The High Court of Malawi has dismissed an application by former president Peter Mutharika’s personal bodyguard Norman Paul Chisale to refer his criminal case to the Chief Justice for certification as a constitutional matter.
Presiding judge Kondwani Banda ruled on Tuesday that the application lacked merit and was an attempt to delay ongoing proceedings in the magistrate’s court.
Chisale, who is facing charges of impersonation, presenting false information and intimidation dating back to 1996 and 2010, argued that the 28-year delay in prosecuting him violated his right to a fair trial under Section 42(2)(f) of the Constitution.
He further said the delay impaired his ability to defend himself and sought referral to the Constitutional Court.
But the State opposed the application, arguing that the High Court lacked jurisdiction and that Chisale’s claims were unfounded.
In his ruling, Banda acknowledged a gap in the law on the procedure for referring constitutional matters from subordinate courts, but affirmed the High Court’s inherent jurisdiction to address such applications.
He cited the precedent set in the case involving businessperson Joshua Chisa Mbele, saying in resolving matters from the magistrate’s courts, in the absence of the statutory provisions, the High Court “should allow itself to exercise limited flexibility only for proper conduct of the matter before it”.
Said the judge: “Further to this, caution must be taken to ensure that flexibility is exercised without unnecessary opening up to attempts to refer even undeserving matters to the Chief Justice.”
Banda said Chisale’s case did not meet the threshold for certification.
The judge further noted that the State had demonstrated that prosecution began in 2020 and that Chisale had failed to provide evidence supporting his claims of excessive delay.
In a telephone interview yesterday, Chisale’s lawyer Gilbert Khonyongwa said he was still consulting his client on the next course of action.
In January this year, Lilongwe Chief Resident Magistrate’s Court found Chisale, who is also Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) national youth director, with cases to answer.
