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PATRIOTIC Front (PF) secretary general Davies Chama has appealed to the Supreme Court over the High Court’s decision to reject his application to prompt the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to set a date for the Kasama Central parliamentary by-election following the declaration of the seat as vacant.
Mr Chama has sued ECZ and Attorney General Likando Kalaluka, respectively, for not announcing the date of the Kasama Central parliamentary by-election.
High Court judge Anne Phiri rejected Mr Chama’s application on grounds that there was a case in court involving the Kasama Central Constituency seat to which the ECZ is party.
Justice Phiri said she could not allow the application against the ECZ to proceed before the other case was fully determined as doing so would render it an academic exercise.
Mr Chama contends in his memorandum of appeal that Justice Phiri erred in law and fact and consequently misdirected herself by not distinguishing the legal issues in the application that were before her.
He said Justice Phiri erred when she dismissed the constitutional issues brought in the application for leave by wrongly invoking the provisions of Order 53 rule 4 (55) RSC.
Mr Chama wanted the court to grant him leave for judicial review in order to seek an order from the court to compel the ECZ to announce a date for the by-election to be held before the expiry of the 90 days.
He said failure by the court to grant his application will perpetuate an injustice and illegality that could cause a serious constitutional crisis and that the Kasama central constituency will have no elected representative for more than 90 days to the detriment of the electorate and the political parties.
He also wants the court to grant an order of mandamus (a judicial remedy in the form of an order from a superior court, to any government subordinate court, corporation, or public authority) compelling ECZ to announce the date of the by-election to be held before October 22, this year.
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