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Government has told the Constitutional Court that there was currently no concluded agreement between Zambia and the United States relating to health assistance and broader economic cooperation, as discussions between the two countries were still ongoing.
Attorney General Mulilo Kabesha submitted before the court that the proposed Memorandum of Understanding and Bilateral Compact Agreement cited in a petition by LCK Foundation Limited and Chapter One Foundation remained under negotiation and were therefore not ready for disclosure or parliamentary consideration.
The two organisations petitioned the Constitutional Court seeking declarations that the proposed agreements qualified as international agreements under Article 63(2) of the Constitution and required prior approval by the National Assembly before implementation.
They also want the court to declare that concluding or implementing the agreements without parliamentary approval would be unconstitutional and in violation of several constitutional provisions.
According to the petitioners, the matter arose after the United States Department of State reportedly announced plans for cooperation with Zambia involving support for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, maternal and child health programmes, as well as commitments relating to medicines, laboratory personnel, and health data systems.
Hiwever, Kabesha argued that the petition was speculative because no agreement had been signed or implemented.
“The parties involved are still negotiating the terms. Therefore, the documents sought are not finalised and do not exist in a form suitable for disclosure,” he submitted.
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The Attorney General further argued that bilateral agreements were excluded from the category of international agreements requiring ratification under the Ratification of International Agreements Act No. 34 of 2016. He maintained that provisions relating to parliamentary ratification could only arise once negotiations had been concluded.
Kabesha also told the court that disclosing draft documents during negotiations could undermine diplomatic engagements and affect efforts to secure a mutually beneficial agreement between Zambia and the United States.
Government said it had continued engaging stakeholders and intended to hold public hearings once negotiations are completed.
The Attorney General submitted that although citizens had a right to access information, that right was subject to limitations where disclosure could prejudice protected State interests.
He asked the Constitutional Court to dismiss the petition for being premature, speculative, and lacking a reasonable cause of action, and further prayed for costs against the petitioners.
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