.Mwale

By PERPETUAL SICHIKWENKWE –

FORMER Mines minister, Maxwell Mwale was yesterday granted a K20,000 cash bail by the Lusaka magistrate’s court after spending a fortnight in prison.
Magistrate Lameck Mwale convicted and jailed the former Malambo parliamentarian to 12 months with hard labour after he found him guilty of abuse of office.
Mwale facilitated the issuance of a mining licence to a Chinese firm, Zhongui International Mining Industry Group Limited without following laid down procedures.
But Mwale was not satisfied with the court’s findings and subsequent sentencing and appealed to the High Court.
He asked Mr Mwale to grant him bail pending the outcome of his appeal arguing that the offence he was facing is bailable.
Mwale through his lawyer Blackson Mwale told the court that he was on police bond before he was convicted and adhered to the conditions which were given to him as such, he would not jump bail.
He further said he would have substantially served part of the 12 months sentence imposed on him by the court by the time the appeal is heard by the High Court if he is not granted bail.
Mr Mwale on March 5, 2015 reserved ruling on whether or not to grant Mwale bail.
In his ruling yesterday, Mr Mwale said he had carefully considered Mwale’s application for bail and seeing that he had already spent some days in prison he was granting him a K20,000 cash bail with two
working sureties resident in Zambia.
United Party for National Development (UPND) president Hakainde Hichilema and other party officials attended the court session to hear Mwale’s bail outcome.