By PERPETUAL SICHIKWENKWE –

FORMER Zambia Red Cross Secretary General, Charles Mushitu and his former finance and administrative manager Sydney Chituta have sued Government demanding damages for malicious prosecution.
Mr Mushitu and Mr Chituta want the court to order that they be paid more than K738,000 as special damages for the legal fees and loss of income from rentals.
They want the Lusaka High Court to order Attorney General Musa Mwenye on behalf of the Government to pay them damages for procuring their suspension and termination of his employment with the society.
Further, that, the Government be ordered to pay them damages for deprivation of use and loss of income from properties seized by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEC) under seizures notices number 829, 831, 832, 833, 840, 0002745 and 000609.
Mr Mushitu and Mr Chituta additionally want the court to order the Government to pay them damages for mental distress, anguish and inconvenience arising from the malicious prosecution.
According to the statement they filed in the high court principal registry, Mr Mushitu was a journalist, book author and publisher and former CEO for Zambia Red Cross employed in the capacity of secretary general until March 21, 2012 when he was summarily dismissed.
They said that by letter dated December 8, 2011 addressed to the board president of the society and authored by DEC commissioner Alita Mbahwe requested for his immediate suspension from duty pending investigations into the allegations of money laundering.
They said that in a letter dated December 12, 2011 addressed to DEC, the board of the society refused to suspend him in the absence of proof of the alleged money laundering.
Mr Mushitu and Mr Cituta said that on January 12, 2012 DEC officers led by Constance Zimba raided Mr Mushitu’s house to conduct a search and seized many items namely seven motor vehicles, six computers, four original titles deeds for houses, personal documents, an AK rifle serial number 125093 which he kept in his capacity as senior superintendent in the Zambia Police Reserve wing.
The goods were seized under search warrants and on January 13, 2015 DEC raided Mr Chituta’s home and seized a motor vehicle, a laptop, computer and various personal documents and the two were finally arrested on January 24, 2012.
They were charged with the offences of money laundering and Mr Mushitu was also charged with being in possession of an offensive weapon and was on February 14, 2012 slapped with an additional charge of theft by servant and money laundering.
They said that the defendant knew that there was no money that moved from the Zambia Red Cross bank account to either of the bank accounts or in any other way.
The Government and its agents knew that there was no letter of complaint from either the society or the International Federation of Red Cross about any laundering or theft of money.