Patriotic Front(PF) member and former National Democratic Congress(NDC) leader Chishimba Kambwili and Former United Party for National Development Chilanga member of parliament Keith Mukata are among the people that have been pardoned by President Edgar Lungu in last acts as republican president.
In October last year, Mr. Kambwili was sent to jail for 1 year, but appealed his sentence and has been on a K 300 000 cash bail pending his appeal since. In a case in which Chilufya Tayali was a key witness, Mr. Kambwili was charged with three counts of forgery, uttering a false document, and giving false information to a public officer.
It is alleged that in October 2013, with intent to defraud or deceive, Kambwili allegedly forged a ‘No change return’(companies form 71) purporting to show that it was genuinely signed by his son Mwamba when it was not.
Lusaka Principal resident magistrate David Simusamba jailed Mr. Kambwili for 1 year for forgery and another year for uttering a false document. Magistrate Simusamba ruled that the accused person was behind the fictitious person called Mwamba Chishimba and therefore found him guilty of the charge. The two sentences were supposed to run concurrently, meaning he will only serve a year.
His lawyer, Musa Mwenye State Counsel pleaded with the magistrate to exercise leniency on Mr. Kambwili as he is a family man.
UPND Member of Parliament Keith Mukata also got the presidential pardoned, after his sentence was communicated to life improsonment. In 2018, Chilanga UPND Member of Parliament Keith Mukata was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to death by hanging while his girlfriend Charmaine Musonda was acquitted.
Lusaka High Court Judge Susan Wanjelani convicted Mukata and acquitted Charmaine Musonday when she delivered judgment in the matter where the two were accused of murdering Namakau Kalila Kwenda, a security guard at Mukata’s law firm.
Justice Wanjelani ruled that the fact that three cartridges were found inside the gate confirms that the deceased was shot by a person face to face.
She said it is established that the wound was caused by a gunshot from Mukata but the question is whether there was any malice forethought. Seven witnesses were called and the two accused were placed on defence. Mukata gave evidence while Charmaine opted to remain silent.
The defence argued that there was no direct evidence linking the accused to the murder and that it was dereliction of duty for the police as plates in which the gun is said to have been found was not produced as evidence and that the BMW was not taken to the scene for crime reconstruction.
Justice Wanjelani said it is common cause that the deceased was facing his killer at close range and that she finds that the deceased could not have been killed by a gunshot from outside the gate but from inside.
Controversial Lusaka-based photographer Cornelius Mulenga is commonly known as Chella Tukuta also got the presidential pardon. In July this year, Chella Tukuta, who was charged with libel, was slapped with a 2-year jail sentence for defaming former Chief Government Spokesperson Dora Siliya.
Mr. Mulenga in May last year, in a Facebook live video, accused Ms. Siliya of being immoral and that she was allegedly organizing young girls to high profile people for immoral activities.
And delivering the ruling, Lusaka High Court Judge Lameck Mwale, sitting as Chief Resident Magistrate, described Mr. Mulenga’s utterances against Ms Siliya as reckless.
Judge Mwale says Mr. Mulenga never provided evidence to the court on the allegations he leveled against Ms. Siliya who was at the time serving as senior government official. He said he needed to mete out a stiffer punishment on Mr. Mulenga to deter would be offenders who abuse social media to disparage other people.
The list of pardoned inclus include Mathew Mohan, Former Inktech Managing Director found guilty of murdering businessman and Cyclone Hardware Sajid Itowala in July 2009. Mr Mohan was sentenced to death by hanging for the gruesome murder of Cyclone Hardware director Sajid Itowala in 2009. The sentence was later changed to life in imprisonment.
Mr. Sajid Itowala was a prominent businessman in the construction industry in Zambia. He owned Cyclone Hardware & Construction Ltd. He was brutally murdered by Mathew Mohan. Mr. Itowala was killed in his car during the day in Lusaka west. His legs and arms were broken indicating that he was tortured before being shot three times. His body was found in his Benz Car about 100 meters from a police post in Lusaka west.
Other pardoned included Chansa Chitika David, former Barclay’s employee murdered his wife at their Chilenje home in 2010, Gladys Maketo Mabenga was the daughter of former Minister, Michael Mabenga.
Akufuna Mumbotwa, self-proclaimed Barotseland Administrator General and three colleagues were arrested in December 2014 under charges of treason also got the presidential pardon.
