Maravi

Dr Mutesa criticises DPP’s handling of Chiluba’s case

Dr Mutesa criticises DPP’s handling of Chiluba’s case
Written by George Chellah
Wednesday, September 02, 2009 3:56:54 PM

ZAMBIANS for Empowerment and Development (ZED) president Dr Fred Mutesa yesterday said Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Chalwe Mchenga should have allowed former president Frederick Chiluba's case to be comprehensively dealt with.

Commenting on Mchenga's decision to withdraw the state's appeal against Chiluba's acquittal on corruption charges, Dr Mutesa said when Chiluba exposed State House tunnels, he sent a message that he was a champion of transparency.

"We in ZED have made transparency one of our core values against which leadership in the nation is to be evaluated. We believe that the loser in the Chiluba case is transparency which he himself purported to stand by when he was in office," Dr Mutesa said. "Dr Chiluba needed to put to rest the suspicions of those who feel that the course of justice was not well served by magistrate Chinyama's ruling."

He said it was not too late for Chiluba to explain to the nation.

"... for instance, how he came by the US $8 million which found its way into the government Zamtrop account. To silence his critics, Dr Chiluba just needs to explain who gave him the money and why," he said.

Dr Mutesa said his party also felt that the stir that followed the Task Force on Corruption's appeal of Chiluba's acquittal was unnecessary.

"The due process of the law should have been allowed to run its course. Had Dr Chiluba been convicted, we would have expected him to appeal," Dr Mutesa said. "In the same vein, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) should have allowed the Task Force's appeal to go all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary so that the case is comprehensively dealt with."

Dr Mutesa said ZED was equally appalled with the state's failure to come clean on the reasons behind the dismissal of former Task Force on Corruption chairman Max Nkole.

"The nation was first informed that Nkole's dismissal had to do with government's prerogative to renew or not to renew his contract which we were made to understand expired last year," Dr Mutesa said.

"President Banda's disclosure to Zambians living in Swaziland that Nkole was fired because of the move by the Task Force to appeal Dr Chiluba's acquittal is, therefore, to say the least, contradictory."

Labels: CHALWE MCHENGA, CHILUBA, CORRUPTION, DPP, FRED MUTESA, MAX NKOLE

posted by MrK @ 2:59 PM