Court summons OP chief to testify in Chiluba's case
Court summons OP chief to testify in Chiluba's caseBy Inonge Noyoo
Thursday May 08, 2008 [04:00]
THE Lusaka magistrate's court yesterday summoned Zambia Security Intelligence Services (ZSIS) director general Regis Phiri to testify in the matter where former president Frederick Chiluba is alleged to have stolen US $500,000.
Phiri's summoning followed Chiluba's demand that he be summoned to testify and produce the 1970 finance charter during his defence scheduled for next Monday. The finance charter gave guidelines on how the Zamtrop account was to be operated.
This is a case in which Chiluba is jointly charged with former Access Financial Services directors Faustin Kabwe and Aaron Chungu for six counts of theft involving US $500,000.
The trio is alleged to have stolen the money between 1998 and 1999.
According to summons to a witness filed in the criminal registry of the subordinate court, Phiri has been summoned to appear before Ndola High Court Deputy Registrar, Jones Chinyama on May 12.
Phiri was initially summoned to produce the same charter in the case where Chiluba and others are challenging the registration of the London High Court judgment.
On January 22 this year, Chiluba and his co-defendants in the London case applied to the Lusaka High Court to have Phiri subpoenaed to produce the financial charter before the court but he could not on grounds that he could only do so with the permission of President Levy Mwanawasa.
Chiluba's lawyers then wrote to President Mwanawasa asking him to allow Phiri to produce the financial charter before court. However, the President refused contending that Chiluba and others had a chance to cross-examine Phiri on the document in the London case but they refused to participate in its proceedings.
President Mwanawasa dismissed the application by Chiluba's lawyers as irregular saying a Zambian Court could not set aside a foreign judgment that had not yet been registered by the Zambian High Court.
He described as strange and an abuse of the court process the request for the production of the financial charter arguing that the current proceedings related to the registration of the London judgment and not a re-trial of the case.
President Mwanawasa added that there were security considerations in the financial charter and it could not be used anyhow. The matter comes up on May 12 when Chiluba is expected to open his defence.
posted by MrK @ 12:35 PM
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