Stop the cartel
...President Lungu advised
GOVERNMENT must stop the Fred M’membe cartel from sowing seeds of dissent and discord in the Judiciary whose main objective is to weaken the system, Zambia Republic Party (ZRP) leader Wright Musoma has said.
In an interview, Mr Musoma charged that the cartel that misled late President Michael Sata to set up a tribunal chaired by imported Malawian judge Lovemore Chikopa have regrouped with another elaborate plan to have High Court Judge Sunday Nkonde banned.
He said not long ago, three respected men of the bench Supreme Court Justice Phillip Musonda, High Court judges Charles Kajimanga and Nigel Mutuna saw their careers plunge all because they made decisions against Mr M’membe and his friends.
The ZRP leader charged that Mr M’membe had gone on rampage with tantrums thrown all over the show but mostly directed at those he perceives were behind his friend Mutembo Nchito’s issues with the law.
He said attempts by former Post Newspaper in liquidation editor-in-chief and his disgruntled friends to have Judge Nkonde suspended must not be tolerated the government.
Mr Musoma was commenting on a failed attempt by Mr M’membe and his friends to have Judge Nkonde suspended.
He said Mr M’membe and his friends’ main objective was to weaken the Judiciary and possibly settle old scores against those that ruled against their interests in the past.
Mr Musoma pointed out that by now President Edgar Lungu and his government should have had a deeper understanding of the cartel’s plans in sofar as the dictates of presidential powers demand.
“The PF government must be careful and stop the infamous cartel that have regrouped with new plans to weaken the judicial system.
“These are the same people who misled President Sata to set up an infamous Tribunal chaired by Judge Chikopa from Malawi in 2012 to investigate the alleged professional misconduct of three judges for their benefits and now they want Judge Nkonde to be suspended,” Mr Musoma said.
He said Mr M’membe had launched attacks against Judge Nkonde over a matter in which former Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Mutembo Nchito entered a nolle prosequi in favour of former Finance Bank owner Rajan Mahtani over the US$4 million loan to the Post Newspaper now in liquidation.
He said Judge Nkonde had brought an action against the Post Newspaper on behalf of Finance Bank just before the 2011 general elections which action he said was related to the defunct Zambian Airways.
Mr Musoma added that Mr M’membe was that typical animal in George Orwell’s awardwinning book “Animal Farm” that postures as one which is more equal than others.
Mr Musoma said President Lungu should never make a mistake of paying attention of falling for the tricks of the cartel because he would regret in the long ran.
He urged President Lungu to stand politically resolute to ensure that the cartel do not achieve its evil schemes against Judges that were independent.