The Constitutional Court has upheld Stanley Kakubo’s election as Kapiri Mposhi UPND member of parliament and dismissed all the grounds of appeal by the PF losing candidate Chrispin Siingwa, saying they lacked merit.

And the Lusaka High Court has adjourned a matter in which UPND president Hakainde Hichilema is alleging that his rights to be heard in the presidential election petition were violated, and has ordered UPND lawyers to meet the costs of proceedings.

Siingwa had appealed the High Court’s decision to uphold the election of Kakubo as Kapiri Mposhi member of parliament.

And delivering judgement, Monday, Justice Enoch Mulembe said there was no ground upon which to reverse the findings of the lower court.

“The appellant has not given the court any basis upon which to fault the trial judge’s findings who listened to and observed the demeanor of witnesses,” said judge Mulembe.

Justice Mulembe said the trial judge correctly interpreted the law and applied it.

He said all the grounds of appeal by Siingwa were unmeritorious and thereby dismissed the appeal.

And the Lusaka High Court adjourned a matter in which UPND president Hakainde Hichilema is alleging that his rights to be heard were infringed.

In this matter, Hichilema and his vice Geoffrey Mwamba want the court rule that their rights were infringed upon in the presidential election petition which was dismissed by the Constitutional Court in 2016 for want of prosecution.

Recently, the Supreme Court dismissed with costs, an appeal by Hichilema and Mwamba in which they wanted Judge Mwila Chitabo to recuse himself from handling the matter.

The Supreme Court said Hichilema and Mwamba used a wrong mode of appeal instead of appealing to the Court of Appeal, they appealed to the Supreme Court who had no jurisdiction.

The Attorney General had raised preliminary issues on the appeal and submitted that the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction to hear an appeal of that nature.

After considering submissions from both parties, the Supreme Court that sat in Kabwe dismissed the appeal with costs because it had no jurisdiction to hear the appeal.

The State had also argued that since the appeal was on the recusal and not the Bill of Rights, it was supposed to go to the Court of Appeal and not Supreme Court.

The Lusaka High Court then set Monday as date for hearing the matter.

And when the matter came up for hearing, Monday, Hichilema and Mwamba’s lawyers Simeza Sangwa and Marshal Muchende asked for an adjournment saying they had not yet received instructions from their client on how to proceed with the matter.

Justice Chitabo then ordered the UPND laywers to meet the costs of proceedings.

The State was being represented by Attorney General Likando Kalaluka and state advocates Francis Mwale and Joe Simachela.