Lungu “Morally Ineligible” To Run In 2021 – ACA’s Miti

Alliance for Community Action (ACA) Executive Director Laura Miti has said that while she is not sure if the President is constitutionally eligible to contest the 2021 elections, she believes him to be “morally ineligible” having used the last 7 years “to destroy the vibrant economy and national spirit he inherited.” 

Since the 2016 elections there has been continued debate on the question of President Lungu’s ability to stand for a third term in office. The constitution includes a strict two term limit. However, there has been disagreement over whether President Lungu’s first term counts, as he served for only 18 months after elections in January 2015 which were prompted by the death of former President Michael Sata in 2014. 

Among those to have disputed the President’s eligibility were constitutional lawyer John Sangwa who argued that because President Lungu has been elected twice he cannot seek a third term. 

“When you read the language of the Constitution, it is very clear. The bottom line is President Lungu does not qualify to stand in 2021, the issue is as simple as that. The Constitution does not talk about the number of times you serve, it is the number of times you get elected… There is no provision for a third term in our Constitution!” Sangwa has stated. 

Sangwa has also previously claimed that once President Lungu files his nomination it can be challenged. 

Sangwa was last year briefly suspended following comments he made regarding the composition of the Constitutional Court, as well as the eligibility of President Lungu to run for a third term in office. Civil society came to the lawyer’s defence and ultimately contempt charges against him were later dropped.  

Opposition politician Chishimba Kambwili has also previously disputed the President’s eligibility. 

“Actually the court misdirected itself when it started talking about the length of the presidential term. Nobody took anybody to court to complain about the period of the presidential term. What people went to court for, was the fact that can a President who has been elected twice and sworn in twice, run for office?” Kambwili has stated. 

However, on the other side of the debate stands the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), which has claimed that the question of the President’s eligibility in 2021 was settled decisively by the Constitutional Court, which ruled that the period January 2015 to September 2016 cannot be considered a full term. The group argue that the important issue is not whether a president has been sworn in or not, but the duration of his term. 

PF Secretary General Davies Mwila has also defended the President’s right to run, labelling John Sangwa dull and urging him to stay away from politics.