Africa-Press – Zambia. The Supreme Court of Zambia, in the case of Chifire and other, elaborated in detail what constitutes contempt of court. Being a criminal matter, contempt of court must not be prosecuted merely on conjectures and speculation. Criminal cases must be prosecuted based on evidence beyond any reasonable doubt.
I saw the clip where Nakachinda was captured talking about some judges meeting the President bla bla bla. He never made mention of any specific judge or judges, and no specific court or courts.
Of course, there are several election-related cases before High Court judges across the country. And there are several court cases before the Concourt. Which one of the courts was Nakachinda talking about? High court or Concourt?
I repeat what I said a couple of days ago. President Bally should be very careful with State Security agencies. They can deliberately do things to promote a government. And they can do things to deliberately undermine a government and thereby lead to its downfall. Knowing the difference is what most leaders fail to decipher in good time.
UPND and President Bally should be the last to talk about commentaries on the justice system. Do you recall Mr. Henry Chilombo of Lufwanyama who appealed to former DPP to commence contempt proceedings against Mr. Hichilema?
Mr. Hichilema, was on 10th October 2017, alleged to have called three Constitutional Court Judges, namely, Her Ladyships Mungeni Mulenga, Anne M. Sitali, and His Lordship, Palan Mulonda, are “agents of evil and three musketeers, a crop of judges Zambia has, (who are ) totally disgruntled and corrupt.”
Do you recall that former Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) President, Linda Kasonde condemned Mr. Hichilema for accusing judges of corruption without valid evidence?
And do you recall that in a separate letter to Judge Hilda Chibomba as President of the Constitutional Court, Mr. Chilombo argued that the failure by the Constitutional Court to prosecute Mr. Hichilema for contempt has given rise to continued issuance of contemptuous remarks against Constitutional Court Judges by members of the public?
Of course, the issuance of careless and unsubstantiated allegations of corruption against judges has the potential to create anarchy and erode public confidence in the courts of law, which are key institutions of governance.
However, UPND should not be too overzealous on such commentaries. As the Supreme Court demonstrated in the previous cases, where the court thinks a person has crossed the red line outside court premises, the court doesn’t need a policeman to arrest a person or the Attorney General or any other person to make an application. The court will surely move itself and cause the alleged offender to appear before it. So imwe Ba UPND, bola panshi.
The people of Zambia emphatically made it loud and clear they don’t want a Police State. Focus on economic delivery, and we will wholeheartedly support you in that regard.
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