Veteran politician Vernon Mwaanga has charged that the dismissal of the Presidential Petition by the Constitutional Court is a Constitutional Coup.
Dr. Mwaanga, the former Diplomat and Cabinet Minister also gave an account of the events leading up to the dismissal and said the public confidence is seemly lost in the Court .
Dr. Mwaanga said this in a statement made available to Zambian Eye.
“The decision by the constitutional court not to hear the petition of Hakainde Hichilema and Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba, challenging the declaration of the Electoral Commission of Zambia to pronounce Edgar Lungu the winner of the just ended elections , without even hearing the petition was a constitutional coup and sets a very serious and dangerous precedent for the future .The lawyers for the petitioners were first given dates to the effect that their petition would be heard from 5th September up to 8th September and then suddenly on 1st September , they were told and it is on record, that the court had reversed itself and that the petition would be heard the following day on Friday 2nd September and concluded before midnight,” Mwanga recollected.
“After a lot of drama and walkouts by lawyers for the petitioners last Friday, Hichilema and Mwamba had to make a passionate plea for their petition to be heard . The court then adjourned and returned to inform the petitioners that their matter would be heard on Monday 5th September for four days and that each party would be given two days to argue its case up to Thursday 8th September. After what must have been a lot of political pressure, the court by three judges to two, reversed itself yet again and held that the extension it had granted the petitioners last Friday was unconstitutional and that the petition could therefore not be heard on account that it was constitutionally time bad.”
Dr. Mwaanga also questioned the flip flopping by the Constitutional Courts calling it sickening and extremely dangerous.
“What kind of court have we been saddled with and what kind of confidence should citizens have in such a court which flip flops and reverses itself with sickening and extremely dangerous regularity ? The Judges of the Constitutional Court have proved to the citizens and the world at large that they do not understand their duties and responsibilities and must either resign on moral grounds or be dismissed for gross misconduct and assassination of the Constitution of Zambia, which they are supposed to defend, uphold and protect. our country cannot afford this kind of indecision and judicial circus we have had the displeasure to witness in the last few days. Questions arose after the same court ruled as illegal and unconstitutional the decision by President Lungu to retain deputy ministers in government since January, 2016, when the amended constitution came into force, because they don’t exist in the current constitution.”
He added:”Then the court also ruled on the same day that ministers and deputy ministers should not have been told by President Lungu to remain in office after Parliament was dissolved and that they should refund in full all the salaries and allowances they earned illegally to the treasury.It was curious that it took the same court up to the 8th August to deliver that judgment only three days before the general elections , which rendered their decision academic and even irrelevant . Dismissing a serious election petition without hearing evidence as the constitution demands is a travesty of justice of the highest degree” he conclude
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The petitioners squandered the opportunity by dwelling on preliminary issues for two weeks, full stop. If I was a lawyer on either side the first thing I would have done was to ask that there was a common understanding of what fourteen days meant. If it meant fourteen calendar days I would have moved a motion that the court sits for all the fourteen days, including Saturdays and Sundays. I could have done this by demanding that the standing order (if there is such a thing) that prevents the court from sitting on weekends be suspended to allow court to sit on weekends as well. But these lawyers did not think of that because, like someone said, they were overtaken by emotions and ignored the implications of the constitutional time limit.
Any way, even in an event of loss of a loved one, prolonged period of crying does not bring back to life the loved one. The earlier we move on the faster the healing takes place.
Drug Baron.Escorba Vernon Mwaanga!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well analysed by the veteran Diplomat. No trust in the ConCourt.
Your diplomat does not cite the provisions of the Constitution to present hos argument. What does 14 days mean?
There is something serious wrong here.Yes they must resign because no one will fire them. All confident lost in this important court because of these individuals.
The author should have written ati former diplomat, minister and self confessed drug baron. This guy is a joke