SAMPA CHALLENGES PETITION AGAINST HIS PURPORTED ELECTION AS PF PRESIDENT
MILES Sampa has contended the petition by seven Patriotic Front (PF) presidential candidates challenging his election as party president is an abuse of court as an attempt to serve political aspirations of individual members.
Mr Sampa and his General Secretary, Morgan Ng’ona argued that Article 46(3) of the PF constitution provides for an extraordinary convention that shall have the same power as the ordinary general conference.
“Effectively, Article 46(3) provides for an extra ordinary general conference whose sessions need not wait for five years to be called in comparison with the general conference. Suffice to say that the president of the party can be chosen during the sessions of an extraordinary general conference,” he submitted.
Mr Sampa also submitted to the Lusaka High Court that all decisions made at an extraordinary conference would have the same binding effect as the decisions made at an extraordinary general conference.
He has also submitted that Mr Mutotwe Kafwaya, Mr Emmanuel Mwamba and Mr Brian Mundubile had been expelled from the party.
This is in a matter the seven, who were presidential candidates for the anticipated PF convention before Mr Sampa usurped power on October 24, 2023, are asking the court to quash his election and the appointment of Mr Ng’ona.
Other petitioners are Mr Chishimba Kambwili, Mr Godfrey Bwalya Mwamba (GBM), Mr Greyford Monde and Dr Chitalu Chilufya.
Mr Sampa and Mr Ng’onga are cited as first and second repondents to the petition.
They are seeking among other declarations that the respondents contravened the party’s regulations, party’s electoral regulations and, the party constitution.
They also contest that Mr Sampa and Mr Ng’onga have continued to violate their right to assemble and associate freely with other members of the party for the protection of their interests guaranteed by article 21 and as amplified by articles 60(2) of the constitution.
But Mr Sampa opposed the petition stating that he was duly elected party president and due processes were followed.
He argued that he was never suspended or expelled from the party as such a decision was in contempt of an injunction granted by recently fired Judge, Timothy Katanekwa, granted on February 9, last year.
“The respondents will say that there was no breach of Article 60(2), (d) and (e) of the Zambians constitution because the petitioners did not even attempt to attend the extraordinary general conference. Furthermore, the respondents will aver at trial that the petitioners were not physically restrained from attending the conference,” he said.
Mr Sampa urged the court not to entertain the petition but instead dismiss it as it was an attempt to serve expectations of individual members which did not serve the common good of the party as a whole, therefore an abuse of court process.