CONSTITUTION OF ZAMBIA (PRIOR TO 1996
AMENDMENTS) - PART IV
THE EXECUTIVE
Article
33. [The office of President]
(1) There shall be a President of the
Republic of Zambia who shall be the Head of State and of the
Government and the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces.
(2) The executive power of the
Republic of Zambia shall vest in the President and, subject to the
other provisions of this Constitution, shall be exercised by him
either directly or through officers subordinate to him.
34. [Election of President]
(1) The election of the President
shall be direct by universal adult suffrage and by secret ballot and
shall be conducted in accordance with this Article and as may be
prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament.
(2) An election to the office of
President shall be held whenever the National Assembly is dissolved
and otherwise as provided by Article 38.
(3) A person shall be qualified to be
a candidate for election as President if he --
-
(a) is a citizen of Zambia;
-
(b) has attained the age of
thirty-five years;
-
(c) is a member of, or is sponsored
by, a political party; and
-
(d) is otherwise qualified to be
elected as a member of the National Assembly.
(4) A candidate for election as
President (hereinafter referred to as a Presidential candidate)
shall deliver his nomination papers to the returning officer in such
manner, on such day, at such time and at such place as may be
prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament.
(5) A Presidential candidate shall not
be entitled to take part in an election unless --
-
(a) he has paid such election fee as
may be prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament on or before
the date fixed by the Electoral Commission in that behalf; and
-
(b) he makes, by statutory
declaration which shall be open to public inspection at such time
and at such place as may be prescribed by or under an Act of
Parliament, a full declaration of his assets and liabilities; and
-
(c) his nomination is supported by
not less than 200 registered voters.
(6) At an election to the office of
President --
-
(a) all persons registered in Zambia
as voters for the purposes of elections to the National Assembly
shall be entitled to vote in the election;
-
(b) the poll shall be taken by a
secret ballot on such day, at such time, in such places and in
such manner as may be prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament;
and
-
(c) after the expiration of the time
fixed for polling, the votes cast shall be counted and the
returning officer shall declare the result.
(7) If, at the initial poll, a
Presidential candidate receives more than fifty per cent of the
valid votes cast, the returning officer shall declare him to be
elected as President.
(8) If, at the initial poll, no
Presidential candidate receives more than fifty per cent of the
valid votes cast, a further poll shall be taken in accordance with
clause (6).
(9) If, at the second poll, there is
still no Presidential candidate who has received more than fifty per
cent of the valid votes cast or there are two Presidential
candidates who have an equal number of votes, the returning officer
shall so report to the President who shall summon Parliament to
elect the new President.
(10) The President shall submit to the
National Assembly the names of those candidates who received the
highest and the next highest number of valid votes cast, or the
names of the Presidential candidates who have received an equal
number of votes, and a session of the National Assembly shall then
be held for the purpose of electing the President.
(11) At the session held in accordance
with clause (10), the Presidential candidate who receives the
greatest number of the valid votes cast by the members of the
National Assembly present and voting shall be declared President.
(12) Where there is only one qualified
Presidential candidate nominated for election, that candidate shall
be declared as elected without an election taking place.
(13) A person elected to the office of
President under this Article shall assume that office on the day
upon which he is elected and sworn in.
35. [Tenure of office of President]
(1) Subject to clause (2) and (4)
every President shall hold office for a period of five years.
(2) After the commencement of this
Constitution no person who holds or has held office as President for
two terms of five years each, shall be eligible for re-election to
that office.
(3) For the purposes of clause (2) the
period of two terms of five years each shall be computed from the
commencement of this Constitution.
(4) The President may, at any time by
writing under his hand addressed to the Speaker of the National
Assembly resign his office.
(5) A person assuming the office of
the President in accordance with this Constitution shall unless --
-
(a) he resigns his office; or
-
(b) he ceases to hold office by
virtue of Article 36 or 37.
-
(c) the National Assembly is
dissolved;
continue in office until the person
elected at the next election to the office of President assumes
office.
