Thom Mpinganjira dubious midnight bail review this week

Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) director general Reyneck Matemba says he expects the High Court review results  of  Zomba Magistrate’s Court, which saw financial services business guru Thomson Mpinganjira controversially released from police custody at midnight , on Monday or Tuesday.

Matemba said as of now, he cannot take legal action on Mpinganjira unless Judge Dorothy Nyakaunda Kamanga makes the review.

“I am also waiting for the review. I think we will know the results on Monday or Tuesday,” said Mpinganjira.

Zomba principal resident magistrate Ben Chitsakamile cancelled a warrant of arrest for Mpinganjira which the ACB had effected on Wednesday, January 22 issued by a chief resident magistrate in Lilongwe.

Mpinganjira is allegedly involved in an attempt to bribe the Judges that are preparing judgement in the presidential election case was released from Blantyre Police Station around midnight, after his lawyers obtained the order at Zomba Magistrate’s Court quashing the warrant of arrest.

Malawi Law Society (MLS), through its president Burton Mhango, said Section 96 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code provides that where a warrant has been issued, it shall remain in force until it is executed or it is set aside by the same court which issued it, hence the anomaly aspect coming in.

Mpinganjira—the group chief executive officer of FDH Financial Holdings Limited—  arrest came barely nine days after ACB kept under wraps two names of suspects in the alleged bribery attempt of High Court judges in the presidential election nullification petition case.

In the elections case, two of the presidential candidates in the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections—UTM’s Saulos Chilima (first petitioner) and Malawi Congress Party candidate Lazarus Chakwera court to nullify presidential election results over alleged irregularities, especially in the results management system.(second petitioner)—want the

Incumbent President Peter Mutharika of Democratic Progressive Party, who was declared winner of the elections, is the first respondent with Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC as the second respondent in the case.

The five-judge panel of the High Court of Malawi, sitting as the Constitutional Court, concluded hearing the matter on December 20 2019 and are expected to deliver judgement on Friday this week.

The judges hearing the case are Healey Potani, Ivy Kamanga, Dingiswayo Madise, Redson Kapindu and Mike Tembo.