The Senior Resident Magistrate’s Court in Zomba yesterday sentenced Senior Chief Malemia to 21 years’ imprisonment for defiling a 15-year-old girl and procuring an abortion.
Senior Resident Magistrate Elijah Daniels ordered that the sentence be backdated to March 25, 2026, when Malemia was arrested.
Malemia, 34, whose real name is Lloyd Clement, was convicted of having sexual intercourse with the minor and procuring an abortion between 2025 and this year.
him to prison. | Kondwani Nyondo
He appeared visibly shaken as he briefly faced cameras before being escorted to prison. Dressed in an Arsenal jersey and faded jeans, he avoided eye contact with his two wives, relatives, fellow traditional leaders and villagers who had gathered for the sentencing.
Clement was installed as Traditional Authority Malemia in 2018 at the age of 26 before then-president Peter Mutharika elevated him to Senior Chief later that year, making him one of Malawi’s youngest senior traditional leaders.
Before his arrest, he had built a national profile as a campaigner against child marriages, child abuse and gender-based violence. Last year, he was named Girl Child Champion alongside Senior Chief Chikowi.
In passing sentence, Daniels said the court had considered several aggravating factors, including Malemia’s position as a traditional leader, the repeated sexual abuse, the victim’s age and the physical and emotional harm she suffered.
The magistrate dismissed the defence’s plea for a five-year custodial sentence. The defence had argued that Malemia’s position as Senior Chief should not be treated as an aggravating factor because the chieftaincy was separate from him as an individual.
However, the court held that it could not ignore the responsibilities and influence that accompany traditional leadership.
Daniels further found that Malemia knowingly procured abortion medication for the victim despite the danger it posed to her life and repeatedly gave her money after sexually abusing her, making her a “perpetual victim”.The court, however, took into account that Malemia was a first offender and relatively young, reducing the cumulative sentence from 30 years to 21 years as an act of mercy.
Senior State Advocate Narai Longwe said the State was satisfied with the sentence on the first count but would study the judgment before deciding whether to take any further action on the second count.
“This is what we prayed for on the first count. At the moment, we would not like to comment much. We will respect the court’s decision regardless,” she said.
Defence lawyer Patrick Debwe, who had sought a lighter sentence on the basis that Malemia was a first offender, said he was satisfied with the court’s decision.
