The writing is on the wall, President Edgar Lungu’s third term bid is now in motion and he seems to be ready, confident and rest assured that all will go his way.

Fred M’membe, writes;

It is becoming clear that the issue of Mr Edgar Lungu’s third term eligibility will have to be decided by the Constitutional Court.

It seems Mr Lungu, in his usual character of not backing down on anything he wants, will file in nomination papers with the Chief Justice to have his name on the ballot paper. I say this because huge volumes of campaign materials with his name have started flowing in.

It won’t be easy to change this – the cost of doing so will be gigantic. And last minute presidential candidate changes will throw his party into a quandary.

But one wonders where this apparently assured confidence is coming from. The risk is too high to ignore. This means that those determined to stop him from contesting next year’s elections in the belief that it will be a violation of the Constitution will have no choice but to go to the Constitutional Court.

Mr Lungu who says the Constitutional Court cleared him to stand must be ready for this. And, indeed, he seems to be ready, confident and assured all will go his way.

Moreover, all the judges of the Constitutional Court were appointed by him. In 2016, this Constitutional Court came under heavy public criticism over the manner it had ended the election petition against him. And even the court itself was divided over that matter.

These are the same Constitutional Court judges who will have to determine Mr Lungu’s presidential candidature in next year’s elections!

Do legitimate issues of public trust, confidence in the Constitutional Court over this matter arise?

All I can say is that an independent and efficient judiciary will be crucial to ensuring that the promises, fundamental values and principles enshrined in the Constitution of Zambia are upheld.

Without an independent judiciary, the Constitution would be reduced to a statement of empty promises.

Every institution has its moments of glory and challenge. The present are moments of challenge when courts have an accentuated duty to become conscious of Constitutional provisions when those in power begin to seek unending dominion.

True to their oaths of office, judges must act without fear, favour, affection or ill will, for without an independent judiciary, the Constitution is little more than a statement of empty promises.

The democratic credentials of our courts depend on the premise that all individuals are free and equal.

Society will always have someone who will try to manipulate the law to the detriment of society. The solution lies in an ordered, principled and just adjudication.

Our judiciary was ultimately trusted with the most important task of all i.e. ensuring that terms of the settlement, or the Constitution, were not breached.

The Constitutional Court is the final interpreter of the Constitution. Together with the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and High Courts are tasked with the highest duty: checking the actions of both the executive and the legislature, each of whom are bound by the Constitution.

Considering the enormity of this responsibility, insulating the courts ought to have been a matter of Constitutional design. No court can be expected to perform its checking functions with interference from other branches of Government.

Judicial power should never be a facilitator for executive intentions. On the contrary, it has to be an interrogator or scrutineer of executive power.

These are definitive moments when our courts need to reflect upon their own trajectory, their moral alignments and, most importantly, their duty to enhance hope.

This is because our Constitution is supposed to be a document of hope.

Initially, we all hoped that Mr Lungu would do the right thing. With Mr Lungu’s insistence on contesting next year’s presidential elections, now it all rests on the hope that judges of the Constitutional Court would do the right thing.

[By Mutende Chanda]

GOOD governance activist Brebner Changala has asked President Edgar Lungu to suspend Lusaka High Court judge Sunday Nkonde for professional misconduct.

In a ruling dated November 9, 2020, the Lusaka High Court discharged the ex-parte leave for judicial review granted to judge Nkonde which operated as a stay of his suspension as the main matter was likely to fail.

Dr Fred M’membe, who is the former proprietor of the Post Newspaper (in liquidation), had lodged a complaint against judge Nkonde before the Judicial Complaints Commission (JCC) for being biased in handling the liquidation case.

Dr M’membe said judge Nkonde could not preside over the liquidation case of The Post Newspaper Limited as he once attempted to render the company insolvent in 2012 when he commenced a law suit against it on behalf of Finance Bank without the bank’s authority.

In November 2018, the JCC found judge Nkonde with a case to answer and wrote a letter to President Lungu that judge Nkonde be suspended from duty to allow the Commission to investigate him.

However, judge Nkonde applied for leave to commence judicial review proceedings against the Judicial Complaints Commission’s decision dated November 14, 2018.

The JCC recommend for judge Nkonde’s suspension after he was found with a case to answer for misconduct in the manner he handled The Post Newspaper liquidation case.

Judge Nkonde, who cited the Attorney General in the matter, said the directive by the JCC that the complaint against him by Dr M’membe be heard and that he be suspended, was null and void ab initio.

The Kitwe High Court granted him leave to commence judicial review which operated as a stay of the JCC’s decision to suspend him.

On March 11, 2019, the State asked the court to set aside the ex-parte order for leave to apply for judicial review.

In her ruling last month, Lusaka High Court judge Gertrude Chawatama discharged the order granting leave to commence judicial review.

“I agree with the respondent (the State) that the removal of a judge is governed by the Constitution. The ex-parte leave granted to the applicant (judge Nkonde) is hereby discharged. The reason for the discharge is that I am fully persuaded that the main matter is bound to fail,” said judge Chawatama.

Two weeks after that ruling, Changala says President Lungu’s deliberate silence on the matter amounts to lawlessness.

“There’s so much lawlessness in this country. And the danger about this lawlessness is that it’s anchored at plot one (State House), at the President of the Republic of Zambia,” he said. “He has no any other window of excuse than the tribunal, in that seven days have elapsed without acting, and without suspending judge Sunday Nkonde so that the full process of the law could commence and the matters are put to rest once and for all.”

Changala reminded President Lungu that everyone was equal before the law.

“I know very well that the gentleman he’s supposed to suspend is his colleague. And I know very well that the closure of The Post was a State House sponsored project. So, they’ll not want to sacrifice Sunday Nkonde. But the law being what it is it does not accommodate conducts that are against the rule of law. What I’m appealing to President Edgar Lungu is to suspend one of his closest allies, in the interest of justice, in the interest of the nation. He must put his partisan interests aside,” he said. “Mind you, he swore to uphold and protect the Constitution – he is the fountain of justice. He’s given power to serve the country honourably. The power that he has gives him no option but to adhere to the law. In this case he has to abandon his emissary at this critical hour. He has to abandon the person that served his partisan interests at some moment in time. He’s not going to be allowed by the same law to start looking for scapegoats. Mind you, when the JCC wrote to him to suspend Sunday Nkonde, he came publicly to say he has received documents that there is a court matter and a stay has been granted. How did he know about that and who served those documents to him at State House? So, President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, if he’s not careful, this matter will give him problems when he leaves office because he will have broken the law. The law says he’s supposed to suspend judge Nkonde within seven days. Now, since he has not done so, he has already broken the law. And if there are people who are alert elsewhere including Parliament, he can be impeached.”