36. [Removal of President on grounds
of incapacity]
(1) If it is resolved by a majority of
all the members of the Cabinet that the question of the physical or
mental capacity of the President to discharge the functions of his
office ought to be investigated, and they so inform the Chief
Justice, then the Chief Justice shall appoint a board consisting of
not less than three persons selected by him from among persons who
are qualified as medical practitioners under the law of Zambia or
under the law of any other country in the Commonwealth, and the
board shall inquire into the matter and report to the Chief Justice
on whether or not the President is, by reason of any infirmity of
body or mind, incapable of discharging the functions of his office.
(2) If the board reports that the
President is incapable of discharging the functions of his office,
the Chief Justice shall certify in writing accordingly and thereupon
the President shall cease to hold office.
(3) Where the Cabinet resolve that the
question of the physical or mental capacity of the President to
discharge the functions of his office shall be investigated, the
President shall, until another person assumes the office of
President or the board appointed under clause (1) reports that the
President is not incapable of discharging the functions of his
office, whichever is earlier, cease to perform the functions of his
office and those functions shall be performed by --
-
(a) the Vice-President; or
-
(b) in the absence of the
Vice-President or if the Vice-President is unable, by reason of
physical or mental infirmity, to discharge the functions of his
office, by such member of the Cabinet as the Cabinet shall elect:
Provided that any person performing
the functions of the office of President under this clause shall not
dissolve the National Assembly nor, except on the advice of the
Cabinet, revoke any appointment made by the President.
(4) A motion for the purposes of
clause (1) may be proposed at any meeting of the Cabinet.
(5) For the purposes of this Article,
a certificate of the Chief Justice that the President is, by reason
of physical or mental infirmity, unable to discharge the functions
of this office shall be conclusive and shall not be questioned in
any court.
37. [Impeachment of President for
violation of Constitution]
(1) If notice in writing is given to
the Speaker of the National Assembly signed by not less than
one-third of all the members of the Assembly of a motion alleging
that the President has committed any violation of The Constitution
or any gross misconduct and specifying the particulars of the
allegations and proposing that a tribunal be established under this
Article to investigate those allegations, the Speaker shall --
-
(a) if Parliament is then sitting or
has been summoned to meet within five days, cause the motion to be
considered by the Assembly within seven days of the notice;
-
(b) if Parliament is not then
sitting (and notwithstanding that it may be prorogued) summon the
Assembly to meet within twenty-one days of the notice and cause
the motion to be considered at that meeting.
(2) Where a motion under this Article
is proposed for consideration by the National Assembly, the Assembly
shall not debate the motion but the person presiding in the Assembly
shall forthwith cause a vote to be taken on the motion and if the
motion is supported by the votes of not less than two-thirds of all
the members of the Assembly, shall declare the motion to be passed.
(3) If the motion is declared to be
passed under clause (2) --
-
(a) the Chief Justice shall appoint
a tribunal which shall consist of a Chairman and not less than two
other members selected by the Chief Justice from among persons who
hold or have held high judicial office;
-
(b) the tribunal shall investigate
the matter and shall report to the National Assembly whether it
finds the particulars of the allegations specified in the motion
to have been substantiated;
-
(c) the President shall have the
right to appear and be represented before the tribunal during its
investigation of the allegations against him.
(4) If the tribunal reports to the
National Assembly that the tribunal finds that the particulars of
any allegation against the President specified in the motion have
not been substantiated no further proceedings shall be taken under
this Article in respect of that allegation.
(5) If the tribunal reports to the
National Assembly that the tribunal finds that the particulars of
any allegation specified in the motion have been substantiated, the
Assembly may, on a motion supported by the votes of not less than
three-quarters of all members of the Assembly, resolve that the
President has been guilty of such violation of The Constitution or,
as the case may be such gross misconduct as it is incompatible with
his continuance in office as President and, if the Assembly so
resolves, the President shall cease to hold office upon the third
day following the passage of the resolution.
(6) No proceedings shall be taken or
continued under this Article at any time when Parliament is
dissolved.
38. [Vacancy in office of President]
(1) An election to fill a vacancy in
the office of President caused by expiration of the period of five
years referred to in clause (1) of Article 35
shall be completed in accordance with Article 34
before the expiration of that period.
(2) If the office of the President
becomes vacant by reason of his death or resignation or by reason of
his ceasing to hold office by virtue of Article 36,
37, or
88, an
election to the office of President shall be held in accordance with
Article 34 within six months from the date of the
office becoming vacant.
