Metro

Zambian Speaker Mutti refuses to declare seats of expelled MPs vacant

Published

10 months ago

December 30, 2023

Speaker of the Zambian National Assembly, Nelly Mutti, has refused to bow to pressure and declare parliamentary seats belonging to nine expelled Members of Parliament (MPs) from the opposition Patriotic Front (PF) vacant, pending court rulings on the matter.

An affidavit submitted to the Constitutional Court on Friday by the Assembly Deputy Clerk, Cecilia Sikatele-Mambwe, had indicated that the nine MPs were expelled by PF factional leader, Miles Sampa, and his Secretary-General, Morgan Ng’ona, remained members of the assembly, contrary to repeated claims by Sampa that they ceased to be MPs and that their seats must be declared vacant.

The affidavit was in support of the response by the Attorney-General to the petition in which the nine are contesting their expulsion following their purported dismissal in an announcement made by Ng’ona last month.

The affected MPs are contesting their expulsion by the Sampa-led PF on the grounds that the faction had no requisite authority to execute an expulsion as Sampa himself had been expelled from the party.

They are seeking a declaration that the purported actions of the speaker to act on the letters sent to her by Ng’onga was and is illegal and, therefore, null and void ab initio as such actions were and are a violation of Article 60(2) of the Republican Constitution (Amendment) Act No. 2 of 2016.

They also seek an interim order allowing them and the party to operate freely, and for Sampa and Ng’onga to stop masquerading as PF president and Secretary General respectively.

In the affidavit, the Deputy Clerk stated that the Speaker had not acted on the letters because she is awaiting the court’s decision on the matter, in accordance with the Constitution.

“It is only after the confirmation of the expulsion by the court or the elasping of the period within which to challenge the expulsion, that the Speaker is mandated, by the constitution, within seven days, to inform the ECZ of the occurence of the vacancy,” she said.

“Consequently,the office of the Speaker has not acted on the letter of expulsion from the second tespondent, therefore, the Petitioners remain members of Parliament,” she submitted.

Related Topics:Featured National Assembly Nelly Mutti PF Zambia

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Metro

Zambia’s ruling party UPND warns against personal attacks on President Hichilema

Published

8 hours ago

November 5, 2024

Isaac Dachen

Zambia’s ruling party, the UPND, has warned opposition politicians and critics against personal attacks on President Hakainde Hichilema as his meekness should not be mistaken for weakness.

Secretary-General of the UPND, Batuke Imenda, who gave the warning in a statement in Lusaka on Monday, urged political opponents to always engage in mature and issue-based discourse.

Zambia Monitor reports that Imenda’s warning, was directed at the leader of Zambia Must Prosper (ZMP) party, Kelvin Bwalya Fube, whose recent remarks Imenda described as “provocative” and a “feeble attempt to mislead citizens.”

“Provocative words uttered by Kelvin Bwalya against our party and President Hichilema are a clear demonstration of naivety,” Imenda said in the statement.

He further advised Bwalya to abandon personal attacks and focus on substantial political issues.

The UPND Secretary suggested that Bwalya’s attacks stemmed from a desire for relevance amid declining political fortunes, hinting at a possible alignment with former President Edgar Lungu.

“It appears KBF is hoping that Edgar Lungu might support his embattled political career by unjustly attacking President Hichilema,” he said.

Imenda defended the President’s record, highlighting that under Hichilema’s leadership, Zambia’s democratic space had expanded compared to the previous PF administration, which he accused of stifling freedoms.

He noted that while criticism was welcome, it should not devolve into baseless attacks, warning that opposition figures should not misinterpret Hichilema’s restraint as weakness.

Imenda also criticized Bwalya for overlooking the gains in transparency and justice since the change in government, claiming that past regimes were marked by resource mismanagement and corruption.

Metro

Following backlash, Nigerian govt withdraws treason charges against minors

Published

14 hours ago

November 5, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The Nigerian government has officially withdrawn the treason charges it entered against some minors who participated in the #EndBadGovernance protest that spread across the country from August 1 to the 10th.

The nation was thrown into shock on Friday when the Nigeria Police presented 76 protesters at the Federal High Court in Abuja on charges bordering on treason. Among the suspects were four minors who slumped before they could be arraigned before the court.

This caused serious uproar in the country with Nigerians condemning the government and calling for the unconditional release of the kids and the dismissal of the charges against them.

The decision to withdraw the charges against the underage accused came following a directive by President Bola Tinubu who ordered the immediate withdrawal of the charges and an in-depth investigation into what led to the arrest and detention of the minors.

Tinubu had also ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) to officially take over the case file as well as review the cases following public outcry that came with the arraignment of the minors.

The charges were finally withdrawn on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja through an application for discontinuance filled by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Mohammed Abubakar, on behalf of the AGF.

According to Abubakar, the discontinuance application was based on provisions of sections 174(1), (b) and (c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, 2015.

The DPPF also applied for further proceedings to be conducted without the presence of the minors in the courtroom, in line with provisions of Section 266(b) of the ACJA, 2015, and Section 1 of the Childs’ Rights Act.

In response, human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Fanala (SAN), who stood in for the accused as well as other defence lawyers in the matter, did not oppose the applications which promoted the judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, to strike out the charges, while the four affected minors were also delisted from the charge sheet.