High Court Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda has adjourned to July 18, 2022 an inter partes hearing of case involving some Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Members of Parliament (MPs) who are against appointment Mulanje South West legislator George Chaponda as leader of opposition. 

The adjournment follows consolidation of the case with another one which the incumbent opposition leader – Kondwani Nankhumwa presented before the High Court in Blantyre.

Confirming the development, one of Nankhumwa’s lawyers Cassius Chidothe said the merging of the matter means that it will be heard as one case.

He said: “We found out that when we were in court that the defendants had also applied to discharge of the injunction and the we also didn’t have all those documents.

So because of that it was not possible to proceed because we needed to be served with all these particular documents, so that if there any responses we would want to make, we can make.”

Chidothe added that the claimants want court’s interpretation on the legality of appointing Chaponda as opposition leader without engaging other lawmakers.

“Because the meeting that they took these decisions did not involve all the MPs that belong to the DPP and including Nankhumwa because they were not invited.

So we are basically raising the question is whether they can it is right in law not to invite people that are entitled to participate in political decisions and more specifically in this context to participate in appointing or removing a Leader of Opposition,” argued Chidothe.

According to an injunction which Judge Kenyatta granted earlier last week, Chaponda is restrained from acting or holding out as Leader of Opposition in or outside Malawi Parliament.