Hopewell Chin’ono has accused Hakainde Hichilema’s government of obstructing Brian Mundubile’s attempt to challenge Zambia’s disputed election result. The post Chin’ono accuses Hichilema of blocking election challenge as Zambia says no petition filed appeared first on Nehanda Radio .
Zimbabwean journalist Hopewell Chin’ono has accused Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema’s administration of deliberately obstructing opposition leader Brian Mundubile’s attempt to challenge the country’s disputed presidential election.
His criticism followed a statement from Zambia’s judiciary declaring that no presidential petition was formally before the Constitutional Court after the seven-day filing deadline expired.
Mundubile’s lawyers say they attempted to submit the challenge electronically because courts had been closed and secured by police on the deadline day. When the electronic submission allegedly failed, the documents were sent to Chief Justice Mumba Malila’s private email address.
In a statement dated August 26, the judiciary said the Constitutional Court Registry had received no presidential election petition by the close of business on August 25.
“Therefore, there is no Presidential Petition before the Constitutional Court,” the statement signed by deputy director of corporate communications Kalumba Chisambisha-Slavin said.
Presidential challenger Brian Mundubile, is a former minister in the Patriotic Front government (Picture via Brian Mundulibe, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons)
An earlier official notice said no petition had reached the registry by 6pm on August 24, identified as the final day permitted under Article 103 of Zambia’s constitution.
The Electoral Commission declared Hichilema the winner on August 18 with 60.7% of the vote, while Mundubile received approximately 38%.
The declaration opened a seven-day window during which the result could be challenged before the Constitutional Court.
Chief Justice Malila has acknowledged receiving documents titled “the people’s presidential petition” through his private email account.
He described that method of delivery as “highly irregular” but said he had exceptionally used his administrative authority to forward the documents to the Constitutional Court for consideration.
Lawyer Linda Kasonde reportedly said she first attempted to send the petition electronically to the court registry before the deadline, but the submission bounced. The documents were then forwarded to Malila.
The Constitutional Court must now determine whether that submission can be recognised as a valid filing.
On August 24, Zambia’s Supreme Court, Constitutional Court and other court premises were closed for what authorities described as security reasons.
Police and soldiers were deployed around some court buildings, while judiciary employees were instructed to remain at home.
Human Rights Watch said the closures coincided with the deadline and risked denying the opposition access to a constitutionally protected legal remedy.
Chin’ono argued that Hichilema could not fairly direct his opponent to challenge the election through the courts while State institutions made physical filing impossible.
“Hichilema’s regime cannot close the courts, prevent Brian Mundubile from filing his petition and then rely on the expiry of a deadline that the regime itself made impossible for him to meet,” he said.
Zimbabwean journalist Hopewell Chin’ono (Image Supplied)
He described the judiciary’s position as a “deliberate obstruction of justice and an abuse of State power”.
Chin’ono rejected arguments that Mundubile should have submitted his challenge earlier, saying an election petition requires lawyers to collect evidence, identify witnesses and prepare signed statements.
“You do not dispute an election today and file a petition tomorrow,” he said.
He accused Hichilema of losing the democratic credibility he previously used to criticise Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa and other regional leaders over disputed elections.
The journalist also criticised what he described as selective outrage from international supporters who condemn repression by governments they oppose while excusing similar conduct by favoured leaders.
Political tensions intensified after an August 14 security operation at a Lusaka property associated with Mundubile.
Former cabinet minister and opposition politician Mutotwe Kafwaya was fatally shot during the operation, while 11 people were arrested.
Police said officers encountered armed resistance during an operation targeting individuals suspected of threatening national security. They alleged that weapons were recovered.
Mundubile rejected the official account, denying that his political movement operated a militia and alleging that Kafwaya was shot inside a bedroom.
Amnesty International called for an independent and transparent investigation into Kafwaya’s death while urging authorities to end what it described as a post-election crackdown against opposition members.
Hichilema’s inauguration is scheduled for September 1. Chin’ono said allowing it to proceed without the opposition receiving an opportunity to test its allegations in court would represent a serious setback for democracy across Southern Africa.
