DPP’s Wa Jeffrey loses cool in court: Claims K70bn from Malawi govt

The governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) secretary general Grezelder Jeffrey wa Jeffrey on Monday  lost her cool in court and her emotions unfolded after she  was taken to task by Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB)  director Reyneck Matemba in a matter which she is claiming K70 billion compensation from government.

Wa Jeffrey filed the claim following her acquittal in the K187 million Ministry of Education scam during the Bakili Muluzi administration between 1994 and 2004.

The head of the graft-busting body is defending the matter on behalf of government.

At High Court in Lilongwe, Matemba cross examined Wa Jeffrey and three others on claims related to loss of business, defamation, false imprisonment and malicious prosecution, among other claims.

Wa Jeffrey in visibly fused tone told the court that she was traumatised after the arrest when she was breastfeeding.

She also said her children were learning in good private school but were forced to relocate to public schools and that “they could be somewhere by now.”

ACB czar has since been granted his prayer to have a full version of the audit report of March 2000 which was relied up on the acquittal in 2010.

“The defence only picked part of the reports of the audit. For us we need the whole audit report which will give us a whole picture.

 

“The report will give a complete record of the criminal proceedings. Its only when you have a complete court record that you will have a full picture of what transpired,” Matemba said.

The outspoken DPP secretary general and about 50 others were implicated in the scandal exposed through an audit report of March 2000.

The report alleged that Wa Jeffrey’s business connived with some officers from the divisional education office in Kasungu to defraud millions of public funds.

However, the court later acquitted Jeffrey and together with three others she took government to court following the actions and decisions made by the ACB and the National Audit Office (NAO).

Out of the 55 people who were implicated in the scam, only four— including former Ministry of Education principal secretary Sam Safuli—were convicted and jailed, although two of the convictions were later set aside by the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal.

Safuli was sentenced to two years imprisonment for aiding and abetting theft of K100 000.

The rest of the suspects, including civil servants and several contractors, had their cases dropped or were acquitted due to lack of sufficient evidence.

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