Kasambara, 2 others await judgement
M
alawi Supreme Court of Appeal yesterday reserved its ruling in a case in which former minister of Justice and Attorney General Ralph Kasambara and two others are appealing their conviction on attempted murder and conspiracy.
Sitting in Lilongwe, the seven-judge panel of justices of appeal accorded both the applicants and the State one hour each to submit arguments.
The High Court in 2016 convicted and sentenced Kasambara alongside Pika Manondo and MacDonald Kumwembe for conspiracy and attempting to murder former Ministry of Finance budget director Paul Mphwiyo.
But the trio is challenging both the conviction and sentence for lack of sufficient evidence.
In an interview after the adjournment, one of the defence lawyers Michael Goba Chipeta, who is representing Manondo and Kumwembe, reiterated that there was no evidence to prove that these offences were committed.
He said: “If you read the judgement from the court below [the High Court, akuti [they say] it should never be referred to as the lower court, but the court below… You will see that it is all about inferences. The call log which they are dependent on does not really show that someone was at a place where the offence was committed.”
In a separate interview, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Steve Kayuni said the State still believes the High Court made the right decision and they look forward to the judgement of the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court is expected to deliver judgement on an unspecified date.
Kasambara was sentenced to 13 years imprisonment for conspiracy and attempted murder.
The court also handed down custodial sentences of 15 years and 11 years on Kumwembe and Manondo for the two counts of attempted murder and conspiracy to murder, respectively. Attempted murder carries a maximum of life imprisonment.
In 2018, Kasambara walked to freedom after justice of appeal Dunstain Mwaungulu, now retired, granted him bail. He had been in prison for one year and seven months.
In granting the bail, the judge observed that there seemed an apparent contradiction on finding Kasambara not guilty of the attempted murder charge and finding him guilty of the conspiracy to murder.
