COURT OF APPEAL GRANTS STATE LEAVE TO APPEAL HIGH COURT DECISION

By Hannock Kasama-

The Court of Appeal has granted the state leave to appeal against the decision of the High Court not to allow it to refer the case of former KWACHA Member of Parliament JOSEPH MALANJI and his KABUSHI counterpart BOWMAN LUSAMBO to the Constitutional Court.

This is in a case where Mr. MALANJI and Mr. LUSAMBO have contested the rejection of their nomination papers in the suspended KWACHA and KABUSHI Parliamentary by-elections.

The Court of Appeal has also confirmed the stay of execution of Mr. MALANJI and Mr. LUSAMBO case pending determination of the appeal by state to refer the case to the Constitutional Court.

The verdict was arrived at during the interparte hearing of the stay of execution of the High Court proceeding where Mr. MALANJI and Mr. LUSAMBO are challenging the rejection of their nomination papers.

This implies that the proceedings in the LUSAKA High Court pertaining to Mr. MALANJI and Mr. LUSAMBO’s petition remain suspended pending determination by the Court of Appeal whether or not to refer the matter to the Constitutional Court.

Court of Appeal Judges MWINDE SIAVWAPA, JUSTINE CHASHI and KELVIN MUZENGA passed the verdict after considering oral arguments by the state lawyers and lawyers representing Mr. MALANJI and Mr. LUSAMBO.

The state argued that the High Court has no jurisdiction to hear Mr. MALANJI and Mr. LUSAMBO as there was no challenge to their nomination in accordance with article 52 sub-article four of the constitution.

However lawyers representing Mr. MALANJI and Mr. LUSAMBO raised objections to the arguments by the state, contending that the High Court has jurisdiction to determine the legality of the rejection of their nomination papers.

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