Changala said, “the President obviously is looking for a way of saving an ally”.

“But already he has broken the law because the Constitution does not give him an option. Whatever he does in his quest to save his ally, he will not get away with it because the law binds him to act accordingly,” he said. “So, in this moment in time, the President has broken the law, and it’s up to the powers that be, which includes Parliament, to move in and put him on notice.”

He stressed that even the President’s personal friends should face the law.

“This is not a bow of sugar on his table. This is an order of the Constitution that Mr Sunday Nkonde must face the tribunal. It is unfortunate that the tribunal is supposed to be constituted by a colleague in the name of President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, but he has no choice – that is a requirement by the law,” Changala said. “President Lungu swore to protect and defend the Constitution of the Republic of Zambia. It’s almost two weeks since the High Court lifted the stay on Mr Sunday Nkonde’s application in which the Judicial Complaints Commission wrote to the President to suspend him so that a tribunal can be set up and investigate his conduct in the liquidation of The Post newspaper.”

Changala said if the ruling was about an opposition leader or a judge who was not his friend, President Lungu would have acted swiftly.

“Now, as a President of the Republic of Zambia he has no excuse but to carry out what the Constitution says, even if the culprit is one of his colleagues. If this ruling by the High Court had any implication on an opposition leader, he could have taken action. And he could have said my hands are tied, it’s the courts that have said it,” said Changala. “I, Brebner Changala, am asking President Edgar Chagwa Lungu for the first time to respect the Constitution. I know very well that Mr Sunday Nkonde and many players in the liquidation of The Post Newspapers are his colleagues. But he should put the country first, his colleagues later. He swore to protect and defend every part of the Constitution, so he should not be selective on his actions as commanded by the law.”

The Post was crippled by the State on the pretext that it was technically insolvent and could not pay its creditors.

This was after its former employees Andrew Chiwenda, Abel Mboozi, Roy Habaalu, Mwendalubi Mweene, Bonaventure Bwalya and the Zambia Revenue Authority commenced an action in the Lusaka High Court to wind up the company on November 1, 2016.

They claimed that the newspaper had failed to pay them their money cumulative to K815,000, and that it was just and equitable to wind it up as other creditors had seized its property.
The liquidation of the Post Newspapers and the process followed remains heavily contested.

MAJOR Francis Kamanga says it is unfortunate that Zambians are back again fighting the third term for the current Head of State Edgar Chagwa Lungu.

And Major Kamanga, a former Lumezi member of Parliament, says developmental projects are not equitably shared in the country.

During a press briefing organised by a consortium of NGOs in Eastern Province on Saturday, Major Kamanga, who also worked as permanent secretary for works and supply, said Zambians must fight the third presidential bid for the current Head of State.

“The government came up with the constitution in 1996 which clearly spelt out the two 5-year term for any President and in that constitution it says one who has been elected and sworn in twice he or she has served two terms. The amendment which came in 2016 is not in retrospect, it just clarified that if you serve less than three years, so it did not backdate, he [Lungu] had already served the one term by then if we follow the constitution of 1996. And I feel that we are back again for a third term for the current President and I think that is unfortunate. I am sure those who have gone who were fighting the third term (for Chiluba) are turning in their graves,” he said.

Major Kamanga said he was one of the people who fought Chiluba’s third term.

“And I proudly wish to say that in 2001, I stood up for the people of Zambia to reject Chiluba’s bid for a third term and we succeeded. I was one of the 22 members of parliament who were expelled for refusing Chiluba to go for third term and I have no apologies to make. And on this one, the current President wants to go for a third term, I think the Zambian people must rise and stop him from doing so,” he said.

And Maj Kamanga condemned the move by the police to stop New Hope MMD leader Nevers Mumba from campaigning in Vubwi District.

“Whoever can drive this country forward he or she must be free to come and campaign in Eastern Province, we will listen to them and make a choice. In the same vain, you have seen there are people who have come to Eastern Province. Some in different provinces have been stopped from going to certain areas. The latest one was in Vubwi where Nevers Mumba was turned away to say ‘no you are not wanted’. As a citizen I can go anywhere. This also goes with this selective justice. The application of the law is very selective; if you are in a ruling party you are above board; if you are in the opposition, yours is to be incarcerated and when those in the opposition are arrested, even police bond and bail is delayed conveniently so that they can stay in jail for many days and a number of cases we have seen the state has withdrawn,” he said.

Maj Kamanga said equitable distribution of projects was not there.

“A few places are getting more development than other places. You may wish to know when I was PS we even brought two Chinese contractors to do two roads in Eastern Province. One of them was the Chipata/Vubwi and Chipata/Chadiza. You have traveled around, if you go to Chadiza, you will find the equipment for a road contractor still sitting there. This means that the government still has to pay. The guy mobilised, he demobilised. You have cancelled the contract, you haven’t given reasons, that will cost us dearly; they will claim a lot of money from government. I think that should not be the culture,” he said.

Maj Kamanga said the road to Lundazi from Chipata and Msuzi Bridge were eyesores.

“The road to Lundazi is an eyesore. Msuzi bridge was washed away more than two years ago but to-date it has not been worked on. The Lundazi bridge where even 12 people died, up to now you are blaming a contractor who you are not paying, government is blaming a contractor that it has not paid because if he was paid, he would have finished the job. These are things that we need to look at,” said Maj Kamanga.

CHOMA Central member of parliament Cornelius Mweetwa has petitioned the Lusaka High Court over the National Assembly’s decision to subject him to disciplinary hearing for refusing to apologise to Vice-President Inonge Wina for describing her as shallow minded.

Mweetwa in July this year, during a TV programme dubbed Coasta on the other side said it was shameful and shallow for Vice-President Wina to frame the UPND of the gassing of schools and homes that hit the country early this year.

Mweetwa has cited the Attorney General.

He is seeking an order that the pending disciplinary actions against him are illegal for being in violation of Articles 11(b), 18, 20 and 21.

