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The Zambian Government is set to be taken to court on Wednesday to explain its decision to allow a judge to be sworn into the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Administrative Tribunal without resigning her domestic judicial post.
Former Court of Appeal Judge, Justice Dominic Yeta Sichinga, has lodged an originating summons with the Constitutional Court of Zambia seeking an interpretation of Article 142(6) of the Republican Constitution.
The case, registered as 2025/CCZ/0030, raises key questions regarding the constitutional requirements for judges accepting appointments outside the Zambian Judiciary.
The legal action comes days after Justice Flavia Chishimba of Zambia was sworn in as a member of the SADC Administrative Tribunal (SADCAT) in Gaborone, replacing Justice Sanji Monageng of Botswana, who retired.
The SADC Secretariat confirmed the appointment, with the Tribunal President extending formal congratulations.
On Wednesday morning, lawyers for the Government are expected to appear before the Constitutional Court in Lusaka to argue that a judge is required to resign from domestic judicial office before taking up such an appointment.
Their argument is based on Article 142(6) of the Constitution, which states that a judge appointed or assigned to an office outside the Judiciary must first resign from judicial office.
The matter is Dominic Yeta Sichinga SC v The Attorney-General, Cause No. 2025/CCZ/0030.
Justice Sichinga, together with Justice Nicola Sharpe-Phiri—both former Judges of the Court of Appeal—were required to resign in 2025 after accepting ad hoc appointments on the Court of Appeal of Seychelles, a Commonwealth jurisdiction.
In his petition, Justice Sichinga argued that the provision has been applied selectively and inconsistently, noting that other serving Zambian judges have held positions on international and regional bodies such as the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, and SADCAT itself without resigning from the domestic bench.
Justice Chishimba is the second Zambian judge to serve on SADCAT. Her predecessor, Justice Fulgency Chisanga—who served as Deputy President of the Tribunal—also retained her Court of Appeal appointment, according to SADC records, which are now being cited as part of the legal argument.
Other SADCAT judges from Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Angola, and Mauritius are also reported to hold concurrent domestic judicial appointments without resigning.
The case comes amid concerns over judicial turnover in Zambia, with more than nine judges having left the judiciary since 2022.
Justice Sichinga, represented by Messrs. Likando Kalaluka & Co., resigned from the Court of Appeal on March 31, 2025, following his appointment as a Non-Resident Judge of the Seychelles Court of Appeal.
In his affidavit, he stated that the role in Seychelles is not full-time, requiring him to preside over cases approximately three times a year.
However, he said he felt compelled to resign due to Article 142(6), which provides that: “Where a judge is appointed or assigned to an office which is not an office in the Judiciary and that judge wishes to take up the appointment, the judge shall resign from the office of the judge.”
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