The United Party for National Development (UPND) has asked the Constitutional Court to join President Edgar Lungu and PF Secretary General Davies Mwila to the to the 2021 eligibility case saying their presence is necessary to ensure that all matters in dispute are determined.

This is in a case in which leaders of Christian Democratic Party, Zambia Republican Party, News Congress Party and Citizen Democratic Party; Dan Pule, Wright Musoma, Peter Chanda and Robert Mwanza respectively asked the ConCourt to determine whether President Lungu could stand in the next election.

In an affidavit in support of summons for an order of joinder, the UPND, through party secretary general Stephen Katuka, said President Lungu should be joined to the case as an applicant since he had publicly proclaimed that he qualified to stand in 2021.

Katuka also said Mwila should be equally joined to the case as he announced at a media briefing on Sunday that their party Central Committee had adopted Edgar Lungu as the PF’s preferred candidate for the 2021 Presidential elections.

He submitted that it was imperative that the question of Lungu’s future candidacy in Presidential elections should be conclusively determined in his presence.

Katuka added that President Lungu was likely to be affected by the decision of the court and must therefore be joined so that all questions of controversy could be determined in the presence of all parties involved.

Others who were joined as interested parties are the Law Association of Zambia and Brigadier General Geoffrey Miyanda.