By 
Detained Tonse Alliance Secretary General Celestin Mukandila has filed a judicial review challenging the cancellation of his National Registration Card (NRC) and Zambian passport, arguing that the decision was unlawful and that he is a Zambian citizen by descent.
Mukandila, who was born in Lubumbashi in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), has told the Lusaka High Court that his place of birth does not make him a foreigner because his late mother was a Zambian citizen at the time of his birth.
He is seeking an order of certiorari to quash Government Gazette Notice No. 1418 of 2026, which purportedly cancelled and invalidated his NRC and Zambian passport.
Mukandila is also seeking an order of mandamus compelling the State to restore his NRC and passport as valid identity and travel documents.
He wants the court to declare that he is a Zambian citizen by descent under the Constitution and that the Gazette notice was unlawful, void and of no effect because it was issued without statutory authority, due process and in breach of the rules of natural justice.
He is further seeking a stay of the Gazette notice pending determination of the judicial review proceedings.
In his affidavit, Mukandila said he was born on Feb. 20, 1990, in Lubumbashi, where his grandfather, Alam Chabwilo, was serving on a diplomatic mission for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He said his late mother, Marie Musa Louise, was a Zambian citizen from Mansa District and retained her Zambian citizenship while living in the DRC.
“My mother was a Zambian citizen at the time of my birth. I acquired Zambian citizenship by descent at birth through my Zambian mother,” Mukandila stated.
Mukandila said his family returned to Zambia in 1999 following his grandfather’s diplomatic posting, with the Zambian Consulate General in Lubumbashi facilitating their return.
He said he registered with the National Registration Office in 2006, aged 16, and was issued a Zambian NRC after his parents provided the required information.
He further said questions arose over the authenticity of his NRC in 2017 while he was employed by the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA), prompting verification by the National Registration Office.
According to Mukandila, RTSA later confirmed in a Nov. 22, 2017 letter that his NRC was authentic and directed him to resume duty.
Mukandila argued that the National Registration Act did not provide for the cancellation of an NRC through a Gazette notice.
“The purported cancellation of the applicant’s NRC has no statutory foundation and is therefore void,” he stated.
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