Court premises in Lusaka and several other parts of Zambia were closed or sealed off on Monday as opposition candidate Brian Mundubile faced a reported deadline to challenge President Hakainde Hichilema’s re-election.
LUSAKA, Zambia — August 24, 2026 — Court premises in Zambia’s capital and other parts of the country were closed or placed under restricted access on Monday, with police deployed at several facilities, as attention focused on the deadline for a possible challenge to the country’s presidential election result.
A BBC report carried by Yahoo News said the affected premises included the High Court in Lusaka, the Supreme Court complex that also houses the Constitutional Court, and several local courts. Lawyers who arrived at some court premises were reportedly instructed to leave.
The closures come at an unusually sensitive moment in Zambia’s post-election period. Opposition presidential candidate Brian Mundubile has said he intends to challenge the result that gave incumbent President Hakainde Hichilema a second term.
According to the BBC report, Monday, August 24, is the final day for a petition against the presidential election result to be filed.
Judiciary cites security reasons
Local reports say a Judiciary administrative memorandum instructed staff not to report for work on Monday because of unspecified security concerns.
A Lusaka Times report said court premises in Lusaka, Ndola, Chipata and Livingstone were among those reported closed or inaccessible, with police deployed at several locations.
The Judiciary memorandum, as reported by multiple outlets, did not publicly explain the nature of the security threat or indicate when normal access would resume.
The official Judiciary of Zambia website had not, at the time of publication, provided a detailed public explanation on its main news page for the nationwide or multi-city restrictions reported by the media.
ELECTIONS
Zambia Courts Closed as Mundubile Faces Election Petition Deadline
Aug 24, 2026
Aug 24, 2026
5 min read
Published
Updated:
Court premises in Lusaka and several other parts of Zambia were closed or sealed off on Monday as opposition candidate Brian Mundubile faced a reported deadline to challenge President Hakainde Hichilema’s re-election.
LUSAKA, Zambia — August 24, 2026 — Court premises in Zambia’s capital and other parts of the country were closed or placed under restricted access on Monday, with police deployed at several facilities, as attention focused on the deadline for a possible challenge to the country’s presidential election result.
A BBC report carried by Yahoo News said the affected premises included the High Court in Lusaka, the Supreme Court complex that also houses the Constitutional Court, and several local courts. Lawyers who arrived at some court premises were reportedly instructed to leave.
The closures come at an unusually sensitive moment in Zambia’s post-election period. Opposition presidential candidate Brian Mundubile has said he intends to challenge the result that gave incumbent President Hakainde Hichilema a second term.
According to the BBC report, Monday, August 24, is the final day for a petition against the presidential election result to be filed.
Judiciary cites security reasons
Local reports say a Judiciary administrative memorandum instructed staff not to report for work on Monday because of unspecified security concerns.
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A Lusaka Times report said court premises in Lusaka, Ndola, Chipata and Livingstone were among those reported closed or inaccessible, with police deployed at several locations.
The Judiciary memorandum, as reported by multiple outlets, did not publicly explain the nature of the security threat or indicate when normal access would resume.
The official Judiciary of Zambia website had not, at the time of publication, provided a detailed public explanation on its main news page for the nationwide or multi-city restrictions reported by the media.
Why the timing matters
Mundubile finished second in the presidential election and rejected the declared result, alleging irregularities in the counting, transmission and declaration of votes.
The Associated Press reported that Hichilema was declared the winner with roughly 60% of the vote, while Mundubile received about 38%. AP also reported that the election period was marked by tensions, including disruptions to vote counting and post-election arrests involving opposition figures.
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Zambia’s Constitution gives a person seven days from the declaration of a president-elect to petition the Constitutional Court to nullify the election. The rule is set out in Article 103 of the Constitution of Zambia.
Because the Constitutional Court operates from the Supreme Court complex in Lusaka, restrictions at that site have prompted immediate questions about how urgent, constitutionally time-sensitive filings are being handled while physical access is restricted.
No evidence yet that closure was ordered to block a petition
Opposition-linked figures and commentators have alleged that the shutdown was intended to prevent Mundubile from filing his challenge.
There is currently no independently verified evidence establishing that the courts were closed specifically to block an election petition.
The reason publicly attributed to the closures in the reported Judiciary memorandum is security. Neither the BBC nor the other reports reviewed established that President Hichilema personally ordered the courts closed or that the Judiciary acted for the purpose of preventing Mundubile from filing.
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That distinction is important as the political dispute intensifies.
What happens next
Attention is now focused on whether Mundubile succeeds in lodging a petition, whether the Constitutional Court registry has alternative arrangements for urgent filings, and whether the Judiciary or Zambia Police Service provides a fuller explanation for the security restrictions.
A presidential petition could have consequences for the timing of Hichilema’s inauguration. The BBC reported that his inauguration is scheduled for September 1, 2026.
The court closures therefore add a new legal and political dimension to an already tense post-election period, with access to the judiciary now becoming part of the national debate over the disputed presidential result.
This is a developing story and may be updated as the Judiciary, police or opposition provide further information.
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