November brought the President into the courtroom arena at least on paper, while also delivering early festive relief to influential convicts who secured temporary freedom through bail. The month was legally charged, politically sensitive, and constitutionally consequential. Mundubile, Mukandila v Hichilema & Attorney General In what may become one of the defining constitutional disputes of this decade, PF Mporokoso MP, Brian Mundubile and Tonse National Youth Secretary Celestine Mukandila, sued President Hakainde Hichilema in the Constitutional Court, accusing him of breaching his oath of office through the controversial constitutional amendment process under Bill 7.
The petitioners argued that the President initiated a constitutional overhaul without broad-based consultation and in violation of Articles 8(c) and (e), 9, 90, 91 and 92 of the Constitution. They further asked the court to declare him unfit for future presidential nomination. Their challenge traces back to March 8, 2025, when President Hichilema announced constitutional reforms during International Women’s Day commemorations.
Only weeks later, on March 25, Minister Sylvia Masebo Kasune informed Parliament that the technical work was complete and that a draft amendment bill was ready. The petitioners noted that Bill No. 7 of 2025 was published in the Government Gazette on May 23 without the wide public participation required.
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They claimed the Constitutional Court had already condemned the process as unconstitutional for being presidentially engineered and lacking public involvement, rendering the bill null and void. Despite this, they said, the Government insisted the bill would be reintroduced for enactment, a stance position they described as defiant of court authority. The petition now places the President directly in the legal spotlight, with significant implications for constitutional order and 2026 electoral eligibility. Former Secretary to the Treasury, Fredson Yamba, walked out of detention after the High Court granted him K500,000 bail pending appeal, decision that underscored the complexity of his case and the potential strength of his legal challenge.
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