Africa-Press – Zambia. The Lusaka High Court has granted former Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Malanji a K10 000 kwacha bail and ordered him to provide two working sureties.
Lusaka Lawyer Makebi Zulu has confirmed that his client has been given bail in a ruling delivered in the chambers. Mr. Zulu said the demand by the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) for Mr. Malanji to give them documents they intend to use in the trial has been set aside as being illegal, adding that the same conditions given to Mr. Malanji apply to former Secretary to the Treasury Fredson Yamba.
Mr. Malanji is jointly charged with Mr. Yamba for willful failure to comply with procedure on supplementary expenditure. He is also charged for being in possession of properties, which are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of crime.
Meanwhile, Patriotic Front (PF) officials in Kitwe’s Kwacha Constituency have threatened to protest over the arresting of former Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Malanji for corruption allegations.
The Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) on Tuesday arrested Mr. Malanji ,the Kwacha Member of Parliament, together with former Secretary to Treasury Dr. Fredson Yamba in Lusaka.
Mr. Malanji is charged for alleged corruption activities suspected to have happened between January 1st, 2021, and August 31, 2021. PF officials led by Kwacha Constituency Chairman Alex Chembo said the party is surprised and saddened over Mr. Malanji’s arrest and detention.
Mr. Chembo, the immediate past Kwacha Ward Councilor, said it was unfortunate that Mr. Malanji has remained in detention since his arrest on Tuesday without appearing in court.
He said Mr. Malanji’s arrest amounts to political persecution and is aimed at drifting people’s attention away from matters of development like the economy.
“As PF officials and members in Kwacha constituency, we are not happy over the arrest of Honourable Joe Malanji and why they are not taking him to court,” Mr. Chembo said.
According to a statement released to the media, DEC said Mr. Malanji and Dr. Yamba were arrested for authorizing the transfer of Money to the Zambian Turkish Embassy without the following procedure.
“Kwacha and Kitwe will rise and walk as far as Lusaka to oppose this kind of persecution. These arrests are getting out of hand and we are not happy at all,” said Mr. Chembo who was flanked by Kwacha Ward Chairman Joseph Chileshe.
“If they have found Mr. Malanji with a case let him appear in court. It is not right that they have kept our Honourable in police since he was arrested on Tuesday,” Mr Chileshe added.
The former Foreign Affairs Minister is charged for alleged corruption activities which happened between January 1st, 2021, and August 31, 2021. The court has set December 9, 2021 as the date on which the ruling will be made.
In this matter, Mr. Malanji is in the first count jointly charged with former Secretary to the Treasury, Fredson Yamba on charges of willful failure to comply with the law when they transferred over K154.2 million to the Zambian mission in Turkey without following the law on supplementary expenditure as provided by article 203 of the Zambian constitution.
On the other charges Mr. Malanji is accused of possession of various properties reasonably suspected to be proceeds of crime among them a helicopter which he purchased at 1.4 Million Dollars.
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