High Court adjourns Mpinganjira case till July 29

The High Court in Blantyre has adjourned the a case in which businessperson Thom Mpinganjira is accused of attempting to bribe Constitution  Court judges to rule in  favour  of former president Peter Mutharika in then presidential election  case to July 29.

The matter, which is being presided by judge Dorothy DeGabrielle, went to court on Tuesday  via Zoom video call conference as a Covid-19 precautionary measure.

Mpinganjira’s lawyers, Patrice Nkhono, said the defence are ready for case and expect the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB)  to furnish themthem with “all necessary documents so that we prepare our defence.”

ACB director general Reyneck Matemba said they  will submit documents to the defense.

Mpinganjira denies any wrong doing and his lawyer stressed that “anyone charged with any crime is presumed innocent  until proven otherwise by a competent court of law.”

In January this year, ACB arrested Mpinganjira after Chief Justice Andrew Nyirenda complained to the bureau that a business person and a public servant wanted to bribe the five judges who presided over the 2019 presidential election case.

The banker, who is currently on bail, is answering charges related to attempting to induce High Court judges Mike Tembo and Healey Potani to exercise their functions corruptly by offering K100 million.

He is also being accused of attempting to induce a public officer to abuse his office by attempting to persuade Tembo and Potani to accept the bribe and rule the election case in favour of former president Peter Mutharika and the Malawi Electoral Commission who were the respondents in the case.