(3) Whenever the office of President
becomes vacant, the Vice-President or, in the absence of the
Vice-President or if the Vice-President is unable, by reason of
physical or mental infirmity, to discharge the functions of his
office, a member of the Cabinet elected by the Cabinet shall perform
the functions of the office of President until a person elected as
President in accordance with Article 34 assumes
office.
(4) The Vice-President or, the member
of the Cabinet as the case may be, performing the functions of the
office of the President under clause (3) shall not dissolve the
National Assembly nor, except on the advice of the Cabinet, revoke
any appointment made by the President.
39. [Discharge of functions of
President during absence, illness, etc.]
(1) Whenever the President is absent
from Zambia or considers it desirable so to do by reason of illness
or for any other cause, he may by direction in writing, authorise
the Vice-President, or where the Vice-President is absent from
Zambia or incapable of discharging the functions of the office of
President, any other person, to discharge such functions of the
office of President as he may specify, and the Vice-President or
such other person may discharge those functions until his authority
is revoked by the President.
(2) If the President is incapable by
reason of physical or mental infirmity of discharging the functions
of his office and the infirmity is of such a nature that the
President is unable to authorize another person under this Article
to perform those functions --
-
(a) the Vice-President; or
-
(b) during any period when the
Vice-President is absent from Zambia or is himself, by reason of
physical or mental infirmity, unable to perform the functions of
his office, such member of the Cabinet as the Cabinet shall elect;
shall perform the functions of the
office of President.
Provided that any person performing
the functions of the office of President under this clause shall not
dissolve the National Assembly nor, except on the advice of the
Cabinet, revoke any appointment made by the President.
(3) Any person performing the
functions of the office of President by virtue of clause (2) shall
cease to perform those functions if he is notified by the President
that the President is about to resume those functions or if another
person is elected as, and assumes the office of, President.
(4) For the purpose of subclause (2),
a certificate of the Chief Justice that --
-
(a) the President is incapable by
reason of physical or mental infirmity of discharging the
functions of his office and that the infirmity is of such a nature
that the President is unable to authorise another person under
this Article to perform those functions; or
-
(b) the Vice-President is by reason
of physical or mental infirmity unable to discharge the functions
of his office:
shall be conclusive and shall not be
questioned in any court:
Provided that any such certificate as
is referred to in paragraph (a) shall cease to have effect if the
President notifies any person under clause (3) that he is about to
resume the functions of the office of the President or if another
person is elected as, and assumes the office of, President.
40. [Oath of President]
A person assuming the office of
President, shall before entering the office, take and subscribe such
oaths as may be prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament.
41. [Returning Officer at elections of
President]
(1) The Chief Justice shall be the
returning officer for the purpose of elections to the office of
President.
(2) Any question which may arise as to
whether --
shall be referred to and determined by
the Supreme Court.
42. [Salary and allowances of
President]
(1) The President shall receive such
salary and allowances as may be prescribed by an Act of Parliament;
and they shall be a charge on the general revenues of the Republic.
(2) The salary and allowances of the
President shall not be altered to his disadvantage during his term
of office.
(3) A person who has held the office
of President shall receive such pension and such gratuity as may be
prescribed by an Act of Parliament, and that pension and gratuity
shall be a charge on the general revenues of the Republic.
43. [Protection of President in
respect of legal proceedings]
(1) No civil proceedings shall be
instituted or continued against the person holding the office of
President or performing the functions of that office in respect of
which relief is claimed against him in respect of anything done or
omitted to be done in his private capacity.
(2) No person holding the office of
President or performing the functions of that office shall be
charged with any criminal offence or be amenable to the criminal
jurisdiction of any court in respect of any act done or omitted to
be done during his tenure of that office or as the case may be,
during his performance of the functions of that office.
(3) No person who has held,but no
longer holds, the office of President shall be charged with a
criminal offence or be amenable to the criminal jurisdiction of any
court in respect of any act done or omitted to be done by him in his
personal capacity while he held office of President, unless the
National Assembly has, by resolution, determined that such
proceedings would not be contrary to the interests of the State.
(4) Where provision is made by law
limiting the time within which proceedings of any description may be
brought against any person, the term of any person in the office of
President shall not be taken into account in calculating any period
of time prescribed by that law which determines whether any such
proceedings as are mentioned in clause (1) and (3) may be brought
against that person.