In his petition, Mweetwa said that he was entitled to the protection of his rights in accordance with Article 11(b) and as enunciated under Articles 18, 19, 20 and 21 of the Constitution.

He said section 3 of the National Assembly (powers and privileges) Act violates the fundamental rights of freedom of expression guaranteed under Article 20 by restricting the freedom to express views and opinions.

Mweetwa said the purported disciplinary action pursuant to a ruling of the Speaker violates his freedom of expression, association and assembly as a member of the largest opposition political party (UPND).

He said the intended disciplinary action slated for December 2020 violated Article 18 of the constitution and the rules of natural justice as it violates his (Mweetwa) entitlement to a fair hearing because the National Assembly would be acting as a judge, jury, and executioner.

Mweetwa explained that on July 10, 2020, Dr Matibini in his ruling on a point or order raised by Mandevu member of parliament Jean Kapata that he attacked the persona of the Vice-President on Diamond TV, found him out of order, in breach of parliamentary privilege and in contempt of the house.

He said Dr Matibini reprimanded him as punishment for the same and asked him to apologise but he refused to apologise as his reaction to the Vice-President’s statement was within his privilege of freedom of expression, assembly and association as guaranteed in the constitution.

“On July 14, 2020, the petitioner wrote to the clerk of the National Assembly seeking to challenge the decision of the Speaker for admonishing him as punishment for an offense he did not accept liability for,” Mweetwa said. “On July 17, 2020, the clerk of the National Assembly wrote to the petitioner asking him to exculpate himself for refusing to apologise and for engaging the Speaker of the National Assembly on the same subject matter as he forced him to apologise.”

Mweetwa said on October 15, 2020, the clerk of the National Assembly wrote to him declining to table his motion to challenge the decision of the Speaker for reprimanding him and compelling him to apologise against his will.

He stated that despite the refusal by the clerk of the National Assembly to allow him to challenge the Speaker’s ruling, the clerk wrote to him on October 21, 2020 asking him (Mweetwa) to exculpate himself for refusing to render an apology and explaining why he refused to do so.

Mweetwa further explained that on November 13, 2020 the clerk of the National Assembly wrote to him notifying him that he would be subjected to further disciplinary hearings on December 2, 2020.

“The fundamental freedoms under Articles 11(b), 18, 20 and 21 have been violated by the National Assembly through the Speaker of the National Assembly and the National Assembly powers and privileges committee,” Mweetwa said.

“The continued actions of the National Assembly will continue to abrogate the petitioner’s rights.”

He added that the actions of the National Assembly were illegal and a breach of the fundamental freedom guaranteed in the constitution.

Mweetwa further wants an order that the speaker’s ruling on July 10, 2020 that he was in breach of parliamentary privilege and in contempt of the house was null and void as it breaches the fundamental freedoms enjoyed by the petitioner under Article 11(b), 18, 20 and 21.

He also wants an order striking down section 3, 11 and 22 of the National Assembly Powers and privileges Act.

BISHOP Timothy Chisala says PF days in power and that of President Edgar Lungu are numbered.

He says for PF leaders, the suffering of the people does not matter, “but what matters is that they eat alone from the over borrowed money”.

Bishop Chisala, the General Overseer of All Nations Church International, said it was shameful and a mockery on people who are suffering for a minister “to stand on a mountain to justify borrowing which has not benefited the people”.

He said President Lungu’s administration should stop mocking Zambians.

Last week while handing over a 72-seater bus on behalf of President Lungu to Mpongwe Boarding School, presidential affairs minister Freedom Sikazwe said it was true that some people are crying that the government over-borrowed.

“It was that song that the pupils sang. After the meeting I remained to listen to the song. That same song is what has produced the bus. The President said if these children can appreciate what this government has done then they mean well. When other parents cannot appreciate…We need to appreciate people when they are alive. I want to stand here as a proud member of the PF, proud member of the government and President Lungu. The man means well,” said Sikazwe. “…It is true that some people are crying that we have over-borrowed. There was pressure that we had as government to try and change things. We inherited a very bad economy because of the infrastructure. If we had maintained the same status quo of having the fears of borrowing, today this country would have been a mess.”

He said it was shocking that people were complaining that the government had over borrowed when they have seen what the borrowed money has been used for.

“A poor parent is that one who goes and borrows and misuses, but speaking of this government when we say we are borrowing to improve on the infrastructure…If a parent borrows to build a house, where is the problem?” Sikazwe asked.

He said Zambians should not be misled because President Lungu means well for the country.

But Bishop Chisala said all the words spoken by Sikazwe are a true reflection of President Edgar Lungu.

“It is ba Freedom Sikazwe who said this? But this is a true reflection and representation of President Edgar Lungu. This is what exactly the President is saying. Now if a President can say he is shocked that Zambians are crying that he over borrowed, is that not mocking the people? Surely the days of these guys are numbered,” he said. “To them the suffering of the people does not matter, but what matters is that they eat alone from the over borrowed money! What a shame.”

Bishop Chisala said President Lungu is a topical example of a parent who borrows to misuse the money.

“Now what sort of a parent is he (President Lungu)? He borrowed and where did he take the money. If they claim they borrowed for good, what good is there. Who has benefited from that borrowed money? This is recklessness of the highest order. A leader who means well always puts the interest of the people first. So for President Lungu and ba Sikazwe, where is their interest?” he asked. “There is no sense of being in this leadership. How can you say a song made you donate to the school? It is the responsibility of government to provide for all, not when people are suffering. This is mockery that only people who praise and sing songs of praise for government will be empowered. This is total injustice to the poor.”

Bishop Chisala said when time comes, PF will not survive the weight of the people.

“It is within just a few months and pay-back time will come. People are suffering and one stands on a mountain to justify borrowing which has not benefited the people. This is unjustified and a sign of hypocrites. Time is coming very shortly when the PF will feel the weight of the people,” said Bishop Chisala. “It is painful to have leaders that only listen to their minds. What ba Sikazwe said is shameful to say the least. But that does not shock us because arrogance comes in when people think they have it all. Power belongs to the people.”

ZCCM-IH minority shareholders have requested government to withdraw gold mining licences granted to miners in Lusaka’s Rufunsa district.

