MacDonald Chipenzi
McDonald Chipenzi has charged that the conduct and decision of the Constitutional Court Judges on the presidential petition is one of greatest embarrassments the country has suffered in the recent past and has assaulted Zambia’s enviable electoral Justice.
On Monday, the Constitutional Court controversially dismissed the presidential petition filed by Hakainde Hichilema challenging the validity of Edgar Lungu’s victory in the August 11 elections, following the lapse of the prescribed 14-day period within which the case must be heard.
But Chipenzi, who is an electoral expert, says the Constitutional Court judges’ management of the presidential petition was a comedy of the century and has lowered the integrity of the Judiciary in Zambia.
He has since called on the Judicial Complaints Authority to probe the conduct of the judges.
“From the conduct of these judges, it was clear that they disrespected and disregarded the judicial principles laid down in Article 118 of the amended constitution which are instructive on how the judiciary must treat the issues of justice in this country,” Chipenzi said in a statement.
“For this reason, some progressive minds and citizens have decided to lodge a complaint against the conduct of these constitutional court judges and the way they managed the entire the presidential petition to the Judicial Complaint Authority, which action is justified and a right step to promoting transparent and accountability in the judiciary.
To this end, the Judicial Complaint Authority is expected to and must not dilly-dally on acting on the citizens’ complaints against these judges.”
The former FODEP executive director however lays most of the blame on the National Assembly of Zambia which ratified the judges, who he says have caused so much public ridicule and embarrassment to the judiciary.
“The National Assembly must seriously reflect on the behavior of some of the people it has ratified to administer justice in this country so that, in future, due diligence in the scrutinisation process is exercised devoid of partisanship to rid the country off such kind of embarrassment.
The habit of ratifying people just because the head of state has recommended them for such positions and the use of arrogance of numbers in the National Assembly by sponsoring political parties to ratify such individual, unless stopped, will always cause serious embarrassment to and undermine justice in the country.
He added: “Being a final court on constitutional matters, the persons to occupy such positions at the constitutional court and expected to administer and dispense justice must be above partisan and sectional interests in order to dispense justice to all without discrimination or without using procedural technicalities to deny aggrieved parties.”