44. [Functions of President]
(1) As the Head of the State, the
President shall perform with dignity and leadership all acts
necessary or expedient for, or reasonably incidental to, the
discharge of the executive functions of government, subject to the
overriding terms of this Constitution and the Laws of Zambia which
he is constitutionally obliged to protect, administer and execute.
(2) Without prejudice to the
generality of clause (1), the President may preside over meetings of
the Cabinet and shall have the power, subject to this Constitution,
to --
(a) dissolve the National Assembly as
provided in
Article 88;
(b) accredit, receive and recognise
ambassadors, and to appoint ambassadors, plenipotentiaries,
diplomatic representatives and consuls;
(c) pardon or reprieve offenders,
either unconditionally or subject to such conditions as he may
consider fit;
(d) negotiate and sign international
agreements and to delegate the power to do so;
(e) establish and dissolve such
Government Ministries and Departments subject to the approval of the
National Assembly;
(f) confer such honours as he
considers appropriate on citizens, residents and friends of Zambia
in consultation with interested and relevant persons and
institutions; and
(g) appoint such persons as are
required by this Constitution or any other law to be appointed by
him.
(3) Subject to the provisions of this
Constitution dealing with assent to laws passed by Parliament and
the promulgation and publication of such laws in the Gazette,
the President shall have power to --
-
(a) sign and promulgate any
proclamation which by law he is entitled to proclaim as President;
and
-
(b) initiate, in so far as he
considers it necessary and expedient, laws for submission and
consideration by the National Assembly.
(4) When any appointment to an office
to be made by the President is expressed by any provision of this
Constitution to be subject to ratification by the National Assembly
--
-
(a) the National Assembly shall not
unreasonably refuse or delay such ratification but the question
whether the Assembly has so acted unreasonably shall not be
enquired into by any court;
-
(b) if such ratification is refused
the President may appoint another person to the office in question
and shall submit the appointment for ratification;
-
(c) if the National Assembly refused
to ratify the second appointment it shall be invited to ratify an
appointment for the third time but the third appointment shall
take effect irrespective of whether such ratification is refused,
or is delayed for a period of more than fourteen days.
(5) Subject to the other provisions of
this Constitution and any other law, any person appointed by the
President under this Constitution or that other law may be removed
by the President.
(6) In the exercise of any functions
conferred upon him under this Article, the President shall, unless
it is otherwise provided, act in his own deliberate judgment and
shall not be obliged to follow the advice tendered by any other
person or authority.
(7) Nothing in this Article shall
prevent Parliament from conferring functions on persons or
authorities other than the President.
45. [Vice-President]
(1) There shall be an office of
Vice-President of the Republic.
(2) The Vice-President shall be
appointed by the President from among the members of the National
Assembly.
(3) Subject to the provisions of this
Constitution the Vice-President shall cease to hold office upon the
assumption by any person of the office of President.
(4) The Vice-President shall perform
such functions as shall be assigned to him by the President.
(5) The salary and allowances of the
Vice-President shall be such as may be prescribed by an Act of
Parliament, and shall be a charge on the general revenues of the
Republic.
46. [Ministers]
(1) There shall be such Ministers as
may be appointed by the President.
(2) Appointment to the office of
Minister shall be made from among the members of the National
Assembly.
(3) A Minister shall be responsible,
under the directions of the President, for such business of the
Government including the administration of any Province, Ministry or
Department of Government as the President may assign to him.
(4) The salaries and allowances of a
Minister shall be such as may be prescribed by an Act of Parliament,
and shall be a charge on the general revenue of the Republic.
47. [Deputy Ministers]
(1) The President may appoint such
Deputy Ministers as he may consider necessary to assist Ministers in
the performance of their functions and to exercise or perform on
behalf of Ministers such of the Minsters functions as the President
may authorise in that behalf.
(2) Appoint to the office of Deputy
Minister shall be made from among members of the National Assembly.
(3) The salaries and allowances of
Deputy Ministers shall be such as may be prescribed by an Act of
Parliament, and shall be a charge on the general revenues of the
Republic.