On May 24 this year, mines permanent secretary Barnaby Mulenga announced that government had given a mandate to the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Investment Holdings (ZCCM-IH) to coordinate efforts to purchase gold from artisanal miners and to also coordinate gold trading business in the country.

Mulenga also said all gold from artisanal miners should be bought through ZCCM-IH and remitted to the Bank of Zambia in order to build strategic reserves for the country.

Government has declared gold as a strategic mineral meant to allow all citizens to benefit from its exploitation.

Further, government handed-over gold mining equipment worth K1.3 million to three cooperatives aimed at scaling up gold production levels in Rufunsa, Vubwi and Lundazi districts in Eastern Province.

However, miners in Rufunsa have boycotted trading with government over its decision that ZCCM-IH would be the sole owner of the gold-mining equipment, which was recently procured.

But the miners have refused to sign a supply agreement with ZCCM-IH after raising concern over ownership of the equipment.

Reacting to the miners’ behaviour, Euronext Minority Shareholders of ZCCM-IH described them as blackmailers.

“Moreover, the granting of gold licenses has generated much enthusiasm throughout the country. The licenses of these infamous blackmailers must be revoked and attributed to other Zambians or honest cooperatives who wish to act not only for themselves but also in the general interest, particularly to strengthen Zambia’s strategic reserves in the current financial context,” the minority shareholder said through Thierry Charles. “It is only logical that ZCCM-IH, commissioned by GRZ, monitors and controls the operating equipment. It is strange that the miners of Rufunsa are reluctant to have the equipment controlled by ZCCM-IH in the general interest and bite the hand that feeds them.”

He questioned the miners’ motive in wanting to control mining equipment.
Charles further questioned the arrogance in refusing to obey legal government directives.

“Why do they want to recover ownership and management of the mining equipment that has been made available for free to them? Would ZCCM-IH surveillance prevent illegal exploitation with the provided equipment? One can assume so, given the reactions,” said Charles. “The blackmailers have absolutely no recognition of the efforts undertaken by GRZ and ZCCM-IH to develop small-scale mining. While ZCCM-IH faces other challenges, our company provides serious and competent teams to structure the gold sector and bring technical skills to these ingrates while wasting time and money.”

TWO University of Zambia law lecturers have expressed concern at the poor judgments coming from the Constitutional Court.

In a write-up titled, ‘Where exactly is the ConCourt taking Zambia: a comment on the Mutembo Nchito judgment’, law lecturers Dr O’Brien Kaaba and Dr Pamela Towela Sambo argue that the court has done more harm to constitutionalism than promoting its values.

The duo argued that the judgment the court rendered in the Nchito case left much to be desired.

“A judiciary committed to constitutionalism should interpret the Constitution in a manner that promotes the realisation of its underlying values, not to undermine them. Judging by the Mutembo Nchito judgment, it is hard to see how the Constitutional Court’s decision safeguards the integrity of the Constitution and advances the rule of law and constitutionalism,” they argued. “Perhaps it was for this reason that Supreme Court Judge, Mumba Malila, in a recently published and well-articulated article penned in honour of the late justice [Claver] Musumali, virulently admonished his colleagues in the Zambian judiciary…When will the Zambian judges take up this challenge and heed Justice Malila’s plea?”

Giving background to the history of constitutional courts worldwide, the lecturers argued that the Zambian institution had placed itself as a tool to champion the cause of the executive.

“To borrow Professor Michelo Hansungule’s words, Zambians have been looking for an ‘irritatingly independent’ Constitutional Court. Dare we ask, irritating to who? The answer is to all and sundry that are allergic to constitutionalism and the rule of law,” they stated. “The problem is that the Zambian Constitutional Court, judged by the depth of its jurisprudence, does not seem to fit into the legacy of other progressive Constitutional Courts such as the South African Constitutional Court. The latest demonstration of this is to be found in the recent decision of the Court relating to the removal of Mutembo Nchito as Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).”

Dr Kaaba and Dr Sambo wondered if Constitutional Court judges have been researching before compiling judgments.

The duo also expressed concern about the Court’s delay in passing judgment on the matter without even apologising to Nchito.

“Taking the Mutembo Nchito judgment as a microcosm of the Constitutional Court judgments, the decisions of the Court tend to be thinly reasoned, under-researched, lacking in critical reflection, deficient in rigorous legal analysis, demonstrating a mechanical and unreflective reliance on precedents, and above all, contextually irrelevant,” the duo argued. “Before addressing substantive defects of the judgment, we would like to say a few words about the Constitutional Court’s seeming inefficiency. It took four years for the Court to dispose of this straightforward case. The court largely blames the delay on the parties for being ‘locked in interlocutories’. The Court does not explain how and why resolving interlocutory matters took so long.”

The lecturers stated that there was no justification for such a prolonged delay.

“A perusal of the record shows that the case was concluded in September 2019. It therefore took the Court more than a year to render a mere 50-page judgment. The Court offered no apology or explanation for its own delay, which is manifestly a violation of Article 118(2)(b) of the Constitution which requires that ‘justice shall not be delayed’,” they stated. “Obviously, this delay cannot be justified on the basis of the depth of research conducted as the judgment, apart from routine references to case law and statutes, only made reference to two other publications: Black’s Law Dictionary and Garth Thornton’s Legislative Drafting book.”

The duo stated that it did not make sense for the Constitutional Court to delay judgment for one year when it had very few cases in its record.

They noted that courts were creatures of the Constitution and, as such, accountable to the supreme law of the land.

“Considering the importance of the case to the constitutional life of the state, the display of inadequate research in this judgment is by any standard shocking,” they argued. “It also bears noting that the Constitutional Court is a new Court which has no case backlogs and has a very low caseload (as compared, for example, with the Supreme Court which had in excess of 4,000 case backlogs prior to the establishment of the Court of Appeal). Courts are creatures of the Constitution and accountable under the Constitution.”

The lecturers reminded Constitutional Court judges that their power is derived from the people who they have been serving with dishonour.

“Article 118 (1) of the Constitution provides that judicial authority derives from the people and should be exercised in a manner that promotes accountability. Delivering a judgment more than a year after the case closed, without any explanation or apology, is inconsistent with the spirit of accountability dictated by the Constitution,” the lecturers stressed. “In the case of the Constitutional Court, this is not an isolated case, this having been reflected in a number of cases such as the appeals relating to the Lusaka Central and Munali constituency election disputes. An accountable court is sensitive to the inconvenience it may cause to the litigants and keeps those concerned well updated. The inconvenience is also apparent in relation to the development of constitutional precedence, not to mention the ever – learning general citizenry that looks forward to speedy resolution of contentious constitutional matters.”

