Of the two courtrooms Brian Mundubile and Makebi Zulu are due before on Thursday, the one in Solwezi decides the smaller question, but it is the one that has produced a month of argument. News Diggers reported on Wednesday 4 November that the Solwezi High Court is scheduled to rule on Thursday 5 November on whether the seditious practices case against the NRPUP presidential candidate and his running mate should remain in Solwezi or be transferred to Lusaka.
The defence wants Lusaka. Its argument, as reported, is that the alleged offences were committed there and that both men were in the capital at the time. The case concerns Facebook posts of Friday 14 August, the day after the general election, about the counting of votes. Mr Mundubile is alleged to have posted that the NRPUP was leading according to its parallel vote tabulation and to have called on the Electoral Commission of Zambia to resume counting after it was suspended. Mr Zulu, according to an earlier account in the Zambian Observer that drew on News Diggers' reporting, is alleged to have posted that Mr Mundubile would address the nation and to have urged the public to stand by.
A month of jurisdiction
The venue fight began in the Solwezi Magistrate's Court. The Zambian Observer reported on Tuesday 6 October that the two men challenged that court's jurisdiction and asked for the case to be heard in Lusaka, arguing that witnesses would be easier to reach there, with supporters gathering outside the court when they appeared. The transfer question is now before the High Court in Solwezi.
The two men are also among the 18 applicants whose constitutional bail application on separate treason and terrorism-related allegations is before a three-judge panel of the Lusaka High Court at 09:00 the same morning. Zambia Monitor reported that the Lusaka panel chose 5 November as the only available date in part because the first and second applicants had another matter listed for Tuesday 3 November.
Journalists at the gate
The Daily Nation reported on Wednesday that the Zambia Free Press Initiative has condemned the reported harassment and obstruction of journalists covering the Solwezi High Court proceedings. Its founder, Joan Chirwa, described the alleged conduct of police and correctional service officers as unacceptable and warned that intimidation of journalists undermines press freedom. The Daily Nation's report carried no response from the police or the Correctional Service.
Confirmed vs. alleged
Confirmed: The Solwezi High Court has set Thursday 5 November for its ruling on the venue application (News Diggers). The charges concern Facebook posts of 14 August 2026 about the counting of votes (News Diggers, Zambian Observer). The Free Press Initiative has publicly complained about the treatment of journalists at the Solwezi court (Daily Nation).
Alleged or unverified: The sedition allegations themselves, which both men contest and which no court has yet tried; the FPI's account of harassment, on which the police and Correctional Service have not been reported as responding; and the outcome of Thursday's ruling.
Sources: News Diggers, “Mundubile, Makebi await ruling on where sedition case will be heard” (4 Nov 2026); Zambian Observer, “Take us to Lusaka court, for easy access to witnesses, demands Mundubile” (6 Oct 2026); Daily Nation, “FPI slams harassment of journalists at Solwezi court” (4 Nov 2026); Zambia Monitor, “Court rules no further adjournments in Mundubile, Zulu bail hearing” (29 Oct 2026).