By Chisomo Phiri
Former Finance Minister Joseph Mwanamveka has been discharged from a misprocurement related case he was answering alongside another former cabinet minister Nicholas Dausi and others.
In the case, Mwanamveka was answering charges of abuse of office in connection to a Malawi Prison Service K18 billion procurement contract.
Mwanamveka has been cleared, on grounds of insufficient evidence of wrong doing in the matter.
On Friday,High Court Judge Violet Chipao allowed Mwanamveka and his lawyer Kalekeni Kaphale to leave the court room as hearing of the case continued.
Speaking outside the court, Kaphale said the State (Anti-Corruption Bureau- ACB) has however, stated that it may need Mwanamveka as a state witness if that need arises.
“All we are waiting for now is a discharge certificate from the Director of Public Prosecutions,” Kaphale said.
The case was about unlawful procurement of items that included socks, underwears, steel plates, cups, cuffs, belts and whistles between February 2019 and June 2020, purchased at exorbitant prices.
The uniforms and equipment were procured from One Guard FZE of United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The other accused persons are Dausi, former Ministry of Homeland Security principal secretary Samuel Madula, chief director in the same ministry Kennedy Nkhoma and senior deputy director Patricia Liabuba.
This is coming months after Mwanamveka was also discharged from a case he and two others were accused of falsifying information to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) between 2018 and 2019.
