on this matter is crucial so that Dr. Lungu can resume his campaigns in preparation for the 2026 elections. We remain committed to uplifting the well-being of the Zambian people beyond 2026.
Issued by:
Sean E. Tembo (SET)
PeP President & Tonse Alliance Spokesperson
Lusaka, Zambia
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Sub judice no comment
Take some people to Botswana to answer charges
Here comes a man,
who coped,
the entire internet,
whilst in Botswana,
on teenagers and alcohol effects.
It’s like Zambia is in heat and as the giant dobermans senselessly tear each other apart, a little known greyhound will stumble on the prize and mate. When the dobermans relax from their senseless fights they’ll find the greyhound stuck on the prize. What a waste! The UPND and the PF are a great disappointment. Zambia’s next President will be a nonentity because the brainless rivalry between HH and ECL
Don’t acquire a habit of continuously petitioning the ConCourt to vacate its rulings.It is contemptuous to insinuate that the judges do not know what they are doing,especially that one of the Tonse chaps has challenged the Con Court judges’ qualifications
The man held office twice, on top of that…….
He is a thief…….
He can’t explain his immense wealth……..has no track record of any business or of paying taxes……….
GRZ should go into overdrive highlighting to the Zambian people how lungu became a billionaire miraculously ……….
Tonse will have no answers
We are here
FWD2031
We have a lot of tonse alliance members scamming on news channels to promote lungu presidential credentials, however………
They have not been given the opportunity to explain to their audiences……….
How lungu became a billionaire miraculously………
This will be very interesting……..
Can we have this issue of miraculous wealth cleared first……..??
FWD2031
Hero worshipers
Flogging a dead horse! If you have time and stolen money to waste go ahead and waste it.
Please keep spending his money if he is willing to waste it like this…its the same thing the lawyers kept doing spending bally’s money on petitions….one know PF lawyer has also made money on petitions knowing very well they have no merit. LAZ should introduce a law to state that a lawyer only gets 25% if he or she loses the case, one of the few professions where losers and winners get similar money.
Does Sean Tembo have standing in this case? In other words, how does the case involved affect him personally? Why can’t brother E. C. Lungu himself challenge the Court’s ruling?