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Lawyers representing the Speaker of the National Assembly in a case where Mary Nangwale is challenging her rejection as Inspector General of Police, yesterday failed to show up for a judicial review at the Constitutional Court in Lilongwe, forcing the court to adjourn.
The court adjourned the case for hearing on June 21 and 22.
Ian Malera, lawyer for Nangwale told a team of three judges, Justice Robert Chinangwa, Andrew Nyirenda and Ivy Kamanga that Kalekeni Kaphale, one of the lawyers representing the speaker indicated that they would not attend the judicial review because they were not served with court documents.
“My lords and my lady, we tried to get in touch with Mr. Kaphale, one of the lawyers for the first respondent and we became aware that he was in Blantyre, and when asked why his response was that he had not been served with court bundles,” said Malera.
Malera, while accepting that the documents were not served on the lawyers, said there was a delay in obtaining a certificate from the Chief Justice to consent that the matter be dealt with as a constitutional one, and that led to the late compilation of the court bundle.
He said the certificate was supposed to be included in the bundle, yet the other party wanted the bundle to be served on them at least 14 days before the date of hearing.
Malera, however said that they prepared their skeleton arguments and expected their colleagues to do the same, considering that both parties were aware of the dates for the hearing.
He explained that there was nothing new in the court bundles, apart from the skeleton arguments, adding it was not enough reason for the other party not to turn up for the hearing.
“Considering that our colleagues are not here we ask that the matter be adjourned,” said Malera.
But Kamanga argued that both parties agreed on the date for hearing and that May 25th was the date when skeleton arguments would have been made available to the court.
“I fail to appreciate arguments by counsel Kaphale. Both parties agreed on the dates. Then the other issue of certificate, I advised the applicant to get it by 5th of May,” said Kamanga.
Nyirenda argued that the certificate would not have stopped counsel for Nangwale from preparing court bundles saying even if the case was not to be heard at the constitutional court, the bundles would have been needed.
He said the certificate in their possession was dated May 19 and expected to get court bundles by at least by May 22, but only got them on Monday, a day before the hearing.
Nyirenda said judicial ethics require that both counsels be present and that the court had taken note of the absence of the Speaker’s lawyers.
“My position is to clarify that it’s not the court to blame. Things would have been done earlier. It should be put on record that the court has taken note of the absence of counsel, when judicial ethics require that he be here. It leaves us with no choice but to adjourn the matter,” said Nyirenda.
Parliament on March 30 rejected the confirmation of Nangwale as Inspector General of Police, but a day later, she obtained an injunction.
Kaphale applied to the High Court to have the injunction lifted which was quashed by Justice Kamanga and instead set 31st May as a date for judicial review of the matter.
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