A Zambian Citizen Fresher Siwale has asked the Constitution Court to halt the holding of a National Referendum that is scheduled to be held alongside the General Elections this Thursday, reports our Correspondent.
According to documents and affidavit filed in the Constitution Court by Siwale’s Lawyers AKM Legal Practitioners, Mr. Siwale says the procedure was not followed in coming up with the Referendum.
He says it was wrong for President Edgar Lungu to come up with a Statutory Instrument because according to section 8 of Article 79 a Bill was supposed to be tabled in Parliament for first reading and that before that, the same bill was supposed to be availed to the general public through another referendum.
Mr. Siwale says in his skeleton arguments that ” a Bill for the alteration of part 3 of this constitution or of this article shall not be passed unless before the first reading of the bill in the National Assembly it has been put to a National Referendum with or Without amendment by not less than fifty percent of persons entitled to be registered as votewrs for the purposes of Presidential and Parliamentary Elections”
Mr. Siwale is being represented by Willis Muhanga of AKM Legal Practioners, Keith Mweemba of Keith Mweemba and Company and Gilbert Phiri of PNP Legal Practioners.
By Press time the Lawyers where still at the Constitution court.