AFRICAN Parliamentarians’ Network Against Corruption Zambia Chapter president Cornelius Mweetwa says the High Court’s signing of a consent order between the state and Rupiah Banda’s lawyers to restore his immunity from prosecution is absurd.
Law Association of Zambia president George Chisanga last week said there was no provision in the Republican Constitution that allowed the court to restore immunity for a former president.
He said when he appeared on Power FM Radio’s Power and Politics programme that there was no provision under the amended Constitution which gave leave to the High Court to sign a consent order to restore the immunity of a former president.
Chisanga said LAZ was trying to understand the background to the order.
The Lusaka High Court has signed a consent order entered into by the state and Banda’s lawyers in which they have agreed to restore his immunity and stop prosecuting him.
This is in a matter where Banda sought judicial review of the decision of the Speaker of the National Assembly Dr Patrick Matibini to strip him of his immunity from prosecution.
According to the consent order, the state and Banda’s lawyers agreed that the decision by the Speaker be quashed and rendered null and void.
This follows Banda’s acquittal of abuse of authority of office involving a US$2.5 million government-to-government oil deal between Zambia and Nigeria.
On June 29, Ndola High Court deputy registrar Joshua Banda, sitting as Lusaka chief resident magistrate, said the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt to warrant placing the former president on his defence.
But Mweetwa said posterity would judge the PF and President Edgar Lungu for allowing the course of the law to be perverted in Banda’s case for political expedience.
“We as APNAC have been taken aback by the decision of the state to move to quash the decision of the National Assembly to strip former president Banda of his immunity when the legal channels to have him prosecuted for his alleged involvement in corruption, when he served as president have not been exhausted. As far as I am aware, the state has not appealed the matter in which Banda was acquitted of abuse of authority of office involving a US$2.5 million government-to-government oil deal between Zambia and Nigeria, the same case which they are now using as the basis for their action,” Mweetwa said. “The questions that beg answers are: why has the state decided to discontinue the legal processes against Banda? The questions that are ringing in people’s minds are that could the decision by the state to enter into an agreement with Banda, through his lawyers, to have his immunity restored before all the legal avenues are exhausted a reward to Banda for supporting President Lungu in the January 2015 elections? That is what people are asking themselves.”
He said it was absurd and immoral to call for restoration of Banda’s immunity when he also had pending cases in the courts of law.
“It is an act of treachery by the government because Mr Banda is still appearing in court in a matter where he is charged with two counts of corrupt practices relating to motor vehicles in the magistrates’ court and we are aware that by implication, the decision by the state to enter into a consent order with Banda’s lawyers agreeing to have his immunity restored will mean that even this particular case has been nullified. For us as APNAC, this is utter immorality on the part of the PF and the President, and it is absurd,” Mweetwa said.
“It is such sudden and non-progressive developments that are eroding the governance system in the country. It is such actions that smell of nothing but political expedience that made the Anti Corruption Commission director general Rosewin Wandi to resign from her position.”
He wondered what had changed considering that it was the PF that took the matter of Banda’s immunity to Parliament.
“What has changed about what the PF told the Zambians? Are they telling us that what they established against Banda when they went to Parliament had no facts and that it was a smoke screen and that they are probably embarrassed to appeal the matter? I think this is a serious indictment on the PF. It gives no hope to the fight against corruption even to lower sectors of this country and I am calling on the Zambians to question the government’s position on the fight against corruption,” said Mweetwa.
Sunday Post
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário