The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) says it will make more arrests in the case of alleged abuse of Constituency Development Fund (CDF) against Mzimba North legislator Yeremiah Chihana (Alliance for Democracy-Aford).
The free-speaking legislator, who was arrested on Tuesday in Blantyre, walked to freedom on a court bail yesterday in Mzuzu.
freedom yesterday. | Joseph Mwale
During the court hearing in the Mzuzu Principal Resident Magistrate’s Court, ACB principal legal and prosecutions officer Daniel Nyasulu said following investigations, the ACB has reasonable belief that Chihana and others at M’mbelwa District Council in Mzimba committed some offences under the Corruption Practices Act (CPA).
He told the court that Chihana would not be taking a plea because other suspects involved in the case were yet to be arrested.
Said Nyasulu: “According to the law, we are supposed to bring him before court within 48 hours and state the reasons for his arrest. He has been informed of the reasons for the arrest and that was the reason for coming before court.
“But we still have other suspects who committed offences based on the same facts, so we would like to bring them together so that they take plea at the same time.”
Private practice lawyer Wapona Kita, who is representing Chihana, told the court that given the ACB’s stated position, there was no need to continue keeping his client in custody.
Thus, he applied for bail which principal resident magistrate Clemence Chamwenda granted on condition that he pays K1 million cash bond, one surety bonded at K10 million non-cash, report at ACB offices in Lilongwe every fortnight and surrender travel documents.
Initially, the ACB wanted two non-cash bonds, but the magistrate reduced it to one.
The ACB also expressed reservations with Chihana’s surety, his son Chakufwa, but the court dismissed the fears.
In an interview after the ruling, Nyasulu could not tell how many suspects are yet to be nabbed or when they would effect such arrests, but insisted that “we will bring the suspects to court”.
Chihana, who spent a night at Wezi Clinic in Mzuzu due to high blood pressure, arrived in court with a cannula on his left hand.
Based on the charge sheet, Chihana is accused of two counts of abuse of office and another of failure to declare interest.
In the first count, particulars are that on or around June to August 2022, Chihana, allegedly used K10 million from Constituency Development Fund (CDF) for his personal use.
The said money was supposed to be used for grading of Luhomero-Kasasile, Enukweni-Kavula-Malokotera and Bwengu-Katope roads by Northworks.
In the second count, Chihana allegedly requested M’mbelwa District Council to make payment of K15 million to Northworks being final payment from CDF for the grading of the above mentioned roads, allegedly with full knowledge that the said roads had not been graded and completed by Northworks.
