Car donated by Joyce Banda dragged into CCAP wrangles: Chimesya told to surrender Nissan Serena

Blantyre Synod of the Church of Central Africa Presbytery (CCAP) which dismissed its prison chaplain the Reverend Stanley Chimesya for being critical to general secretary the Reverend Alex Maulana has now demanded Chimesya to surrender the car which was donated by former president Joyce Banda.

The Synod through their attorneys Chisanga and Tomoka has written Chimesya that he should surrender the motor vehicle registration number BT 1007, Nissan Serena to the Synod who they say are the legitimate owners of the car as it was given to him as prison chaplain and not to him personally.

According to the letter, the lawyers advise Chimesya to surrender the vehicle and its keys and everything to the Synod by the end of business of 8th February, 2016 before 5pm failing which the Synod through their lawyers will proceed with court action.

“We have been instructed by the C.C.A.P Blantyre Synod (hereinafter referred to as our client), to demand from you the immediate return of motor vehicle registration number BT 1007, Nissan Serena. Instructions are that you were assigned the motor vehicle to facilitate the smooth operations of your duties as Prison Chaplain in the department of Prison Chaplaincy.

“We would like to bring to your attention the fact that the motor vehicle belongs to the Synod and it has never belonged to you. By taking away the motor vehicle from the Synod, you have assumed ownership of the motor vehicle and converted the same to your own use without the authority of the Synod. We therefore demand that you surrender the motor vehicle to the Secretariat of the Synod by 17:00 hours today the 8th day of February, 2016, failure to which we have instructions to institute proceedings against you to recover the same without referring to you whatsoever, “reads the letter from the Chisanga and Tomoka representing Blantyre Synod .

Reverend Chimesya has since maintained his stand that the vehicle was a personal donation from then Banda when he visited her at the State House and that he can’t give it to Rev Maulana whom he accused of being behind the recall of it.

He accused Maulana of victimising him for his stand against honesty through an open letter which he exposed what he called “church gate” deals in the synod.

Chimesya wrote a letter to the general secretary last month detailing a number of the synod’s shortfalls on which he demanded clarifications from Maulana.

In the letter dated 19th January 2016, Chimesya queried the synod’s bank overdraft worth millions of kwacha at one commercial bank accumulated in 2015 when it collects millions of kwacha in form of offerings, rentals of its premises and other sources.

Nyasa Times has since established that Reverend Chimesya has since surrendered the vehicle back to Banda through her close relations at her home so that if the Synod wants the car then should write her.

Chimesya was replaced as the synod’s prison chaplain with the Reverend Mathero Msatithe of Nchalo CCAP congregation in Chikwawa.