By PERPETUAL SICHIKWENKWE –
THE Lusaka High Court has threatened to revoke bail for former Republican President Rupiah Banda’s son, Andrew, for failing to attend court session.
Mr Banda who has appealed to the High Court against his two-year jail sentence handed by the Lusaka Magistrates Court after being found guilty on corruption charges in February, last year, was yesterday not before court when his appeal came up for judgment before Judge Mwila Chitabo.
His lawyer Milner Katolo however told the court that his client was not aware about the matter coming up for judgment but for hearing.
Mr Justice Chitabo said parties who chose not to comply with court orders were doing so at their own peril.
On July 31, this year, Mr Banda was scheduled to appear before the court but could not do so as there was miscommunication that the court was allegedly attending to other matters.
A date for yesterday was set but only Mr Banda’s lawyer appeared on behalf of his client.
Mr Justice Chitabo informed both the state and the lawyer that the matter was scheduled for judgment but wondered why Mr Banda was not in court.
Mr Katolo said his client was not aware that the matter was coming up for judgment but that he needed to orally argument his appeal.
Mr Justice Chitabo, however, said that non-compliance to court orders by parties eventually led to unnecessary adjournments.
He said he would have revoked Mr Banda’s bail to enable him attend court but he gave him the benefit of doubt as he would have been misinformed by his lawyer on the status quo of the matter.
Mr Justice Chitabo extended Mr Banda’s bail and gave him an opportunity to be heard on September 9, this year.
He set September 25, this year as the date for judgment.
Mr Banda was jailed after the Lusaka magistrate found him guilty of soliciting and receiving more than K171,000 as reward for assisting Fratelli Locci SRI, a company owned by Italian businessman Antenello Locci, with government contracts.
Then Lusaka chief resident magistrate Joshua Banda sentenced Mr Banda to two years imprisonment but he appealed against the ruling in the High Court.