ConCourt ruling on illegal ministers may be rendered academic – FDD

Antonio Mwanza

The FDD says the Constitutional Court ruling that ministers and their deputies who stayed in office illegally after parliament was dissolved should pay back the money they received in salaries and other emoluments will be rendered an academic exercise if the court does not provide specifics on how and when the money should be paid back.

And the opposition party says the court ruling gives enough grounds to nullify parliamentary seats which were petitioned on the basis of the candidates being in office.

Speaking in an interview with Zambian Eye, FDD Deputy National Secretary Antonio Mwanza said there is need to give specifics on the how the money will be paid back or the landmark ruling risks being an academic exercise.

Mwanza said the courts should indicate the intervals and the mode of payment as well as spell out the consequences if the affected individuals do not pay back.

“Yes they have to pay back but the courts did not say when they should start and how much they should be paying and in what intervals. So when are they going to start paying and how much? And what happens if they don’t pay back all those things are not there. That judgment will be rendered academic if specifics are not put in place and followed up.

Meanwhile Mwanza who is one of the losing candidates in the Munali parliamentary election won by Higher Education Minister Nkandu Luo and was petitioned by the UPND losing Candidate said the Constitutional Court ruling gives enough ground to nullify the seats petitioned on grounds that the candidates were illegally in office.

“The Constitution has provided the method under which you can petition a seat for nullification, those who are petitioning others have included that as a ground for nullification, it is up to the Constitutional Court since it is the one that ruled that those people where illegally in office and accessing not only state resources which is illegal but also they were accessing state machinery and apparatus that is enough ground to nullify those seats that have been petitioned on the basis that these people were in office,” he said.