Hundreds gather at ACB, boo Chaponda
Hundreds of people yesterday spent hours outside Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) offices in Blantyre waiting to see former Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development George Chaponda who was summoned by the graft busting body.
ACB arrested Chaponda earlier in the day alongside his two accomplices for their role in the Zambia maize procurement deal, commonly referred to as Maizegate.
He handed himself over to ACB around 8.20am riding a red Range Rover registration MJ 7541 accompanied by his personal body guard. He was later joined by his two lawyers—Jai Banda and Frank Mbeta.
As the news of his arrest started spreading, scores of people started flocking to the offices, the first being his brother Pastor Willie Chaponda and his wife.
They were later joined by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) regional governor for the South Charles Mchacha and his treasurer Ngozi Harawa.
As early as 8.15am, the number of people started soaring and by lunch hour close to 300 people had swarmed the area
The crowd mobbed his vehicle while chanting “Wakuba wakuba mtulutseni timuone [We want to see the thief] ”, among other insulting songs.
The gang followed the ACB vehicle carrying Chaponda registration MG 738 AC for a distance of about 100 metres without fearing the police who were escorting Chaponda.
