Judges salaries in legal hitch

…as State Counsel John Sangwa says President Hichilema is in breach of the Constitution by issuing a Statutory Instrument prescribing salaries and housing allowances for Judges, while Solicitor General Muchende declares the improved Judges’ emoluments are legal and will stay

By GRACE CHAILE

CONSTITUTIONAL lawyer, State Counsel John Sangwa has accused President Hakainde Hichilema of breaching the Constitution by issuing a Statutory Instrument (SI) prescribing salaries and housing allowances for judges, an authority he says rests solely with the Emoluments Commission.
But Solicitor General Marshal Muchende has said the emoluments for Judges as improved shall not be withdrawn whether Mr Sangwa liked it or not and that the State was ready to face off with the Constitutional lawyer in court.

“The emoluments for judges as improved are staying whether Mr Sangwa wants it or not…I will meet him in court, Solicitor General Muchende said.

On May 16, 2025, President Hichilema signed Statutory Instrument No. 24 of 2025, which has set the salaries and housing allowances for Zambia’s Judges, defying a binding ruling of the Constitutional Court.
But in a statement released yesterday, Mr Sangwa, a State Counsel, argued that Statutory Instrument No. 24 of 2025, titled The Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025, issued by the President on May 16, 2025, contravenes both the Constitution and a binding Constitutional Court judgement delivered in July 2023.
He explained that the court had ruled in Cause No. 2021/CCZ/0012 (John Sangwa v The Attorney General) that the power to set judges’ emoluments rests exclusively with the Emoluments Commission, acting on recommendations from the Judicial Service Commission, in line with Articles 122(3), 123(1), and 264 of the Constitution.
“The President’s powers under sections 3 and 12 of the Judges (Conditions of Service) Act to prescribe emoluments by statutory instrument were overridden by the Emoluments Commission Act, 2022. Parliament was directed to amend the Act accordingly,” he said.
Mr Sangwa stated that by issuing the new SI under provisions already declared inconsistent with the Constitution, the President had disregarded the authority of the Constitutional Court. He warned that this undermines judicial independence and perpetuates non-compliance with constitutional directives.
He called on the Judiciary, Parliament, and the Emoluments Commission to take immediate action to regularise the emoluments process in line with the court’s judgement, uphold the court’s authority, and safeguard judicial independence.