The Lusaka High Court has granted bail to former Finance Minister Katele Kalumba and his co-accused persons pending their appeal hearing in the Supreme Court.
This is in a matter in which the four had appealed against their five-year jail sentence slapped by the subordinate court but the high court had upheld the sentence saying their activities were marred with corruption.
Kalumba is jointly charged with former directors of the defunct Access Financial Services Limited (AFSL) Faustin Kabwe, Aaron Chungu and former Finance Permanent Secretary Stella Chibanda for corrupt activities during former President Frederick Chiluba’s regime.
High Court judge Evans Hamaundu granted the appellants bail and said their bail conditions should be attached with the same conditions they were given by the subordinate court.
“We have looked at the arguments by both parties and have considered their submissions, the court will not delay to consider their plight of waiting for the voluminous records to be processed and the delay may result in them serving half of the sentence.
“We therefore in our considered view think that their appeal is an exceptional and in that circumstance, the appellants shall therefore be admitted to bail on the same bail terms that were given by the lower court,” said judge Hamaundu.
And some of the bail conditions given to them by the subordinate court included the convicts’ surrendering their passports to the senior court clerk, raising two working sureties of established business and residents in Zambia.
The lower court also asked the four convicts to pay KR 500 to the court each in their own recognizance.
The four had been in prison since Monday after Judge in charge Jane Kabuka sitting with Mr Hamaundu upheld their five years jail sentence slapped on them by now Industrial Relations Court judge Edward Musona.
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