Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema has suspended three senior judges over alleged misconduct by the judiciary, sparking accusations of political interference in the judiciary.
In 2016, the three-judge Constitutional Court rejected President Hichilema’s petition challenging the election victory of former President Edgar Lungu.
They were also involved in a controversial ruling that allowed Lungu to run for the 2021 elections despite having served as president of Zambia twice.
Political tensions are rising in Zambia ahead of the 2026 elections, when Hichilema and Lungu are expected to face each other for the fourth time.
The three were due to appear in court on Thursday to decide whether Lungu would be allowed to participate in the elections.
The suspension of the judges, which has provoked strong reactions, is based on recommendations from a panel investigating them, the presidency said.
The suspended judges – Justice Annie Sitali, Justice Mungeni Mulenga and Justice Palan Mulonda – have not yet commented on the case.
The trio were investigated by the Judicial Complaints Commission (JCC), following a complaint by lawyer Joseph Busenga about their legal performance.
Mr Busenga, who now works as a diplomat at the Zambian embassy in Belgium, filed a petition with the JCC in 2022 to remove the three judges from office, citing the “incorrect manner” in which they had handled the petition for the 2016 presidential election.
They decided against Hichilema and in favour of Lungu, the man he eventually replaced.
After a two-year investigation, President Hichilema suspended them on Monday on the recommendation of the JCC, the presidency said.
“The suspension of the three is an exercise of the president’s powers,” the presidency statement said, without providing further details.
The decision was met with fierce criticism, with Lungu’s Patriotic Front (PF) declaring the suspension unlawful.
“I want to say to the Zambian people that the time has come to stand up and fight against the injustice being meted out to the judiciary because if we lose the judiciary, we have lost everything,” Lungu told journalists on Tuesday.
Activists also accuse President Hichilema of interfering with the independence of the judiciary.
Neither the president nor his office has responded to the accusation.
However, some argue that the judiciary has already become politicized.
Social and political commentator Laura Miti says the judges should be fired, but the president is partly out for revenge.
“My honest opinion is that the judges have damaged the country and now the president is doing the same,” she wrote on her Facebook page.
The suspension of the judges comes barely 48 hours before the Constitutional Court is due to hear Lungu’s reopened suitability case.
The former president has announced a political comeback and will compete against Hichilema in next year’s presidential elections.
“It is an extremely dangerous political game that Hichilema is playing with this desire to exclude Lungu,” said political analyst Sishuwa Sishuwa posted on X.
The three judges will now undergo disciplinary proceedings, after which they will either be removed from office or reinstated.
Under the Zambian Constitution, all judges, including the Chief Justice, are appointed by the President on the recommendation of the JCC and with the approval of the National Assembly.
Critics say the president’s involvement in the appointment and dismissal of judges threatens the independence of the judiciary.
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