THE LITUNGA HAS AUTHORITY OVER ALL CHIEFS IN BAROTSELAND/WESTERN PROVINCE – HIGH COURT RULES
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The High Court in Lusaka has reaffirmed that only the Litunga, King of Barotseland, holds the constitutional and customary authority to install and dethrone all chiefs in Western Province, regardless of tribe.
This followed a case in which Mr. Innocent Munyikwa Lushato, who had claimed to be the rightful leader of Mwanatete in Luampa, challenged the installation of Chieftainess Josephine Kamwila Limata by the Barotse Royal Establishment and His Majesty the Litunga.
After hearing witnesses from both sides, the court ruled that:
The selection of a chief is the preserve of the royal family according to custom and tradition.
Once selected, installation must be done by the Litunga for the individual to exercise authority as chief.
No other chief or institution has power to appoint or impose a chief outside their jurisdiction.
The plaintiff failed to prove his claims, while evidence confirmed that Josephine Kamwila Limata comes from the legitimate Mwanatete lineage and was properly installed.
The court dismissed all claims with costs and upheld earlier Constitutional Court rulings confirming the Litunga’s supreme traditional authority in Barotseland.
✅Key Lesson from the Judgment
No person can be recognized as chief in Western Province without installation by the Litunga, and the Litunga retains the power to discipline or dethrone any subordinate chief within his jurisdiction.
Judgment delivered: 15 January 2026, Lusaka
Kuomboka Media Agency
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And the Zambian republican presidency has supreme authority over the Litunga and the Western Provimce in its entirety