Former president Rupiah Banda could not take plea on Monday June 17, 2013 due to the absence of the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, Mutembo Nchito.
This is the matter in which Zambia’s former head of state stands charged for allegedly hiding nine light trucks valued at K471,000,000 or Kr 471,000 allegedly received as gratification in the run-up to the September 2011 elections.
Also absent were two other prosecutors, Dancewell Mwape Bowa from the Anti-Corruption Commission, ACC, and Dennis Simwinga from the Drug Enforcement Commission, DEC.
Kasama Principal Resident Magistrate Obister Musukwa sitting in Lusaka stood down the matter for 15 minutes when public prosecutors from the Zambia Police Lusaka Divisional Headquarters attempted to proceed.
Magistrate Musukwa said he found it unacceptable for the DPP and the rest of the state prosecution team not to be present in court even when the hearing date was agreed upon and known before hand. The visibly upset magistrate then stood down the matter and ordered the public prosecutors to find out the whereabouts of the DPP.
When the matter resumed after 15 minutes McQueen Zaza from the Anti-Corruption Commission stood in for Nchito, Bowa and Simwinga who are the state prosecutors in this case.
“I would like to apologise for coming late to the court, the defence and the accused person,” Zaza immediately told the court after having his name put on record.
He, however, informed the court that he was not the one having conduct of the matter, but the DPP and was therefore seeking an adjournment to July 8, 2013 for possible plea since no instructions had been received from the DPP.
This compelled magistrate Musukwa to say in a firm tone that he was very disappointed with the conduct of the state.
“I do not need to lecture what time court starts,” he said. “Both Bowa, Simwinga and the DPP knew about the date for plea. I am very disappointed with the action by the state. They should have been here even if instructions were not ready,” magistrate Musukwa said.
He cautioned that the court must never be made to wait and wondered why the state did not even have the courtesy to come to court.
“We can’t have such type of situations,” he said.
Magistrate Musukwa however adjourned the matter to July 8, 2013 and extended former president Banda’s police bond.
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