By NATION REPORTER
THE decision by the Constitutional Court to nullify the High Court order that had stayed the Kabushi and Kwacha by-elections thereby allowing the elections to proceed yesterday has effectively thrown justice outside the window, Laura Miti has said.
Ms Miti, a human rights defender, has said the nullification of the High Court Order to stay the by-election in the two constituencies respectively was a crazy injustice against Bowman Lusambo and Joseph Malanji.
Ms Miti, a Human Rights Commission (HRC) commissioner, said she was shocked that the three courts of appeal, the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court ran down the clock to exhaust and conclude the electoral matters that were in courts to dispense justice.
In her Facebook posting, Ms Miti stated that it was surprising that even the Attorney General who had been sued conveniently decided to agree with, Benard Kanengo who was the United Party for National Development (UPND) candidate for Kabushi.
Mr Kanengo was in the Constitutional Court seeking an interpretation on whether the prescribed period of 21 days within which to hear a challenge relating to nominations of a candidate could stop running by virtue of a stay of proceedings, pursuant to Article 52(4) of the constitution.
But Ms Miti, who is founder of Alliance for Community Action (ACA), an NGO that champions governance issues, stated that the inherent injustice that had been delivered against Mr Lusambo and Mr Malanji over yesterday’s by-elections in Kabushi and Kwacha was crazy.
She stated that the Constitutional Court decision had effectively thrown natural justice out of the window exactly as it had happened to President Hakainde Hichilema in his petition of the 2016 general election results.
“I finally found the ConCourt judgement that declares that all petition regarding nominations in Kabushi and Kwacha have run out of time. I am amazed. So the courts, between them, ran down the clock then blew the whistle…pyeeeee, game over. Intriguingly, the Attorney General, who was sued, agreed with the applicant…ati yes, we also want to know if 21 days means 21 days,” Ms Miti said.
Ms Miti stated that Zambia needed a new Constitution that would overtake the current one and address all the challenges therein.
“I think, I will laugh, because the inherent injustice in this is crazy. Yoh, yoh, yoh, natural justice thrown out of the window exactly like it happened to HH (President Hakainde Hichilrema) in 2016. Again I do not think Bowman Lusambo has any business on any ballot paper given what he was found guilty of in the 2021 elections. Our jurisprudence, though, is shocking right now. We need a new Constitution to overtake it all,” Ms Miti said.
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