Cabinet vote of no confidence cannot remove Scott from office – LAZ

The Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) says the country’s constitution does not provide for the removal an acting president by Cabinet through a vote of no confidence.

The Association’s observation follows the vote of no confidence which was recently passed by 14 Cabinet Ministers with the view of having acting president Dr. Guy Scott removed from his position for allegedly endangering the country’s security.

In a statement to Qfm News, LAZ Vice President Linda Kasonde has explained that an acting republican president can only be removed by the national Assembly through a two thirds majority vote.

Ms.Kasonde says this process is however initiated when it has been found by the majority of Cabinet Ministers that the acting president does not have sufficient mental or physical capacity to discharge the functions of his office.

She says it is then that an investigation is instituted through a medical board appointed by the Chief Justice after which the National Assembly makes the ultimate decision of whether to remove the acting president or not based on the findings of the investigation.

And Ms. Kasonde has also noted that going by article 33 (2) of the country’s constitution which states that all executive powers are vested in the republican president, the President is the one that preside over all Cabinet meetings.

She says the Cabinet quorum is therefore between the President and one other member as Cabinet members only advise the President who has the final say notwithstanding the advice rendered.

The LAZ vice president has further explained that in the ninety days prescribed in the constitution at a time that a substantive president dies and the vice president fills the vacant position, he has the powers to perform executive powers subject to limitations set in Article 38 of the constitution.

She says this entails that an acting president assumes the Cabinet functions of a substantive president.

Ms Kasonde states that Cabinet Ministers cannot therefore properly constitute a cabinet meeting in the absence of the acting or substantive president.