And the duo wondered why the Constitutional Court had always diverted from questions provided by petitioners and instead formulated its own.

Citing the Nchito and President Lungu’s eligibility cases, Dr Kaaba and Dr Sambo stated that the Court had diverted from issues raised by petitioners.

“Now to the substance of the judgment. A reading of the Mutembo Nchito judgment makes one wonder where the Court is taking the country in terms of constitutional jurisprudence…How was the Court able to determine that the President acted constitutionally in removing the DPP from office without delving into the process leading to his removal?” asked the duo. “The exercise of constitutional power cannot be divorced from the manner by which that power is exercised. Constitutional power is given in order to further and not undermine constitutional values and goals. It follows that there must be a rational connection between the process and the exercise of constitutional power. The two cannot be splintered and dealt with in isolation, as did the Constitutional Court in this matter.”

THE UPND insists that President Edgar Lungu has destroyed everything Zambia prided herself with.

In a statement, UPND secretary general Stephen Katuka said his party was baffled by President Lungu’s sentiments that he would not want to be the one to destroy Zambia and yet he knows that he is the chief architect of the country’s destruction.

“The statement, as reported in The Mast newspaper edition of November 24, 2020, is a further demonstration of the disconnect that exists between what Mr Lungu preaches and what is actually obtaining on the ground,” Katuka said.

He said since January 2015 when President Lungu took power, Zambians have witnessed an unprecedented destruction of nearly every institution of governance while unrestrained corruption has become the new normal.

“As if this were not bad enough, Mr Lungu’s incompetent fiscal management has earned Zambia the embarrassment of being the first African country this year to default on a portion of its external debt which currently stands at a staggering US$12 billion officially. Independent estimates put the debt at $27 billion,” he said.

Katuka wondered whether President Lungu’s failure to pay US$42.5 million interest on the Eurobond does not amount to destroying the country’s image.

“When our president, Mr Hakainde Hichilema, advised the PF regime to slow down on debt contraction, they accused him of being bitter and that they were within the sealing to borrow more. Can Mr Lungu today claim that he is within a safe debt ceiling when he was even compelled to get US$5 million of the Zambian people’s money and pay a French company, Lazard Ferres, to advise on debt restructuring? A whopping US$5 million gone into a project that ended in failure.”

Katuka wondered what President Lungu takes the Zambian people for when he says he does not want to be remembered for having been the source of the country’s destruction.

“What else has Mr Lungu and his divisive Patriotic Front (PF) not destroyed, if we may ask? Has Mr Lungu not destroyed the price of Zambia’s staple food,” Katuka wondered.

“Let us begin from here. In January 2015, when Mr Lungu assumed the presidency, the price of mealie meal was K65 for a 25-kilogramme bag of breakfast while roller meal was fetching K52.

He further wondered how someone could even have the audacity of asking the starving Zambians for a third term in office; an unconstitutional one, for that matter.

He further pointed to the country’s strategic foreign exchange reserves which according to a joint World Bank-International Monetary Fund Debt Sustainability analysis on Zambia, released in August 2019, the country had a foreign exchange reserves import cover to last 4.7 months.

He said because of President Lungu’s appetite for debt contraction and the attendant pressure in paying back, by May 2019, the PF had mopped up the reserves and they could only cover 1.7 months of imports.

Katuka figured that by now, Zambia probably does not even have reserves to last one week and yet reserves are important in helping a country maintain competitively-priced exports, remain liquid in case of crisis and influence the foreign exchange rate of a currency.

“How has our currency fared since Mr Lungu and his PF entered State House in January 2015?

That time, the exchange rate of the Kwacha was K5 to a United States dollar,” he said.

The UPND official noted that after nearly six years, President Lungu has successfully managed to see the Kwacha nosedive to nearly K21 to a dollar.
“Destroying a currency by more than 400 per cent is not one of the attributes of a successful president. This is total failure. Elsewhere, Mr Lungu has succeeded in destroying the rule of law in so many ways including compelling his ministers to remain in office when Parliament was dissolved in 2016,” he said.

He recalled that up to now, President Lungu’s ministers have not paid back the salaries, allowances and advances they received while illegally occupying office.

He said under President Lungu, opposition political parties cannot freely mobilise as they risk being arrested by the Zambia Police, something that was never the case before the PF regime took office.

Katuka recalled that before President Lungu’s ascension to power, journalists were operating freely but the man has so far closed what used to be the country’s most successful private newspaper, The Post, and sent more employees onto the streets by cancelling Prime Television’s broadcasting licence.

Katuka insisted asking that what else has President Lungu not destroyed for him to claim that he does not want to be remembered as the one who destroyed Zambia.

He said with this trail of destruction, President Lungu and the PF regime can only be asked to pack their belongings and prepare to leave the Zambian political stage in 2021 for a competent UPND government led by president Hichilema.

ACKSON Sejani has charged that PF are desperate for praises from anywhere.

He says the PF made two strategic blunders upon taking over in 2011 by over-borrowing without an investment plan and by reemploying the same people they claimed messed up the economy.

“The MMD faction today runs all the strategic ministries in your government. So, the mess continues and it is getting worse,” Sejani said.

When handing over a 72-seat bus to Mpongwe Secondary School last Wednesday on behalf of President Edgar Lungu, presidential affairs minister Freedom Sikazwe claimed that the PF inherited a collapsed economy in 2011, hence the reason for their over borrowing.

“…It is true that some people are crying that we have over-borrowed. There was pressure that we had as government to try and change things. We inherited a very bad economy because of the infrastructure. If we had maintained the same status quo of having the fears of borrowing, today this country would have been a mess,” said Sikazwe. “A poor parent is that one who goes and borrows and misuses. But speaking of this government, when we say we are borrowing to improve on the infrastructure…If a parent borrows to build a house, where is the problem?”

Reacting to the claims, Sejani, a former local government minister in the Frederick Chiluba administration, said PF should instead wait for people to praise them.

