By Chisomo Phiri
The Financial Crimes Court is scheduled to deliver its ruling on August 1st, 2023, regarding the bail variation application filed by Vice President Soulos Chilima on allegations of receiving $280,000 from Zuneth Sattar.
Vice President Chilima was arrested in 2022 but released on bail under certain conditions, which included surrendering his passport and reporting to the Anti-Corruption Bureau every three months.
However, Chilima’s legal team is seeking to have the bail conditions removed, arguing that it is possible for a person to be on bail without such restrictions, citing the case of former Vice President Cassim Chilumpha, who faced a treason case.
High Court Judge Redson Kapindu has on Wednesday set August 1, 2023, as the date to decide on the application to vary the bail conditions and also take plea.
In an interview with local media, one of Chilima’s lawyers Khumbo Soko, said given the caliber of the defendant, there is no suspicion that he would attempt to flee, making the conditions unnecessary.
Said Soko:“The high office which he occupies, there can be no suspicion that he is going to run away, to that extent therefore no justifications of having these conditions, unless perhaps there something that we seeking to achieve, or just to humiliate him.”
On the other hand, Hilary Chilomba, Deputy Director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) requested that the High Court uphold the conditions set by the Chief Resident Magistrate Court, arguing that these conditions were put in place considering that the accused is the country’s Vice President.
“We should respect the lower courts which actually came up with the bail conditions they knew that he is the vice president so we stick to that” said Chilomba.
Chilima was arrested on November 25, 2022 by the Anti-Corruption Bureau on allegations of accepting a reward of 280,000 United States dollars from Zuneth Sattar to assist Sattar’s company, Xaviar Limited, in securing a Food Ration Packs Contract worth $7.8 million from the Malawi government for the Malawi Police.
The Veep has been on bail after obtaining a K1m bail, surrendering his passport.
He has been reporting to ACB every three months and these are the conditions he wants be waived.
