Mussa, Munthali judgement next Thursday
Former minister of Information Henry Mussa and his then director of Information Gideon Munthali will be sentenced next Thursday for crimes they were convicted of last October.
High Court Judge Patrick Chirwa on Thursday in Lilongwe adjourned the judgement of the two to next week after hearing submissions from both State and defence lawyers.
Mussa and Munthali, who were arrested in connection with the disappearance of 10 computers and a genset donated to the ministry by Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (Macra), were convicted in October 2022 of conspiracy to commit a felony, theft by public servant and receiving stolen items.

In its submissions, the State argued that the offences were pre-meditated, arguing that there was proper planning and execution of the offence, as evidenced by WhatsApp messages.
But in mitigation, lawyers for the two Kalekeni Kaphale and Powell Nkhutabasa asked the court to consider giving the convicts a non-custodial sentence, considering that they served the nation as public servants; refunded the money for the gadgets; and have been in custody for the last four months.
He added that Mussa’s advanced age may not match with prison conditions.
Nkhutabasa also asked the court to exercise leniency for the two, saying they were first-offenders, and that Mussa was in ill health.
But the State asked the court to give the two stiff penalties to deter other public servants from engaging in similar conduct.
Chirwa then asked for few clarifications from the defence on the points they raised before adjourning the case to 2.30pm next Thursday.
In an interview, Nkhutabasa said the defence is hoping for a good outcome.
The State declined to grant interviews.
Soon after adjournment, Mussa and Munthali looked composed and made no attempt to avoid cameras as they did on the day of their conviction