Suspension of By-Election Exceeds Constitutional Mandate, Claims Court Petition

The Constitutional Court has been told it must cancel the suspended election and call for fresh nominations or risk exceeding its constitutional mandate.

Constitutionally there is a 90 day period in which the elections can be held.  Peter Shinkamba, Green Party President, and Governance Activist Isaac Mwanza are petitioning the court to respect this timeframe. The Constitution does not provide for the extension of this time period by any person or State institution, exceeding it thus becomes illegal.  

Specifically, they argue, extending outside of this period will deprive the people of Kabushi and Kwacha of the representation they are entitled to. In their court filing the emphasised the timeframe exists specifically to prevent protracted uncertainty and representational gaps in the National Assembly.

The by-elections are presently postponed because the High Court ruled that the nullification of the two seats did not disqualify the ousted parties from re-contesting their seats. Previously, the Electoral Commission of Zambia had declared them ineligible.

Owing to the initial ECZ ruling the pair were unable to campaign and thus successfully had the election postponed as otherwise the results would be prejudicial against their parties.

Yet, the petitioners told the Court that the ECZ had made an omission by failing to cancel the election on 14th September. They wish to see a fresh round of nominations and the conclusion of the election before the period expires.

Constitutionally, the last day for holding a by-election in Kabushi Constituency is 27th October, while the last day for Kwacha is 2nd November, 2022.