By GRACE CHAILE LESOETSA
LUMEZI independent candidate Munir Zulu to report Patriotic Front (PF) candidate Pilila Getrude Mwanza to Police after the Constitutional Court dismissed his petition for want of jurisdiction.
Mr Zulu petitioned the court to invalidate the candidature of Ms Mwanza on grounds that she does not possess a Grade 12 certificate or its equivalent.
A panel of three Constitutional Court Judges – Palan Mulonda, Martin Musaluke and State Counsel Mwila Chitabo – dismissed the petition on grounds that it had no jurisdiction to hear it as it was the preserve of the High Court. “We are of the view that the above provisions are instructive on which court ought to handle particular challenges to nominations filed for purposes of elections at Presidential, Parliamentary and Councillors levels,” the court said.
“We therefore dismiss this matter as it’s for the preserve of the High Court. We dismiss this matter as we do not have jurisdiction to entertain it,” the court said.
Speaking immediately after judgment was passed on the way forward, Mr Zulu said it would be to report Ms Mwanza to the police so that she could be investigated on a case of forgery and be arrested if found wanting that she forged her qualification papers which she submitted to the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) during nomination.
“We will ask the police to investigate the document that we brought before court. Because we are convinced beyond any reasonable doubt that there is a case of forgery that took place,” he said.
Mr Zulu said by coming to court they were trying to protect her instead of being arrested in the first place.
“We know there is no school known as State of Wisconsin anywhere,” he said.
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