The main opposition candidate in the presidential elections on August 13 in Zambia, Brian Mundubile, has been arrested in the context of the treason charges brought against him during the electoral process, in which the current president, Hakainde Hichilema, emerged victorious.
Mundubile and his vice-presidential candidate, Makebi Zulu, were detained by security forces and remain in custody in a prison in the capital, Lusaka, where they are being interrogated by the authorities, according to the Zambian newspaper "The Lusaka Times."
Both opposition leaders fled after dozens of agents conducted a raid on August 14 at a property in Lusaka linked to Mundubile, in which former minister Mutotwe Kafwaya was shot dead and several opposition members were arrested, after the government accused the opposition of preparing insurgent activities.
After the operation, Mundubile's party stated that their leader was in a "safe place," and it was later revealed that he had taken refuge in a United Nations building. The arrest would have occurred after an agreement for his surrender to the security forces, according to the same source.
This episode adds to the authorities' decision to close the Supreme Court headquarters and other courts, including the Constitutional Court, on August 24, citing "security reasons," less than 24 hours before the deadline for Mundubile to file an appeal against the election results.
In the presidential elections, Mundubile obtained 38.5% of the ballots, while Hichilema surpassed 60% of the votes, allowing him to renew his mandate for another five years, after coming to power by winning the 2021 elections, in which he defeated then-head of state, Edgar Lungu.