By Esther Chisola
The three suspended Constitutional Court judges have filed a notice of application for leave to apply for Judicial Review which seeks to quash the decision of President Hakainde Hichilema to suspend them from office for alleged professional misconduct.
The three include Justice Annie Mwewa Sitali, Justice Mugeni Siwale Mulenga and Justice Palan Mulonda
The trio who have cited the Attorney General as the respondent also want an order that the proceedings by the Judicial Complaints Commission (JCC) that were to be held on September 30, 2024 be stayed until further order of the court.
The judges also want an order that the proceedings before the JCC were llegal, a nullity and void on grounds of re judicata/ estoppel.
According to an application for Judicial Review, the three are seeking an order for the purpose of quashing the decision of the JCC made on September 23, 2024 to reopen and hear a matter relating to the handling of the petition between Hakainde Hichilema and another vs Edgar Lungu and others.
“The matter was presided over by honourable Justice Anne Sitali, Mulenga and Mulonda when the issues raised in complaint no. 2024/JCC/076 were heard and determined in complaint made to the judicial complaints commission in 2016 under cause no’s 2016/JCC/77, 2016/JCC/80, 2016/JCC/81, 2026/JCC/82, 2016/JCC/84 and 2016/JCC/87,” read the notice.
The three also want an order to quash the decision of the JCC made on September 23, 2024 that it had jurisprudence to reopen and hear the complaint by Moses Kalonde in complaint no. 2024/JCC/076 relating to the handling of the presidential election between Hakainde Hichilema and another vs Edgar Lungu and others by Justices Sitali, Mulenga and Mulonda when the issues raised in the said complaint were dealt with and concluded by the commission in 2017, in earlier complaints lodged with the commission in 2016 by Emmanuel Mtonga and Alfred Chims Mbewe.
“Peter Sinkamba and Charles Longwe and in contradiction of the application of the principle of res Judicata taken by the judicial complaints commission as communicated in its letters to Joseph Busenga dated January 10, 2023 and June 1, 2023,” they stated.
They further want an order to quash the decision of the JCC on September 23, 2024 to recommend to the President the suspension of the three judges from office as Constitutional Court Judges based on an alleged prima facie case of incompetence or misconduct arising from a complaint by Moses Kalonde on grounds that it raises new issues when in actual fact the said issues were re judicatory.
The judges further want an order to the effect that if leave is granted to the applicants to fill the application for Judicial Review, such leave should operate as a stay of the decision of the JCC to reopen the case in respect of a complaint against the three judges and stay of decision of the President to suspend the them.
They also submitted that if leave to apply is granted, a direction that the hearing of the application for Judicial Review be expedited and an order that the cost of and occasioned by the application be borne by the respondent.
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