Information reaching us is that the Patriotic Front (PF) will no longer take part in the election petition where it’s presidential candidate reelection is being challenged by the UPND.
The Patriotic Front is disputing the decision by the Constitutional Court made after midnight on Friday to extend the hearing of the presidential election petition beyond the stipulated 14 days.
The Constitutional Court made the decision to enable the petitioners Hakainde Hichilema and his running mate Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba find lawyers after the lawyers who were presenting them withdrew from the case citing insufficient time to prosecute the matter.
The allocated four days more, two for the petitioners and another two for the respondents starting today upto Thursday.
But this morning when the case is expected to commence, the lawyers for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd respondents are not in court. The only respondent represented is the 4th -Attorney General who is reportedly there only for purposes of informing the court that the PF will take no further part in these petition proceedings.
The PF agues that the court has no jurisdiction to continue hearing presidential election petition after the lapse of 14 days.