Zambia Elections: Hichilema Oath on Sept 1

President-Elect of Zambia Hakainde Hichilema is set to take the oath of office on September 1 amid the ongoing unresolved issue of whether a petition against his election was duly filed or not.

According to the Zambian government, the seven-day window allowed for challenging the election results under the Constitution has elapsed without receiving a valid petition from the Judiciary. The Judiciary has revealed the receipt of what was described as “the people’s presidential petition” from Chief Justice Mumba Malila, who forwarded the same to the Constitutional Court.

This is another challenge in addition to the rejection of the election results and further pressure on opposition leader Brian Mundubile in relation to the treason case.

Inauguration of Hichilema to Be Held on September 1

Patricial Kangwa, the Secretary to the Cabinet, revealed that the swearing-in ceremony of Hichilema will be conducted on Tuesday, September 1, based on Article 105 of the Constitution of Zambia Act No. 2 of 2016.

The government confirmed that the seven-day period provided to file a presidential election petition had expired without the Judiciary receiving any formal notice that would make the inauguration process impossible.

There is no information regarding the location where the ceremony will take place.

Hichilema won the elections held on August 13 and became the President of Zambia again. He received 60% of the votes while his competitor Brian Mundubile got 38%.

Why Is There No Petition about the Election Results?

This case is complicated because some papers have been delivered to Chief Justice Mumba Malila and referred to as “the people’s presidential petition” by their sender.

According to the report of the Judiciary, these documents were presented to the Court in an extraordinary way rather than a regular one.

In fact, it was stated that the Chief Justice deemed the submission procedure highly unconventional. However, he passed the documents to the Constitutional Court in accordance with his administrative power so that it could consider whether or not the materials constitute a valid petition.

In this case, the government and the Judiciary have provided their own sides of the matter since the government states that the deadline for filing the petition has expired without having received the petition, while the Judiciary is considering whether or not the documents constitute a valid petition.

Had Opposed the Election Result in Court

It should be emphasized that Mundubile had opposed the election result, and thus, he planned to challenge the victory of Hichilema in court.

The candidate had accused the elections of irregularities, and besides that, there were some reports about the improper use of election materials and the political climate in which the results were announced.

The problem became even more complicated because the Zambian courts had been closed on August 24 – the last day when it was possible to file the petition.

The court order also brought up the possibility of the opposition being able to contest in time for the constitutional deadline.

Brian Mundubile Now Under Police Arrest

The election crisis has also been associated with increased pressure on Brian Mundubile and other political affiliates.

Mundubile was arrested by the police following claims that he was involved in certain offenses concerning the country’s national security. Previously, he had gone into hiding after the disputed election and sought refuge at the United Nations building in Lusaka, Zambia.

On 27 August, Mundubile and his running mate, Makebi Zulu, appeared before the police following accusations of treason offenses against them. According to Reuters, “warn and caution” statements were taken from the two political figures. Details about the accusations were not released.

The arrests have led to increased scrutiny of Zambia’s political situation following the election.