The Editor Zambia.
Harry Kalaba, Leader of the Citizens First Party has once again misdirected himself in what he terms as breach of the constitution regarding Members of Parliament who have backed President Hichilema and the UPND.
Kalaba, must recognise that constitutional interpretation is not a tool for political excitement on social media, It is a disciplined legal exercise grounded in text, procedure, and precedent. 
Statement like what Kalaba said when left unchecked risk confusing citizens, especially on the dissolution of Parliament, citizens committed to the rule of law have a duty to correct the records.
As a former Parliamentarian, Kalaba is supposed to be conversant with laws that govern different organs of government.
Kalaba should be reminded that deliberately parliamentarians did not resign from their respective political parties but they simply endorsed President Hichilema for the August, 13 general elections.
A Member of Parliament can only be deemed to have crossed the floor when renounce membership of political party that sponsored his candidature to join a different party.
The circumstances under which a person can be deemed to have become a member of a political party, does not include a Member of Parliament merely supporting or campaigning for another political party.
There is no formal record before the National Assembly indicating that any of those MPs have defected to any political party. Under Article 72(2)(d) and (e), a seat becomes vacant only upon formal resignation from a sponsoring party or confirmed expulsion, and even then, the process may require court validation.
As it stands, those alleged to have defected to the UPND have neither formally written to the National Assembly nor been officially expelled from their respective parties.
Kalaba should read the ruling by former Speaker Rt Hon Justice Dr Patrick Matibini, SC on the link below.
It is not healthy for individuals such as Kalaba who is aspiring to lead the nation to mislead the public on such fundamental matters.
The Constitution of Zambia Amendment No. 2 of 2016 is explicit. Article 81(1) fixes the life of Parliament at five years, and Article 81(3) mandates that Parliament shall stand dissolved ninety days before the next general election placing the dissolution around 13th May 2026.
This is the ordinary and automatic route provided by law. Any suggestion that Parliament can be dissolved casually, or through political hallucinations, ignores the safeguards in Article 81(4) to (7).
This provisions make it clear that early dissolution can only occur where the Executive cannot effectively govern due to the failure of the National Assembly and even then, the matter must first be referred to the Constitutional Court for determination, which alone has authority to confirm whether such a situation exists.
Without that judicial confirmation, dissolution cannot happen. That is the law, clear, structured, and not open to casual reinterpretation.
Mr Kalaba must therefore be asked a simple but serious question, what constitutional authority is he relying on to push a duly elected President to dissolve Parliament before the right time?
Zambia’s constitutional order does not allow individuals, political parties, or commentators to instruct or order the President on such a grave matter.
If Kalaba believes there is a basis for dissolution under Article 81(4), then the proper channel is through constitutional mechanisms and not public pronouncements across social media for excitement purposes.
If he has Members of Parliament, let him use them to advance motions, build consensus, and test his claims within the National Assembly. That is how a constitutional democracy functions. He cannot force or instruct, in my view he can only persuade those with lawful authority.
Mr Kalaba must appreciate that, in law, allegations are not facts. Procedure matters. Finally, where a ruling is said to be “reserved,” it simply means the matter is pending determination, not concluded.
The constitution is governed by laws, processes and procedures that can’t be overturned over night. If he wants to start the process,let his MPs push for it, unfortunately he doesn’t have MPs only one Councillor. The republican constitution is different from the Facebook page. Don’t expose your ignorance on Facebook, consultation before exposure is laka mr president kalaba., maybe you just forgot.
