Lawyer Nankhuni living dangerously, accused of swindling clients
Lilongwe based lawyer Gift Nankhuni is watching his back all the time as gangsters have put a price on his head after the man of the rob allegedly swindled well known and respected kingpins in the city.
Insiders said Nankhuni is alleged to have “swindled” three ‘businessmen’ of more than K25 million he collected from another set of ‘businessmen’ from the city when he wrote them a ‘demand’ letter from his clients.
“A deal had gone sour and these three businessmen (names withheld) contacted Nankhuni to seek legal redress and Nankhuni promptly sent a demand letter to the other two underworld ‘businessmen’(names also withheld).
“Fearing that the matter would go to court and expose their business, the two underworld bosses agreed to pay through Nankhuni K25 million in cash which the lawyer did not pass on to his clients,” said an insider privy to the dealings.
Eventually Nankhuni’s clients knew that their lawyer was keeping their K25 million but he denied ever receiving the money from the two underworld bosses and that was when things got out of hand.
“Nankhuni has been living in fear. He is no longer socializing as they we he used to because he is aware that gangsters have been set on him,” said a pal to the lawyer.
Nankhuni is said to have been whisked away by his close friends Robert Bakuwa and Khumbo Nyirenda last week at a drinking joint in Area 49 Lilongwe when a gang arrived at the place looking for the lawyer.
The private practice lawyer could not be reached for comment.
In Malawi, lawyers are currently the only people allowed to pay out compensation money.
There have been several reported cases of lawyers not passing on to clients the compensation money they won for them in court, and several newspapers have been picking up cases and highlighting the problem.
Malawi Law Society (MLS) says it is in the process of reviewing complaints lodged.
MLS president John Suzi-Banda is on record saying that they are investigating 400 cases that date back to 2008 where lawyers are accused of duping clients’ of money for compensation while others are accused of overcharging.
“There is a special committee that is reviewing all the complaints that were made lodged and we have special funding to clear the cases,” Suzi-Banda said.
He said the suspected lawyers will undergo a disciplinary hearing chaired by the Solicitor General starting next month and that MLS will be putting aside a week every month for the hearings.
Lawyers will also be allowed to have a legal representation during the hearings, he said.
There are about 400 cases being investigated, according to MLS president.
In critical theft cases, lawyers risk having their licences revoked as the disciplinary committee will be entitled to recommend to the Attorney General to make an application before the Chief Justice to have the lawyers’ licences revoked.
Suzi-Banda said allegations of embezzlement of clients’ funds are “unacceptable.”
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Am a South African working in Malawi. I find Malawians incomprehensibly tolerant. I dont know whether people here are peace loving or plain foolish. In my country lawyer no lawyer if you swindle me i kill you. Why should parliament allow lawyers to be the only people to collect money? Wake up Malawians this is 2016.
Jealous people dzimavubwa. Mabodza basi you envy these guys. Pamalawi sitizatukuka too much pull him down.
Gift ndi Gilbert kukonda kunyenga…….ati kumadzitama kuti ife a Mboba……ma lawyer ofewa muchiuno……koma mbali inayi mukubela anthu. Mudzafera pa nyini anyamata inu! Timakutsatanitu!
Anyanya kupwala mahule Nankhuni yu ndi mzake uja Gilbert Khonyongwa. Ife timadabwa zibwenzi zili thoooo mu kawalemu ndi mwa mgona. Ma lawyer kuchinda mwa unve!!!!
Nakhuni is a crooked lawyer. I am a living proof. He did to me . La 40 lafika.
I think Malawi Law Society is only symbolic sympathizer to the offended victims of the day and not realistic at all. I understand they are less than 300 lawyers in Malawi, and Suzi Banda says they are 400 cases of such nature under investigation, this simply means that all our legal chaps have a case to answer in real sense. For instance last year I lodged a complaint against John Tennyson and Associates of Mzuzu about its misrepresentation in a civil cause and in default Judgment between Osisa of south africa and myself Samuel Lwara and five unknown persons. Osisa strongly rejects that it directed this legal firm in malawi to represent it in anyway. And between 2008 I have visited Mzuzu High court more than 40 times and the file kept on missing at the registry. Upon my effort and wisdom somebody from the same legal firm photo copied the file for me. It pained me that the case was entering hearing on the same days I was vusiting the High court and discovered that I was in default Judgment. I do not know and never interacted with the people I appear with on the default judgment to date. I have gone almost to all what someone has just mentioned but to no avail or no feed back at all. My last hope is MHRC now. I am currently serving a three years suspended sentence by Mzimba First Grade magistrate based on the default judgment in name of osisa. In 2010 I served a three months imprisonment on similar document. Survived four shooting ambush by unknown assailants and neverever launched any investigations over the matter. Arrested by mzimba police more than 30 times on similar default Judgment by this John Tennyson. Whats else now and where else to go? God knows. I quote what Peter Tosh sang; ” You can run but you can’t hide”.
