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Push for DPP’s resignation, Citizens Forum urges LAZ

Push for DPP’s resignation, Citizens Forum urges LAZ
By Patson Chilemba
Sat 07 May 2011, 04:01 CAT

THE new LAZ should lead the way in mounting pressure on Chalwe Mchenga to go, says Simon Kabanda. Kabanda, who is Citizens Forum executive director, said people had high expectations for the new Musa Mwenye-led Law Association of Zambia.

He said the position taken by the previous Stephen Lungu-led LAZ for Director of Public Prosecution Mchenga to vacate office should be upheld and effected.

“We are happy with the people that LAZ has put into office. So what we would want to urge them is that they should uphold the decision that was passed by the previous LAZ executive regarding the fate of the DPP Mchenga,” Kabanda said.

“We want them to be putting pressure. This new executive must ensure that they put pressure to ensure that the decision is effected. And this is what we expect from them, nothing less than that.”

Kabanda said not only had the image of the Judiciary been tainted because of political interference from the Executive, people also had a lot of questions on the Judiciary because of people like Mchenga.

He said LAZ should work towards restoring the image of the Judiciary, and one of the ways towards achieving that was pushing judicial officers like Mchenga out of the way.

Kabanda said Mchenga had committed a lot of injustices against the people of Zambia by trying to get in the way of justice over important cases like the attempt to free convicted Kashiwa Bulaya and the decision to withdraw an appeal on former president Frederick Chiluba’s acquittal.

He said illegality should not be allowed to continue rearing its ugly head in judicial offices.

“There is a general perception, and I want to underline this, the general perception in the country is that the Executive has an influence on the decisions the Judiciary makes. Now that perception should not be proved right, the principal actors like the DPP should go so that the image of the Judiciary can be restored,” said Kabanda.

Last year, LAZ came up with a position for Mchenga to resign over assertions that the Executive had usurped his powers.

President Banda had disclosed during one of the meetings that he stopped an appeal in the matter where Chiluba was acquitted by the magistrates’ court over corruption charges.

Labels: CHALWE MCHENGA, DPP, LAZ, SIMON KABANDA

posted by MrK @ 5:46 AM