Release Mundubile and others, and call for an election rerun

Zambia has reached a point where it has become dangerous to stand on the right side of the law when President Hakainde Hichilema is standing on the wrong side of it. The continued detention of Brian Mundubile, Makebi Zulu and others has become a symbol of the risk now facing…

Zambia has reached a point where it has become dangerous to stand on the right side of the law when President Hakainde Hichilema is standing on the wrong side of it. The continued detention of Brian Mundubile, Makebi Zulu and others has become a symbol of the risk now facing any Zambian who finds themselves on the dissenting side of political power.

Citizens can now be detained for prolonged periods while serious allegations remain under investigation, without those allegations being tested through judicial determination. Political proximity to power must never become the yardstick for justice.

Mr Mundubile and Mr Zulu’s alleged crime is not treason. They never committed treason. The central political dispute surrounding them is their challenge to an election result the President does not want reopened.

They should be released unconditionally, and Zambia must call for an election rerun. If Mr Hichilema genuinely won the election, he would have nothing to fear from allowing the electorate to speak again. It would, after all, be the same electorate he claims voted for him.

A legitimate electoral mandate should not require the suppression of those who challenge it. One cannot perpetuate illegality by legitimising it. Mr Hichilema has not only managed to divide the country but has crippled its democratic institutions in the process.

If Mr Hichilema’s victory is legitimate, why was Mr Mundubile’s challenge not allowed to be determined by a court? If the treason and sedition allegations are legitimate, why are Mr Mundubile, Mr Zulu and others not being brought before a court for those allegations to be formally tested?

The statement from the Director of Public Prosecutions, Gilbert Phiri, that investigations into the treason and sedition allegations are still ongoing, raises further questions about the legal basis and duration of the continued detention. Because treason is a non-bailable offence, continued reliance on “ongoing investigations” without bringing the detainees before a court raises serious constitutional questions under Article 13 concerning the legality and duration of their detention.

This delay warrants an immediate writ of habeas corpus compelling the State to release the detainees. If Mr Hichilema genuinely believes he won a clean election, why should Zambia fear allowing the electorate to speak again? A president who genuinely believes he won a clean election does not need the political protection of an inaccessible court.

By Kanyanta Chanda Kapwepwe, Governance Analyst and Lecturer, Cape Peninsula University of Technology