Gift Nakhuni is a quiet and and honest man please try to findout , amwene a number one you are an Idiot. every business has got its complication…. now amalawi THE GANGS ARE LOOKING FOR NANKHUNI potumidwa ndi anthu so called clients dziwani NO MAN IS UNTOUCHABLE… We received our compasation through this handsome boy Nankhuni… i dont understand why people should published such false allegation against him ……
MLS is incompetent. Bungwe lofunikira koma lotsogozedwa ndi ana siliwoneka phindu lake. Anthu akuberedwa ndalama zawo pamalawi pano and complaints have been lodged with the MLS but to no avail. Zomwezi basi zokankhirana kunsana!! Mukuononga legal profession chifukwa chosunga mbavazi zidzibera anthu osauka ndiosalakwa!! Lawyers are officers of the court; where the MLS is deliberately paying a deaf ear, rush to the High Court akawapange debar anthu ngati amenewa.
Without necessarily commenting on the issue at hand, Mr. Editor, please note that this story lacks balance and falls short of many characteristics of a good and balanced article. It sound more of a fabrication. First, the issue has not come from the people who have been swindled although the writer claims to have their names but couldn’t their side of the story. Next the people who have paid through the lawyer have not been asked to explain and the writer claims to have their names. And thirdly, the very swindler, Mr. Nankhuni could not be reached for his comment. This is very strange and in the absence of proper evidence as many good journalists do, it can only be viewed as one intended to score something against the lawyer
Mr. Editor please ensure that stories are properly balanced before they are published
If you know he is being hunted by gangsters why mention names of his close friends who whisked him away it seems the writer wants to put the two on wanted list too, bad reporting and then u are hiding the names of the hunters? Biased reporting.
illl
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“Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.” – Thomas Jefferson
Lawyers carry themselves around as wise people but lack honesty yet honesty is a mark of wisdom? Ha! Paradoxocal!
More paradoxical however, is that lawyers live their lives as if money is all that matters in life yet the ultimate goal of life is happiness – we work, do business, do school, marry, make friends so that ultimately we can be happy.
. . . But having more money does not guarantee you happiness, only a life of material comfort which is a completely different phenomenon from happiness.
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“What do we live for, if not to make life less difficult for each other?” – Geroge Elliot
Fate has it, that some people spend their life interacting with machines and transformers e.g. engineers or with rocks e,g, geologists; but what can be more fulfilling than helping people who have been wronged?
. . . who, having been in that position; wrongs the people who have been wronged, by swindling their money; but only someone who has no morals. Malawian lawyers long lost their moral compass!
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Cases of lawyers swindling clients’ money are commonplace but the Malawi Law Society has been seen to have disciplined not even one of their own. Sad!
. . . What happened to the disbarment of one lawyer, so as to warn the rest?
Kungoyendera mwambi oti . . . “Akakhala pa khate sapheka khoswe?” Kulakwa!
It seems almost everything about Malawi is wrong! No wonder we are the poorest of God’s creation!
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Victim Sankho,
The story involving Lawson & co. is pathetic.
Try to direct the victim to:
– Ombudsman
– Legal aide
– Atorney general OR
– minister of women, children & disability.
Just try to do so friend and you will have done the will of God!
Nose mukupanga comment khanii mudziwe kuti khanii ndiyaboza sizoona
Anyamata a pa Town amenewo. Town sisunga makape
I am not his Legal Counsel but I know kuti some people have received their compensation through Gift Nankhuti. What has gone wrong this time? I know my friend who received a huge sum of money from Mr Nankhuni without difficulties. May be we should hear from Mr Nankhuni, who I know is following the story. Mr Nankhuni tell us the truth. You are young and handsome. Kwatani kumpanda?
I’m in grieved to recall a young son of Kondowi who is now paralyzed from waist downwards due to having been hit by a highly speeding vehicle some years ago. The boy was compensated by the car insurance cover through Lawson and co.company of Raph Kasambara. The boy cannot afford to meet health bills let alone afford education fees. The money, in millions of kwacha, was swindled by Kasambala’s company.
The parents of the boy, based at Chinkhoma Trading Centre, Kasungu, are not educated hence do not know where to go for remedy or what to do. They were once threatened by Kasambala when he was Minister of Justice and attorney General that if they pursue the case they would be arrested. They are really suffering with the boy.
Recently he was admitted at Kamuzu Central Hospital for 2 months for the heart breaking wounds which he developed due to ever lying down without feeling anything on his lower half part of his body.
Please offices of good will up there follow-up this case.
Very sad. The legal profession in Malawi is a disgrace. Soon or later, the public trust on the legal profession will be forever gone. 400 cases not yet invsstigated. Its a shame.
That’s why this idiot posted on the Internet that he dreamed that he picked a bag full of foreign money , yet he is a thief like his father who got sacked in Malawi police in early nineteen eighties because of stealing government money by tricks together with the Khararia , American Stores and many Asians . He will die poor like his father who is rotting in Ncheu . Chidzukulu cha Kachiwiya ameneyo .