Zambian police have summoned opposition leader Brian Mundubile for questioning over alleged threats to national security, escalating tensions following the country’s disputed presidential election.
President Hakainde Hichilema was declared the winner of the August 13 vote with about 60% of ballots, securing a second term in office. However, opposition parties have challenged the result and accused authorities of manipulating the election.
Two independent observer reports found indications that Hichilema’s vote tally may have been inflated, although both concluded that the discrepancy was not large enough to overturn his victory. Hichilema has denied allegations of electoral fraud.
Mundubile, who finished second and has said he intends to challenge the result in court, has since gone into hiding amid a widening security crackdown on opposition figures.
Police said in a statement that they wanted to question Mundubile and his running mate, Makebi Zulu, over what authorities described as links to activities that could threaten or undermine national security.
According to police, the two opposition figures had sought protection “under international law with a known international organisation.”
The summons follows a security raid last Friday on a property where Mundubile had been staying. Eleven people, including several of his associates, were arrested after authorities accused them of possessing materials allegedly connected to plans for an armed insurrection.
Former minister Mutotwe Kafwaya was killed during the operation after police said officers became involved in an exchange of gunfire.
Authorities have yet to announce formal charges or publicly present evidence supporting the claims of an insurrection plot, prompting criticism from international organisations and opposition supporters.
Mundubile has previously rejected the accusations against his camp as fabricated.
The confrontation comes at a sensitive moment for Zambia, which has historically been regarded as one of Southern Africa’s more stable democracies.
Nicole Beardsworth, a politics lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, said the scale of the post-election confrontation was highly unusual for Zambia, particularly given expectations before the vote that Hichilema would comfortably secure another term.
The opposition faces an additional time constraint, with parties having until early Tuesday to lodge a formal court challenge against the election results.
Analysts say the arrests of senior opposition figures and the summons targeting Mundubile could complicate efforts to prepare and file that legal challenge before the deadline.