EDGAR LUNGU’S ELIGIBILITY CASE MOVES TO JUNE
From the Concourt , Lusaka Zambia.
The matter in which a Lusaka resident sought to establish whether Edgar Lungu, the sixth President of Zambia qualified to stand in the 2021 elections has been pushed forward to the June session of the Constitution Court said Makebi Zulu, the sixth President’s lawyer.
Counsel Zulu also expressed concern at the fact that President Lungu´s ´eligibility case´ has been heard five times already by the same court returning with the same conclusion—he was constitutionally eligible to run for re-election in the last poll.
“Today we raised preliminary issues to the effect that this is fifth time the eligibility case of the sixth President is being heard by the same court,” said Zulu.
According to official court records, President Lungu´s case has been once taken to the Concourt by Reverend Dan Pule, Bampi Kalasa, Legal Resources Foundation sued and Sishuwa Sishuwa jointly with the Chapter One foundation.
“This time around one Michelo Chizombo sued (President Lungu) claiming the same issues of eligibility raised in previous matters yet again,” said counsel Zulu.
“Today we raised preliminary issues to say that the matter has already been dealt with,” said Zulu.
After so much drama, heavily armed police and UNZA students believed to have been bused to the Supreme Court premises in Lusaka where the court is housed, however, the case failed to take off on a logistical glitch of lack of electricity and font size of court papers filed in defence of President Lungu.
“Because of load shedding (poor light) we couldn’t proceed today. We will be back in June session of concourt life,” said lawyer Makebi Zulu outside the court grounds in an address to the media.
The sixth President was escorted to court by top party stalwarts that include vice president Given Lubinda, leader of the opposition in parliament Hon. Brian Mundubile, Secretary General Raphael Nakachinda, former Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Malanji and Ms. Mumbi Phiri.
President Lungu´s case has the potential of setting into motion a series of legal impasses crushing because if he is declared to have not qualified to run in 2021, every appointment he made could be illegal, including that of the constitutional court judges according to legal experts.
The petitioner should have sued Lungu for threatening judges. Their judgement was made for Lungu out of his threats against them
This case will continue haunting the judges until an acceptable judgement is passed. It’s no longer about ECL. it’s about the people and the interpretation of their constitution . The people are clear on this matter that they don’t want a third term in whatever form. This is the message the people are giving the courts.and the judges must ask themselves why this matters is coming back to them for the fifth time. The constitutional court has a duty to hear the grievance of the people, to understand why the people are dissatisfied with their previous judgements. They need to go to the root of this matter failing which I see this case coming up several times before 2026 elections. The Constitutional Court should not write a constitution for the people. Theirs is to merely interpret what the constitution says in line with the people’s expectations. The people already said NO YHIRD TERM.