“The very fact that Mr Sikazwe seems to be over the moon regarding this Mpongwe episode is a troubling indicator of a very big problem with our government. PF is a government desperate for praises but it appears these praises are few and far in between,” he said. “This situation is not satisfactory to a government that needs their collective egos to be frequently pampered.

Mr Sikazwe must wait for praises from many other Zambians before he pats himself on the back and claim that things have changed for the better due to borrowing.”

Sejani asked Sikazwe to let businessmen who have lost their businesses as a result of “this mismanaged economy sing praises”.

“Let the farmers, students who have lost meal allowances, civil servants, retirees and the legions of unemployed youths sing praises before we take notice,” Sejani said. “When you have done something good or you have helped somebody, in our culture, it is usually the recipient of your help who gives you a gift as well as singing praises for you. In this case it is a bit strange in that the helper goes further to also give and thank the helped.”

Sejani however, doubted Sikazwe’s capacity saying such likes are more than capable of pulling off such a stunt just to satisfy their starving egos.

He outlined the effects of PF’s reckless borrowing on the economy.

“Through their reckless borrowing Zambia’s independence is now under threat. Our land upon which our freedom struggle was fought is under threat. The commanding heights of our economy are also under threat,” he said. “All the above have come about due to borrowing for consumption and political survival. What profits did the country get from buying [opposition] councillors, campaigning for Bill 10, buying the Gulf stream [presidential aircraft] and many other wasteful expenditures?”

Sijani further pointed out the mistake PF made upon assuming power.

“Sorry Mr Sikazwe, you made two strategic blunders when you took over. One you over borrowed without an investment plan and secondly you reemployed the same people you claim messed up the economy,” Sejani said. “The MMD faction today runs all the strategic ministries in your government. So, the mess continues and it is getting worse. If we were not dealing with a very serious national matter one would be tempted to just laugh at these claims. We must wonder what type of lenses the people at State House are wearing that make them see things that the majority of Zambians are not seeing.’’

He said perhaps Sikazwe was right by claiming that PF changed things after forming government.

Sejani however, said what mattered was the kind of change PF had brought in the country.

“Mr Sikazwe says they have changed things through their excessive borrowing. May be Mr Sikazwe is right in claiming change but we must ask a question as to whether this change is positive or negative. We must further ask whether this change is for better or for worse,” said Sejani. “The answer from the majority Zambians would suggest that the change brought by the PF, particularly under Mr Lungu, is for the worse. Zambia is now fairing worse socially, politically and economically and there are many examples to prove this assertion. Mr Sikazwe must be told that Zambia is now worse than she was before they embarked on their unrestrained borrowing spree.”

ZITUKULE Consortium executive director Nicholas Phiri says Zambia may go bankrupt by 2025 if the issue of debt is not properly handled.

During a press briefing dubbed ‘The Zambia we want towards 2021 and beyond’ in Chipata on Saturday, Phiri said the government should be transparent on the US $12 billion debt.

“Whether you care or you don’t care, you’ve a debt. What will happen is this, our government failed to pay $42.5 million – this was an interest for the debt which the government. What will follow is this, our government will be blacklisted, which means that we will not be able to go outside the country to borrow money,” he said. “What will happen is that government is going to issue treasury bills. What this will mean is that the money that is in the bank that businessmen and others should have borrowed, that money will not be there because government will be competing with small and medium entrepreneurs to access it.”

Phiri said the situation would in turn affect programmes such as the Social Cash Transfer, provision of drugs in hospitals and service provision in general.

“It also means that the 2020 budget which you made will somehow be affected because part of that budget we need to borrow money to finance it. It means that government will not be able to borrow the money. So the issue of debt, I implore the media ‘let us take this discussion to a level where people will understand’ that everyone will be affected by this debt. What we are asking government to do is to come out clearly,” he said.

Phiri said Zambians should question why the government was not revealing all the debts that it had contracted.

“Government asked for tax holiday from the bondholders for six months but the government was asked to give information on other people we owe money other than the bondholders and the terms [of the loans]. Government failed to provide that information,” he noted. “And this is how the bondholders refused to give us a tax holiday. Now what citizens must be asking this government – and this is not a political issue – is ‘why is it failing to reveal the other debt? Where did it take the money that it borrowed?’ They should not just talk about roads. How much was put in the roads sector? What of hospitals or Zambia Railways?”

Phiri said citizens must ask questions so that they get answers from the government.

“Let citizens ask questions because believe you me, by the year 2025 this country will go bankrupt. We’ll not even be able to import fuel. This is what it means on this issue of debt. I urge all of us here, take this issue seriously, let us ask very difficult questions,” said Phiri. “Now the government is very comfortable because no one is asking about these things. Remember the Vice-President [Inonge Wina] and said, ‘I can assure you, we cannot default’, but just one week later we went and defaulted.”

And former Lumezi member of parliament Major Francis Kamanga said tribal insinuations were not good for the people of Eastern Province.

Maj Kamanga urged ministers from Eastern Province not to bring problems by promoting tribalism.

“The statements from our own brothers and sisters from Eastern Province who have started saying ‘as easterners we must vote for fellow easterners’. That’s a very unfortunate statement. This should not come from these people that we voted into office. We have even a traditional leader who has come on board saying ‘vote for your own person, don’t vote for an outsider’,” he said. “These are tribal insinuations that are not good for us. If you remember, I don’t know how many of us here were born then, there was an outcry by a few people from the east saying ‘Umodzi Kum’mawa’ and our founding father [Dr Kenneth] Kaunda did not mince his words and he made sure that Umodzi Kum’mawa was a dead issue and we all thank him for coming up with that move.”

Maj Kamanga recalled that Umodzi Kum’mawa cost easterners seats at the UNIP Congress with late Dingiswayo Banda being the only easterner to have won a seat at the congress.

“We shouldn’t go tribal. Eastern Province ministers, if you think your time is up, your time is up. Don’t start bringing problems for us all and start telling us to vote for an easterner. Whoever can drive this country forward, he or she must be free to come and campaign in Eastern Province and we will listen to them and make a choice,” said Maj Kamanga.

Meanwhile, a consortium of NGOs in Eastern Province appealed to the Electoral Commission of Zambia to extend the voter registration period.

In a speech read by Goodwin Banda of Lobby and Advocacy Youth Programme 2050, the NGOs stated that a lot of people would be disenfranchised by the ECZ.

