Lusaka Mayor’s Petition Heads To Full Hearing As Tribunal Throws Out Objections

The Local Government Elections Tribunal has dismissed preliminary objections raised by both sides in the petition challenging the election of United Party for National Development (UPND) candidate Chitambala Mwewa as Lusaka Mayor, clearing the way for the case to proceed to a…

The Local Government Elections Tribunal has dismissed preliminary objections raised by both sides in the petition challenging the election of United Party for National Development (UPND) candidate Chitambala Mwewa as Lusaka Mayor, clearing the way for the case to proceed to a full hearing.

The tribunal, chaired by Ndola Resident Chief Magistrate Dominic Makalicha sitting with two other members, ruled that the preliminary issues lacked merit and directed that the petition be heard.

The petition was filed by National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity (NRPUP) losing candidate Gabriel Kibombwe, who is challenging Mr Mwewa’s victory on grounds including discrepancies in the tallying of votes and intimidation.

Mr Kibombwe has cited the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) as the second respondent. He wants the commission to clarify the counting process and rectify potential data-entry or announcement errors.

Mr Mwewa, popularly known as Simon Mwewa Lane, had asked the tribunal to throw out the petition as incompetent. His lawyer, Mambwe Lungu, submitted that the tribunal had no jurisdiction to hear the matter because Mr Kibombwe had failed to file the petition within seven days, failed to disclose the facts on which he intended to rely, and failed to effect personal service on the mayor.

Mr Kibombwe’s lawyer, Timmy Munalula, opposed the application. He said his client had complied with the law by filing within the stipulated period and had set out the facts on which he would rely.

Mr Munalula said service had been effected on Mr Mwewa through his personal assistant, and that the mayor had been able to file his answer and affidavit in opposition precisely because he had received the petition. He also asked the tribunal to expunge Mr Mwewa’s answer and affidavit, contending that they had been filed out of time.

In his ruling, Mr Makalicha dismissed the preliminary issues raised by both parties for lack of merit.

He found that Mr Kibombwe filed his petition within the 14 days stipulated under the Local Government Elections Tribunals Rules, 2026, and that the petition disclosed the facts on which he intended to rely.

The chairperson also rejected the claim that there had been no personal service, saying Mr Mwewa’s answer showed he had received the petition. He further dismissed Mr Munalula’s application to expunge the mayor’s answer, finding that the delay resulted from the petition having been served on a third party.

The ruling means the substance of Mr Kibombwe’s complaint, the tallying discrepancies and the intimidation allegations, will now be tested in evidence. The hearing of the Lusaka mayoral petition continues.

In the Copperbelt, a separate election case reached a key stage at the Kitwe High Court, where the hearing of a petition challenging the election of NRPUP candidate Alexander Chiteme as Nkana Member of Parliament closed after the petitioner called 14 witnesses.

The Nkana petition is brought by losing UPND candidate Francis Mukuka, who is seeking the nullification of Mr Chiteme’s election and a fresh poll, citing intimidation, vote buying and violence.

Mr Mukuka told the court that he had complained to the ECZ over issues surrounding the election and had indicated that he had ordered a stop to the announcement of the parliamentary results, but was shocked when the results were announced anyway.

The two cases run in opposite directions. In Lusaka, the opposition NRPUP is challenging a UPND win; in Nkana, the governing party is the petitioner against an NRPUP victory.

The Nkana hearing is expected to resume on Monday, when the respondents will answer the allegations.