Fri, 24 Aug 2012 10:03:56 +0000
The Lusaka High Court has over ruled the deregistration of ZANAMA by the Chief Registrar of Societies Clement Andeleki and has ordered the return of all properties to the association.
In a ruling made yesterday Justice M.S. Mulenga ruled that Andeleki had no power to deregister the association and interfere with its property while the matter was still in court
Last week Andeleki announced the deregistration of ZANAMA and personally travelled to Kitwe where he supervised the transfer of the association properties and buildings to the Kitwe City Council
But in her ruling judge Mulenga said that the seizure of the property was wrong and that the Kitwe City Council was at faulty to receive the property as there was already an injunction regarding the same issued by the Kitwe High Court
The lawyers for ZANAMA, Central Chambers have now written to Andeleki asking him to hand back the properties and a reverse his decision to deregister the organization pending the outcome of appeals made against his decision to the Ministry of Home Affairs
The judge ruled that for as long as the association had appealed and pending a decision, the association would not be considered to be illegal
“This provision effectively suspends with effect the certificate of cancellation of registration issued by the chief registrar. The chief registrar is thus not entitled to interfere with the applicant or its property pending the determination of appeal”
The judge has appealed to the Attorney General to advise Andeleki to ensure that he did not take any adverse action against ZANAMA pending the determination of the appeal.
“Any properties of the applicant which may have been wrongly seized by the chief Registrar at the time when he was not aware of the appeal must be handed back to the applicant pending determination of the appeal”.