“We are deeply concerned with the manner in which the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) is managing the on-going voter registration exercise as many people risk being left out of the voters roll (in other words disenfranchised) in the 2021 presidential and general elections,” Banda said. “We say so because we do not believe that the ECZ, having nullified the 2016 Voters’ Register which had over 6.5 million voters, would be able to capture nine million voters within 30 days which is due on 12th December 2020, hardly two weeks from now. It is therefore our considered view and recommendation that the Commission must extend the voters’ registration period by at least a month to ensure that any one eligible and willing to vote is not denied an opportunity to do so because of the operational challenges of the ECZ.”

Banda said the ECZ was created to facilitate and not to frustrate citizens’ right to vote.

The briefing was centred on the electoral process, debt situation and tribalism.

THE UPND has one mindset and a shared goal which is to ensure that the thieving and corrupt PF government is replaced by a competent and visionary leadership led by Hakainde Hichilema, says Obvious Mwaliteta.

In a statement to The Mast, Mwaliteta, who is Lusaka Province UPND chairperson, said it requires a very little level of intelligence for one to see that PF Lusaka Province chairman Paul Moonga was being mentally challenged to suggest that fellow UPND members attacked Charmaine Musonda on November 15.

“We have one mindset and a shared goal. We neither fight amongst ourselves nor do we believe in shedding innocent blood. We are focused on one thing and that is to ensure that this thieving and corrupt PF government is replaced by a competent and visionary leadership headed by our President HH,” Mwaliteta said. “No amount of hallucinations from Paul Moonga shall derail us from this noble cause and task.”

He said the whole country was united in condemning the barbaric attack on Musonda and her colleagues at her residence.

“Moonga chooses to show us just how shallow minded he is,” he said.

Mwaliteta, who is former minister for Lusaka, Central, Western, Southern provinces and also home affairs deputy minister, said it was a well-known fact that Musonda was attacked and robbed by PF cadres led by Oga of Kalundu.

He added that it was also beyond dispute that the PF robbed her of valuable properties, including money.

“We know that Paul Moonga possesses absolutely no known skills that can enable him survive without being a sebana wikute. However, even in being a mushanina bwali, there should be some level of decency and self-restraint. We urge Paul Moonga to grow up for once and stop exhibiting his foolishness in public,” Mwaliteta said. “In the deluded mind of Paul Moonga, he sees nothing wrong with the conduct of his cadres who brutally attacked a defenceless woman. To him violence and brutality are a way of life. We have not forgotten how Sean Tembo was last year attacked and brutalised right in the middle of Cairo Road. In that aggravated robbery, Mr Tembo was robbed of various valuables, including phones and money. And guess who was fingered as the perpetrator of that criminal attack? Paul Moonga. The only crime that Mr Tembo and others committed to be made subject of that brutality was to voice out against PF corruption and theft in the acquisition of the useless 42 fire tenders at US $42 million.”

He said all PF cadres who were perpetrating crime would be made to account for their deeds next year when PF exits government.

“The least that we expect of the likes of Paul Moonga and his fellows that attacked Charmaine is that they hand themselves over to the police so that they are made to account for their criminal deeds, failure to which we call upon the Zambia Police to immediately arrest these aggravated robbers and throw them in prison where they belong without further delay,” said Mwaliteta.

PF cadres brutalised Musonda and others just as they prepared to travel to attend a public rally that was addressed by UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema.

GREED and division among opposition political parties and leaders will cost us what should have been the obvious people’s victory in the 2021 polls, warns Enock Tonga.

The 3rd Liberation Movement (3RD-LM) president said a government of thieves, by thieves, for thieves, was the most dangerous and deadly any nation would not wish to have, “and Zambia is not far from that – too much noise makers and full of the coward crybabies”.

Tonga said opposition parties were a “bunch of puffed up for nothing, dishonest and very dull self-centred individuals” who have built most of their names on very weak political foundations coupled with questionable initiatives or origins.

“If you can, please change for the better. Zambia’s peace and unity is at stake. Sadly, these are individuals which most media institutions in Zambia are eulogising – mainly due to the politically instigated poverty, which has not spared anyone – media inclusive,” he said. “Look at the headlines or lead stories in most media institutions – so compromising and very depressing as they aid criminals up their ladder – only to be forgotten once they arrive. All we read, watch and listen to on a daily basis are poverty stricken media headlines. Sad! Media ethics, fundamental principles and birthrights are traded for a piece of silver. What a nation!”

Tonga said squeezed and threatened private sector, sleeping Church and civil society organisations, toothless labour unions and poor citizenry, was all what Zambia was blessed with now.

“Mind you, it’s poverty and illiteracy as a tool in the hands of a Janus-faced politician to use for controlling people. Majority must remain poor so that no-one has energy to go on the street and protest against a failed regime – even in human reproduction, one needs energy,” he said. “Keep people on hand-to-mouth means of survival so that they do not have the ability to plan for tomorrow – such a people can easily be manipulated to the best interest of untrustworthy politician. For instance, a free K10 would have solved a day’s empty stomach of a poor man – what more a donation of 25 kg bag of mealie-meal? It’s 30 days of no worries and stress for a hand-to-mouth survivor.”

Tonga said it was a small-selected and manageable voters, as a tool in the hands of an underhand politician, used for ascending and holding on to power on the pretext of democracy.

“Who will stand to protest against disputed elections, when you have foolish 15 presidential candidates on a ballot paper sharing amongst themselves a-six million voter register – comprised mainly of poverty stricken voters spaced over a land of 752,618 km² out of the 17+ million people, amidst a well-beefed up police service? No one,” he argued. “We warned you, way ahead, that the forthcoming general polls have nothing to do with ‘President-General’ Edgar Chagwa Lungu’s fraud infrastructure development and the 17+ million Zambian people, but more pivoted on the voters’ register. Voters’ register is the heartbeat of one Dr Edgar Chagwa Lungu, ‘President-General’ and his Patriotic Front (PF) administration. We told you of how the reducing formula (RF) and many other sophisticated methods do work in political mathematics. Where are we now that the voter registration is underway? All we hear now is noise of complaints and cries. Who will hear you?”

Tonga said this was not time to make noise, “it was time to work in unity for the sake of Zambia”.