Clement Yambayamba, Chipampe Sikazwe, Isreal Sikazwe, Arnold Kaite, Mathews Chabala, Anita Namwinga and Maureen Namwinga also got the presidential pardon for murdering Senior Chief Tafuna of Mpulungu
Why the rushing and in presidential transitional period?
This is what Chishimba Kambwili was paid to demonise Tonga people for. But who pardons a convict out on bail pursuing his appeal? What if he would hv succeeded in his appeal? Anyway, it’s the Lungu presidency. Things don’t hv to make sense. U just do them because “boma ni boma”.
According to the constitution even during the transition period Lungu has the power to pardon persons incarcerated for whatever crime. In article 96 of the constitution of Zambia it states that the president is to be advised by an Advisory Committee in exercising the prerogative of mercy. I am sure many readers would like to know who sits on the Advisory Committee. What concerns me is whether there is conflict of interest among the members of Advisory Committee. Who are these people advising the president? Are they as crooked as himself? It is a well known fact that before becoming president, Lungu had his licence to practice law suspended due to malpractice.
Am a firm believer of a ” second chance” even a third, fourth
What is special with the people released, I don’t think the released ones are the only inmates who have reformed in prison. Chishimba Kambwili being rewarded for having campaigned for impotent PF, what a mockery of justice
Majority of these are high profile cases with serious crimes. Is there a pardon on less known individuals or minor offenders? Justice has many faces and forms
Hey, murderers on the loose, how come? Kambwili should have remained where he belongs, what is this labbish?
To set the record straight, The Tongas need to sue Chishimba Kambwila. A class action law suit is what’s needed. He needs to be used as an example to future racist and tribalist. Please don’t let him walk free for all the drivel he spewed.
Much as the outgoing President has powers to pardon, how do we know that he has made the right decision in view that his legacy is marred with mistake after mistake. Look at the mess in the country in both the economy and governance, is there a way this pardoning issue can be objectively reviewed by the incoming government, also going by the characters released
Umwine wachisushi, akanya nakabili.
Let us then just release all the prisoners , nepotism, favoritism, bribery, political hostage, money changing hands and deals could be at play. Let us close all the prisons then
SO this tr.ibal vuvuzela called Kambwili is being rewarded, for supporting the down fall of arogant PF? It’s a shame.
Not worth commenting any further, just waiting if a case can be brought against this man, must be punished for that divisive language.
Some of these pardons might put the lives of the pardoned in danger, especially for those on capital offenses. I don’t think it’s legally correct to pardon someone whose case is still active in Court like CK. Is this the reward he gets for his unsavory campaigns for ECL?
Even in his last moves you can see immorality and corruption……..
Here is proof that all that tribal hatred spwed by CK was orchestrated by none other that lungu himself…….
Here again is another example why Zambia’s constitution isn’t worth the paper it’s written on. How can a President just shown the door by the people continue to misbehave and there’s nothing to stop him? Can you imagine selling a house and while the bank is transferring the money the vendor starts selling bits of the house? This is outrageous! Zambians, we’ve tested the failures of this Constitution, time to get rid of it. Divide powers for the president between an executive president, a prime minister (leader of the party with most MPs in House of the People), House of the People (current Parliament) and Senate (experienced professionals five elected from each Province). That’s for starters. There’s more.
This proves Chimbwili is a convict and should be barred from ever running for presidency. The rules should be tough on criminals. We don’t want to see them any where near the instruments of power.
Lazy Lungu has no shame at all pardoning murderers like Keith and Mohan….he would be the first one to protest if these thugs were dating his daughter Tasila.
Can you imagine if Lazy Lungu was given another 5 years ….Zambia would have been worse than Afghanistan.
Thank God this criminal is out of State House!!
I dont see how Chellah can be pardoned after the lies he spewed against Dora and failed to defend them in court…the boy politically he is finished as he has a dent on his record unless Hakainde wants him as a special adviser or camera man for State House.
To top it all Lazy Lungu declares another holiday on 24th August….what a useless man he is who has no work ethic…thank God this lazy man is gone!!
