High Court Rejects DPP Appeal Against Lubinda Acquittal

The Lusaka High Court has thrown out an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions seeking to overturn the acquittal of acting Patriotic Front president Given Lubinda on corruption-related charges.

Lubinda was cleared by the Lusaka Magistrates' Court in April 2024 when Magistrate Stanford Ngobola determined that state prosecutors had not adequately demonstrated he was in possession of property suspected to be proceeds of crime across four separate counts.

The allegations centered on financial transactions conducted between 2018 and 2019, including receipt of US$50,000 from China Africa Cotton Limited, two separate payments totaling US$180,000 from Qingdao Ruichang Cotton Industrial Company Limited, and a US$50,000 payment made toward purchasing property at Kingsland City in Lusaka.

In May 2024, DPP Gilbert Phiri challenged the ruling, contending the magistrate's court had made legal errors in determining that funds held in Lubinda's foreign currency account did not constitute proceeds of crime. Phiri insisted prosecutors had established reasonable grounds for suspicion and that Lubinda's explanations regarding the transactions were inadequate.

The three-judge High Court panel, however, found the appeal without merit. Defense lawyer Nkhula Botha clarified the court's position: "The court noted that prosecutors handled the case at the lower court level but failed to pose necessary questions during trial. As an appellate body reviewing records rather than hearing witnesses, the court cannot intervene."

This ruling definitively closes the prosecution's bid to challenge Lubinda's acquittal on charges involving suspected criminal proceeds, marking a decisive legal win for the opposition politician.