“Who can think of another five solid years of Patriotic Front (PF) administration?” he asked.

Tonga said looking at the pace upon which Zambia’s economic fortunes were dwindling, the sad part of it all was that nearly everyone had gone into sleeping mode.

“Make no mistake, with another five concrete years of PF administration, there will be no Zambia to talk about. Now should have been the time to talk of a serious well-coordinated one strong voice of opposition for obvious change, not ‘madimbi’ (jokes of opposition) we are having,” he said.

Tonga said the Zambian people should have by now been breathing the hot wind of change and put President Lungu’s administration on the tip of its toes.

“…one Dr Edgar Chagwa Lungu and his PF, having undeclared and vested interest in the planned for 2021 general polls are a million kilometres ahead. No individual political party in Zambia now is strong and powerful enough to dislodge the PF administration. Ignore this at your own expense,” said Tonga. “Greed and division among the opposition political parties and leaders will eat and cost us what should have been the obvious Zambian people’s victory ahead of the 2021 polls. Let’s continue living in self-denial and choosing arrogance, selfishness and individualism over unity of purpose as opposition – humiliating defeat awaits us all.”/LM

SPEAKER of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini yesterday reserved ruling on a point of order by Alexander Chiteme on whether Jack Mwiimbu was in order to call him and Richard Musukwa thieves who had bought buses and splashed money in their constituencies.

Chiteme is Nkana PF member of parliament and national development planning minister.

He rose on a point of order alleging breach of Standing Order number 53, which states that a member shall, in debating any matter, ensure that information he or she provides to the House is factual and verifiable.

Chiteme also referred to Chapter 3 of the Members’ Handbook 2006, which required members to substantiate allegations they make in the House.

He said in his contribution to Head 21 (Loans and Guarantees), Mwiimbu, who is leader of the opposition in the House and Monze Central UPND member of parliament, branded PF members of parliament as thieves and criminals, who had acquired buses and were throwing money at people in their constituencies.

“He was restrained by Honourable First Deputy Speaker [Catherine Namugala] who was chairing the House that time. First of all, she said ‘I won’t allow that, withdraw your statement on two accounts. Number one is that we don’t debate ourselves and number two, that he will be called upon to adduce evidence that we are indeed thieves and that we are throwing away money recklessly and that we are a party that have got more money than government,” Chiteme said. “Mr Speaker, he was stopped and ordered to withdraw. He was indeed given extra time in which to do that. He came back to the floor and further alluded that he has substantial evidence that the member of parliament for Chililabombwe [Richard Musukwa] and Nkana, myself Mr Speaker, are the ones that he alluded have stolen to buy the said buses and flashed money to the people in our constituencies.”

Chiteme said Mwiimbu indicated that he would lay the evidence on the table of the House.

He asked whether Mwiimbu was in order to disrespect the decorum of the House and go against standing orders by calling the members of the PF criminals and thieves.

“Mr Speaker, Honourable Mwiimbu has come to Parliament, this is the fourth time. He has been in this House for 20 good years…” he said before being interrupted by Speaker Matibini who told him that he seemed to be commencing a debate instead of raising the point of order and leaving it to him to rule.

Chiteme then asked, “Is the Honourable member in order to make all these false accusations without providing the needed evidence or even just to go to Higer to get the names of the same members of parliament that have gotten buses and Mr Speaker, let me quickly conclude that to get a bus from Higer is K4,000 per month…is he in order? …I need your serious ruling.”

Speaker Dr Matibini reserved his ruling to allow him to study the matter carefully.

I HAVE no grudge against Rupiah Banda, says Nevers Mumba.

And Mumba has vowed the MMD will fight the electoral process until it is cleaned up.

Responding to journalists’ questions shortly after officiating at the MMD Central Province mobilisation crusade launch in Kabwe on Thursday, Mumba said his relationship with former Republican president Banda is “still superb.”

He explained that the fact Banda appeared to have backed the Felix Mutati-led faction during the court battles that might have caused divisions in the former ruling party did not mean that they would remain enemies.

He said there were no permanent enemies in politics because the spirit of comradeship should be embraced.

“I am still in good books with Rupiah Banda. Our relationship is still superb. I still enjoy a good relationship with him. We are in talking terms. I have no grudge against my elder brother Rupiah Banda. What happened is in the past, it’s history. And in life you need to forgive and forget,” said Mumba.

He noted that the MMD lost power in 2011 because the former ruling party’s leadership that time became arrogant.

“I want you to have a fighting spirit…fight the electoral process. We cannot go to the [general] elections until this process is cleaned up. Just keep on fighting. Fighting a good fight for a noble cause,” Mumba, a former Republican vice-president and the country’s high commissioner to Canada, said. “If you have a passion to win, you will score; you will win. Without a goal, you cannot score. And your political antics might just go to waste.”

Mumba said he wanted to transition the MMD general membership from a losing mind-set to a winning one.

“And my job as leader of a political party is leadership transition of the MMD. This is because if you don’t transition now, you will create problems in this political organisation. I want the MMD general membership to transition from a losing mind-set to a winning mind-set,” he said. “This is the vision I hold for this political organisation today. I am in politics because I have a vision. So join me in this vision. join me in this faith.”

Mumba said the MMD lost power in 2011 because the former ruling party’s leadership that time became arrogant.

He said his leadership style would always be anchored on morality, integrity and transparency.

“In the 20 years that we stayed in power, we revolutionised the country. We ensured that we have a liberal market and we liberated the media. Zambia has never been the same since the MMD entered the country’s political space. We laid a strong foundation democratically, though it is shrinking under the current regime of PF. We lost elections in 2011 because we became arrogant,” he said. “But I can assure you that you never see arrogance in my leadership. My leadership style will always be anchored on morality, integrity and transparency.”

Mumba said he wanted to institutionalise the ‘New Hope’ MMD.

He said he was determined to ensure the MMD regains its respect as a political organisation that is committed to ensuring democracy continues to thrive in Zambia.

“I want the MMD to regain its respect as a political party that founded multiparty democracy in this country and as a party that is interested in ensuring democracy continues to flourish in the country,” Mumba said. “And I also want to tell you that I want to build an MMD headquarters that is digitalised because we are in the digital world. That’s’ my vision.”

Mumba further implored party officials to sacrifice their time and resources to guarantee sustainability of the MMD.