Well done ba president. You have a heart of gold. What is funny is the tribal upnd supporters have issues with the pardon of the inmates apart from the very ugly teethy retard chella tukuta. All because he was a backside licker of their tribal leader. This is how biased this upnd fraudulent government will be. Anyone who says anything against their **** demigod will be persecuted. Good luck Zambia
Tarino you are not here in Zambia. How does a holiday here affect your long toilet cleaning career there abroad. You useless asylum seeker. Fuseke
Cool down! No need to be emotional. You can question the morality of releasing such people but not the presidential powers. I imagine that had Chella not been on the list, HH would have done the honours. Even when there was nothing honourable in what took him to prison in the first place.
Lungu was not a failed lawyer for nothing. Even among lawyers, HH surely got more votes in the just-ended elections than Lungu.
2 years for defamation (Tukuta) and 1 year for fraud (Kambwili). This clearly shows where our society has gone wrong. That is why in Zambia if you say S T U P I D, it is a very big insult than if you say fokof.
Neo I am just afraid of the murderers mwandini.
THE SAINT- you wonder what those hypocrites Christians for Lungu think of this…Lungu and Co have no morals these are people who adopted a former Minister who was caught red-handed playing with himself as aspiring candidate. Keith shot dead a security guard whilst he was commenting adultery and Mohan killed his business partner.
The Saint @24, your comment has made me reflect on so many judicial decisions that hv been made in recent years. Liato buried millions of kwacha at his farm. Whn put on his defence, he opted for silence. The magistrates court convicted him. On appeal a 3-panel high court bench freed him. The state appealed and the Supreme Court agreed with the magistrates court and Liato was sent back to prison. There’s rot in the Judiciary.
This is really sickening and a gross abuse of power by Lungu. Man has no shame whatsoever with these immoral pardons. How do you pardon this many murderers on your way out of the door? Can you imagine how the families of these murder victims would feel about these pardons? You only pardon a convicted murderer if the evidence was questionable or they were convicted on political grounds or hate such as racial or tribal motivated; and usually it following intense lobbying by NGO and the public… nothing like this seems to have happened here. Lungu is a grace, copying the disgraced Trump.
The political prisoners and those convicted on libel laws like ‘insulting the president’ are justified. The rest are really immoral, even if legal.
This life is not fair. The one who lives by the sword must die by the sword. Mukata and Mohan should have been sent to the gallows. Tukuta should also have spent more time in jail
You cannot pardon a person who has appealed their matter…..ecl did you really pass at ziale or shani..?
Martin @29, I think u need a bit of help to understand humans a bit more. Of course Edgar Lungu passed @the Zambia Institute for Advanced Legal Education (ZIALE). His problem is moral bankruptcy and not a lack of knowledge.
Mathew Mohan should not have been pardoned. What he did was a gruesome murder. Even Satan would not do something like that.
Lungu got it completely wrong.
Just shows how useless the Lungu presidency was. Who pardons murderers? Including Chinese nationals who murdered a Zambian yet there are Zambians serving sentences for petty crimes.
As Gary Nkombo said, Chishimba Kambwili will still have to explain himself about his campaign messages that bordered on tribal sentiments and vilifying of a whole ethnic grouping of the Southern Province. If he broke the law during his utterances then he has to be charged for the crimes permitted. The UK Government should look carefully into the utterances of this man and see whether their policies should allow him free passage into the land of laws and order. He has settled his family in the UK because he can afford it whilst disturbing the peace of the country where he hails from for political expedience and knowing very well that he would flee after setting it on fire. Please look into this man’s utterances carefully as we think his next trip should be to The Hague!
crimes committed ^
Kz and Tarino are based in UK why don’t you arrange a streat fight and settle your scores.
Imwe ba Lungu, Zoona. Why free so many murderers leaving out those who committed minor crimes?
Issues of high morality and integrity are not written everywhere in the Constitution. Personal moral judgement tells you not to exercise your powers to that level in a transition period even when the Constitutional provisions may give you such opportunity. You may not appoint anyone, fire anyone let alone pardon anyone.
So in this haste he has fully convicted Kambwili ( ex -convict ) whose political carrier now may have been dented for life. Anyway desperate people go for desperate options…..
The corruption that goes on at Correctional Services on matters of pardon is Public knowledge. People pay colossal amounts of money to have their relatives released. What I see myself is that one or two of these Murderers must have paid the Advisory committee to have his case dealt with before the new Government comes in. The rest were just joined in to launder the whole process. Either the Mr ( Dr ) Lungu is not aware of this or simply participated in the Corruption. A prudent Manager would have questioned the rationale and morality of having these cases brought in at last minute.
But it is your guess whether he is competent or deliberately did this.