48. [Oath Vice-President, Minister and
Deputy Minister]
A Vice-President, Minister or Deputy
Minister shall not enter upon the duties of his office unless he has
taken and subscribed the oath of allegiance and such oath for the
due execution of his office as may be prescribed by or under an Act
of Parliament.
49. [Cabinet]
(1) There shall be a Cabinet which
shall consist of the President, the Vice-President and the
Ministers, other than Ministers responsible for the administration
of Provinces.
(2) There shall preside at meetings of
the Cabinet --
(a) the President; and
(b) in the absence of the President,
the Vice-President.
(3) The Cabinet may act
notwithstanding any vacancy in its membership.
50. [Functions of Cabinet]
The Cabinet shall formulate the policy
of the Government and shall be responsible for advising the
President with respect to the policy of the Government and with
respect to such other matters as may be referred to it by the
President.
51. [Accountability of Cabinet]
The Cabinet shall be accountable
collectively to the National Assembly.
52. [Code of Conduct]
All ministers and Deputy Ministers
shall conduct themselves, during their tenure of office, in
accordance with a code of conduct promulgated by Parliament.
53. [Secretary to Cabinet]
(1) There shall be a Secretary to the
Cabinet whose office shall be a public office and who shall, subject
to ratification by the National Assembly, be appointed by the
President.
(2) The Secretary to the Cabinet shall
--
-
(a) be the Head of the Public
Service and shall be responsible to the President for securing the
general efficiency of the public service,
-
(b) have charge of the Cabinet
Office and be responsible in accordance with the instructions
given to him by the President, for arranging the business for, and
keeping the minutes of the Cabinet and for conveying decisions
made in Cabinet to the appropriate authorities;
-
(c) have such other functions as may
be prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament or as the President
may direct.
54. [Attorney-General]
(1) There shall be an Attorney-General
of the Republic who shall, subject to ratification by the National
Assembly, be appointed by the President and shall be the principal
legal adviser to the Government.
(2) A person shall not be qualified to
be appointed to the office of Attorney-General unless he is
qualified for appointment as Judge of the High Court.
(3) The office of the Attorney-General
shall become vacant --
(4) In the exercise of the power to
give directions to the Director of Public Prosecutions conferred by
clause (6) of Article 56, the Attorney-General
shall not be subject to the direction or control of any other person
or authority.
55. [Solicitor-General]
(1) There shall be a Solicitor-General
of the Republic whose office shall be a public office and who shall,
subject, to ratification by the National Assembly, be appointed by
the President.
(2) A person shall not be qualified to
be appointed to the office of Solicitor-General unless he is
qualified for appointment as a Judge of the High Court.
(3) Any power or duty imposed on the
Attorney-General by this Constitution or any other written law may
be exercised or performed by the Solicitor General --
56. [Director of Public Prosecutions]
(1) There shall be a Director of
Public Prosecutions and who shall, subject to ratification by the
National Assembly, be appointed by the President.
(2) The Director of Public
Prosecutions shall have power in any case which he considers it
desirable so to do --
-
(a) to institute and undertake
criminal proceedings against any person before any court, other
than a court martial, in respect of any offence alleged to have
been committed by that person;
-
(b) to take over and continue any
such criminal proceedings as have been instituted or undertaken by
any other person or authority; and
-
(c) to discontinue, at any stage
before judgement is delivered, any such criminal proceedings
instituted or undertaken by himself or any other person or
authority.
(3) The powers of the Director of
Public Prosecutions under clause (2) may be exercised by him in
person or by such public officer or class of public officers as may
be specified by him, acting in accordance with his general or
special instructions:
Provided that nothing in this clause
shall preclude the representation of the Director of Public
Prosecutions before any court by a legal practitioner.
(4) The powers conferred on the
Director of Public Prosecutions by paragraphs (b) and (c) of clause
(2) shall be vested in him to the exclusion of any other person or
authority:
Provided that where any other person
or authority has instituted criminal proceedings, nothing in this
clause shall prevent the withdrawal of those proceedings by or at
the instance of that person or authority and with the leave of the
court.
