Govt, opposition unite in Chief Justice confirmation
Parliament has confirmed Justice of Appeal Rezine Mzikamanda as Chief Justice, with both sides of the House holding him in high esteem.
President Lazarus Chakwera on January 7 this year appointed Mzikamanda as Chief Justice following the retirement of former chief justice Andrew Nyirenda last December.
From the start, both the opposition and government sides expressed commitment to have Mzikamanda confirmed.
Minister of Justice Titus Mvalo, who asked the House to confirm Mzikamanda, said the new Chief Justice has good leadership qualities, wide experience and proper educational qualifications to warrant him being in that position.
He said: “He is humble, approachable, friendly and he is beyond reproach. He is a church elder and very religious. You can see we are dealing with an upright person.”
Leader of Opposition in Parliament Kondwani Nankhumwa said the opposition side was more than ready to confirm Mzikamanda and asked if the Speaker could suspend the proceedings to consult on how the voting would be handled.
There was a misunderstanding on the quorum. Some legislators were of the view that there was need to reach two thirds of the total number of members of Parliament (MPs) while others said the two thirds referred to the MPs present during voting.
However, it was resolved that the House would follow the two thirds of members present during voting.
When it was time for voting, both sides rejected the secret ballot and pushed for the voice vote.
They said they were ready to confirm Mzikamanda and there was no point in wasting time with the secret ballot.
Democratic Progressive Party spokesperson in Parliament Yusuf Nthenda supported the appointment of Mzikamanda, saying he is someone who is capable of managing the affairs of Judiciary.
He said Mzikamanda has proper educational qualifications, is humble and has great leadership qualities.
“I have known Honourable Justice Rezine Mzikamanda for sometime now. I know him as a good judge. He is a leader and lives by example.
“He is a man of integrity, reputable and has the caliber that is needed for a person to be the Chief Justice of the republic,” said Nthenda.
He called on Mzikamanda to ensure that the backlog of cases dating back to over 10 years are cleared.
Nthenda added that the Judiciary also needs to be properly funded, saying government committed to allocate three percent of the total national budget to this arm of government but only provided 0.5 percent of the total budget.
United Democratic Front spokesperson Lilian Patel said the party supported the confirmation of Mzikamanda. She said the Chief Justice is well educated and has a good reputation.
Leader of the House Richard Chimwendo Banda commended members for confirming the Chief Justice.
In an interview after confirmation, Mvalo said he was hopeful that issues of cases taking long should be addressed by the new Chief Justice.
On funding, he said the ministry is s also concerned and has been pushing for more funding for the judiciary. In the Judiciary he has risen through the ranks from magistrate to High Court judge to Supreme Court of Appeal judge.
