🇿🇲 BRIEFING | M’membe Says No African Politician Matches His Academic Credentials After Court Victory
Fresh from a Constitutional Court victory that preserved the Socialist Party’s place on the August 13 ballot, presidential candidate Fred M’membe has declared that no politician on the African continent can match his academic qualifications.
M’membe made the remarks while reflecting on a legal challenge that sought to disqualify his running mate, Dolika Banda, over questions surrounding her academic credentials. The Constitutional Court dismissed the petition, clearing both candidates to continue their presidential campaign and bringing an end to one of the most closely watched electoral disputes of the season.
The Socialist Party leader argued that the case was never simply about qualifications. Instead, he suggested it was an attempt to undermine a ticket that some political actors view as a serious challenge in the election race.
“We don’t boast, but we are highly educated people. In terms of politicians, there is no politician in Africa who matches my qualifications,” M’membe said.
He also mounted a strong defence of Banda, describing her as an accomplished professional whose academic background and experience had been unfairly subjected to public scrutiny. The petitioners had argued that Banda did not possess qualifications equivalent to a Grade 12 certificate as required under the Constitution, an argument ultimately rejected by the court.
M’membe reserved rare praise for the Constitutional Court, describing the ruling as one of the most convincing judgments he had read in recent years.
“The court tried. It is one of the best judgments I have seen. Not because it was in our favour, but because it was properly reasoned,” he said.
The ruling removes a major legal cloud that had hovered over the Socialist Party campaign and allows M’membe and Banda to shift their focus fully to the political battlefield ahead. With nomination disputes now largely settled, attention is increasingly turning toward policy debates, campaign messaging and the broader contest for Zambia’s presidency.
For the Socialist Party, the judgment represents more than a courtroom victory. It preserves a ticket that M’membe believes offers a distinct ideological alternative in a race increasingly dominated by debates over economic management, governance and Zambia’s political future.
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