Lusaka resident Nkulukusa Kalusa has urged the Constitutional Court not to dismiss his petition, maintaining that former President Edgar Lungu and his Vice President, Inonge Wina, were in office illegally during the 2016 presidential election petition.
In his submission, Kalusa contended that, according to the law, the Speaker of the National Assembly should have assumed executive functions while the petition was being heard and determined.
He maintained that the Chief Registrar does not have the legal authority to swear in the President and Vice President or administer their oaths of office.
“This matter should not be dismissed but should be determined on its merits,” Kalusa submitted.
His submission is in reply to Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha’s contention that an incumbent President who has been re-elected is not required to transfer executive functions to the Speaker of the National Assembly during a petition challenging the election results.
Kabesha stated that such a transition would only be necessary if the petition stemmed from a re-run election following the nullification of the initial ballot, as outlined in Article 104(3) of the Zambian Constitution.
