Zambia
Lungu’s taxing choices
Re-elected president must unite the country and rein in spending and growth projects
A month after being declared winner of the 2016 general elections, Zambia’s president, Edgar Lungu of the Patriotic Front (PF), was inaugurated on September 13 for a term that will last until August 2021.Lungu’s inauguration was delayed by a petition filed by the leader of the opposition United Party for National Development, Hakainde Hichilema, who asked the court to nullify the poll results on the grounds of alleged vote rigging and because Lungu did not reach the 50% + 1 vote threshold. Constitutionally, Lungu should have been sworn in seven days after being declared winner on August 15.But, constitutionally again, a president-elect cannot be inaugurated if a petition has been filed with the constitutional court by any of the candidates until the court has determined the matter, within 14 days of a petition being filed.Lungu’s inauguration went ahead because the petition was thrown out after 14 days passed without the court hearing having started. The court blamed the petitioners...
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