Magistrate refuses to recuse herself: Magalasi fails to take plea
Lilongwe magistrate Shyreen Chirwa has refused to recuse herself from former CEO for Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (MERA) Collins Magalasi criminal trial, she announced in court Friday.
Magalasi is charged with abuse of office and fraud.
He is accused of abusing the authority of his office. He allegedly paid K10.5 million as accommodation for former ruling DPP officials at Kanjedza Lodge, Oasis Hotel and Heritage Serendib between July and August 2018.
Lawyer Andrew Kaonga representing Magalasi asked the presiding magistrate Chirwa to opt out of the case for alleged bias by among others, refusing the defence lawyer an adjournment on health grounds.
However, the director of public prosecution Steven Kayuni who is leading the State argued that the defence “is just full of imaginations” and just wants to buy more time.
But dismissed the application for recusal. saying it was more untenable to suggest there is an appearance of bias as such allegations were without evidence.
After that, Magalasi in the dock was expected to take plea to the charges but asked court for more time to be guided by his lawyer the legal clarity of his charges.
“I am an economists and not a legal person and I do not understand some of the terms of the charges,” said Magalasi.
“For example, what does ‘abuse of office’ mean?” he asked.
Chirwa granted Magalasi his wishes and set Monday next week as the date he would enter his plea in the case.
Utter nonsense and waste of court time .
A maize field on Court premises Malawi sadzatheka
That is when you see that Malawi remains a Banana Republic. Where you see an Attorney General Challenging the President that he ca not be fired. Malawi will never develop, let us forget it. Our problems are leaders we put in power. Most of them come from a background of poverty and ascending to these sits is a big surprise. That is why you see that the whole family gets employed at the State House.
What other plausible explanation can one ask for? This one on its own is crystal clear!!!
Uyu uyu Magalasi uyu asationjeze ndithu, where is Cash Madam hiding?
Just pay back the money u stole from Malawians rather than wasting our time.
Magalasi just showed that he is clever. Malawians tend to think that they know it all.
CEO and he doesn’t know what abuse of office means? Malawian people have been conned not only by this debacle but by placing a fool in position of CEO of MERA. Time to call out all the criminals that want to just sit in high positions so they can suck the country dry. Malawi needs dedicated hard working and patriotic people, not lazy blood suckers.
He knows but he is entitled to consult his lawyer to guide him understand the inner legal details about abuse of office.
If he says he doesn’t know, who are you to say he knows, as if you can read this man’s mind?
Any person who studied English as a subject and used the same to communicate through his/ her studies from Secondary school certificate to Bachelors Degree to Masters degree like in the case of Magalasi should be able to understand the simple word / term “abuse” of office.When it comes to this word/ term applied in a legal jargon, then it becomes different hence the reason for his seeking an advice from a lawyer.
ma degree ogulawo? aculukanatu
In other words, he wants to consult on how he can lie kuti apewe chilango.