(5) For the purposes of this Article,
any appeal from any judgement in any criminal proceedings before any
court, or any case stated or question of law reserved for the
purposes of any such proceedings, to any other court in Zambia shall
be deemed to be part of those proceedings:
Provided that the power conferred on
the Director of Public Prosecutions by paragraph (c) of clause (2)
shall not be exercised in relation to any appeal by a person
convicted in any criminal proceedings or to any case stated or
question of law reserved at the instance of such person.
(6) In the exercise of the powers
conferred on him by this Article, the Director of Public
Prosecutions shall not be subject to the direction or control of any
other person or authority:
Provided that where the exercises of
any such power in any case may, in the judgement of the Director,
involves general considerations of public policy, the Director shall
bring the case to the notice of the Attorney-General ad shall in the
exercise of his powers in relation to that case, act in accordance
with any directions of the Attorney-General.
57. [Discharge of functions of
Director of Public Prosecutions during illness, etc.]
Whenever the Director of Public
Prosecutions is absent from Zambia or the President considers it
desirable so to do by reason of the illness of the Director of
Public Prosecutions or for any other cause, he may on the advice of
the Judicial Service Commission appoint any person to discharge the
functions of the Director of Public Prosecutions until such
appointment is revoked.
58. [Tenure of office of Director of
Public Prosecutions]
(1) Subject to the provisions of this
Article, a person holding the office of Director of Public
Prosecutions shall vacate his office when he attains the age of
sixty years.
(2) A person holding the office of
Director of Public Prosecutions may be removed from office only for
inability to perform the functions of his office whether arising
from infirmity of body or mind or misbehaviour and shall not be so
removed except in accordance with the provisions of this Article.
(3) If the President considers that
the question of removing a person holding the office of Director of
Public Prosecution from office ought to be investigated, then --
-
(a) he shall appoint a tribunal
which shall consist of a Chairman and not less than two other
members, who hold or have held high judicial office;
-
(b) the tribunal shall inquire into
the matter and report on the facts thereof to the President and
advise the President whether the person holding the office of
Director of Public Prosecutions ought to be removed from office
under this Article for inability as aforesaid or for misbehaviour.
(4) Where a tribunal appointed under
clause (3) advises the President that a person holding the office of
Director of Public Prosecutions ought to be removed from office for
inability as aforesaid or for misbehaviour, the President shall
remove such person from office.
(5) If the question of removing a
person holding the office of Director of Public Prosecutions from
office has been referred to a tribunal under this Article, the
President may suspend that person from performing the functions of
his office, and any such suspension may at any time be revoked by
the President and shall in any case cease to have effect if the
tribunal advises the President that the person ought not to be
removed from office.
59. [Prerogative of mercy]
The President may --
-
(a) grant to any person convicted of
any offence a pardon, either free or subject to lawful conditions;
-
(b) grant to any person a respite,
either indefinite or for a specified period, of the execution of
any punishment imposed on that person for any offence;
-
(c) substitute a less severe form of
punishment for any punishment imposed on any person for any
offence; and
-
(d) remit the whole or part of any
punishment imposed on any person for any offence or any penalty or
forfeiture or confiscation otherwise due to the Government on
account of any offence.
60. [Advisory committee]
(1) There shall be an advisory
committee on the prerogative of mercy which shall consist of such
persons as may be appointed by the President.
(2) The President may appoint
different persons to the advisory committee for the purposes of
advising him in relation to persons convicted by courts-martial and
for purposes of advising him in relation to persons convicted by
other courts.
(3) A member of the advisory committee
shall hold office at the pleasure of the President.
(4) Where any person has been
sentenced to death for any offence the President shall cause the
question of the exercise in relation to that person of the powers
conferred by Article 59 to be considered at a
meeting of the advisory committee.
(5) Subject to the provisions of
clause (4), the President may refer to the advisory committee any
questions as to the exercise of the powers conferred upon him by
Article 59.
(6) The President, if present, shall
preside at any meeting of the advisory committee.
(7) The President may determine the
procedure of the advisory committee.
61. [Offices for Republic]
(1) Subject to the other provisions of
this Constitution and any other law, the power to constitute offices
for the Republic and the power to abolish any such office shall vest
in the President.
(2) Subject to the other provisions of
this Constitution and any other law the power to appoint persons to
hold or act in offices constituted for the Republic, to confirm
appointments, to exercise disciplinary control over persons holding
or acting in such offices and to remove any such person from office
shall vest in the President.
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