CONCOURT HALTS TRADITIONAL COUP
…the Litunga, Chitimukulu and Gawa Undi fail to prove legal interest in a high-stakes petition to elevate Chief Mukuni’s status
CONCOURT HALTS TRADITIONAL COUP
…the Litunga, Chitimukulu and Gawa Undi fail to prove legal interest in a high-stakes petition to elevate Chief Mukuni’s status
By DAVID KANDUZA
THE Constitutional Court has dealt a blow to three of Zambia’s most influential traditional rulers, rejecting their application to join a high-stakes legal battle over the official elevation of Chief Mukuni XIX to the status of Paramount Chief.
Constitutional Court Judge Lady Justice Pixie Linda Mwila Kasonde Yangailo dismissed the joint bid by the Litunga of the Lozi people, Chitimukulu of the Bemba and Kalonga Gawa Undi of the Chewa.
The trio had sought to be joined to the proceedings as interested parties, arguing that the outcome could permanently alter the landscape of Zambia’s traditional governance.
The legal battle stems from a petition filed on June 27, 2026, by Jonas Shakafuswa, the director general of the Bene Mukuni Dynasty Committee.
In the lawsuit filed against Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha, Mr Shakafuswa was seeking a formal court declaration that Chief Mukuni XIX of the Toka Leya people should be officially recognised and reclassified by the Government as a Paramount Chief.
Mr Shakafuswa argued that the State’s current classification of Chief Mukuni as an ordinary chief is “inconsistent with the historical and cultural standing of the Bene Mukuni Royal Establishment.”
In support of his petition, he had cited Articles 1, 165(1) and (2), 166, 167, and 266 of the Constitution of Zambia.
Alarmed by the potential precedent, the Litunga (Western Province), the Chitimukulu (Northern and Muchinga provinces)band Kalonga Gawa Undi (whose rule spans Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique) applied to be added as the second, third, and fourth respondents.
The traditional leaders contended that they held a direct and substantial interest in the matter.
They warned the court that any judicial decision creating, recognising, or reclassifying a new paramount chief could trigger far-reaching consequences for the nation’s traditional governance system.
However, Lady Justice Yangailo threw out their application, ruling that the prominent leaders had failed to meet the legal threshold required to join the case.
In her ruling, Justice Yangailo found that the intended interested parties had not established an identifiable legal interest in the ongoing proceedings.
Furthermore, she noted that the three traditional leaders failed to sufficiently demonstrate how they would be negatively affected by the final outcome of the case.
Concluding her ruling, Justice Yangailo stated that no legal duty to participate in or observe the proceedings had been asserted or established by the monarchs, effectively dismissing their application with costs.
The main petition regarding Chief Mukuni’s status would now proceed without their involvement.