THE Lusaka Magistrate’s Court has dismissed an application for private prosecution of Patriotic Front president Miles Sampa and secretary general Morgan Ng’ona.
This was after the Director of Public Prosecutions Gilbert Phiri has refused to grant consent for the private prosecution of Mr Sampa and Mr Ng’ona.
“I regret to advise that consent to prosecute this matter cannot be granted because of current civil proceedings in the High Court of judicature of Zambia bearing on the same subject matter,” Mr Phiri said in a letter responding to the lawyers.
This is in a case Makebi Zulu and Advocates applied to the DPP seeking consent for the private prosecution of Mr Sampa and Mr Ng’ona.
The complaint to prosecute was initiated by, Raphael Nakacinda, of the faction PF group who wants Mr Sampa and Ng’ona to be prosecuted for perjury, attempts to commit an offense and forgery.
It is alleged that on October 26, this year, Sampa filed an affidavit in the principal registry of the Lusaka High Court purporting that he was PF president and a letter purpoted to have been issued to the Registrar of Societies.
The complainants contend that the letter Sampa presented to the Registry was a forgery, among other allegations.
But when the case came up today, lawyers asked that the case he adjourned because they had not yet received communication from the DPP over the application for consent to privately prosecute Mr Sampa an Mr Ng’ona.
However, Magistrate Keegan Litiya informed the lawyers that he was in receipt of the letter from the DPP and it was already placed on the file.
But defence lawyer Jonas Zimba indicated that he had not seen the letter in question.
Mr Litiya indicated that the DPP had not granted permission to prosecute the matter.
The court then dismissed the application for private prosecution by the private lawyers.
But the defence lawyers have challenged the dismissal.
(Mwebantu, Thursday, 7th December, 2023)