Kondwani Nankhumwa taken to court
Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Kondwani Nankhumwa, has been dragged to court for failing to facilitate the installation of a Sub-Traditional Authority (STA), four months after a court made the order.
The Mwancheka Chieftaincy under Traditional Authority (TA) Dzoole in Dowa District has been under dispute despite a court, in a ruling on July 19 2017, ordering the installation of Alfred Banda as STA Mwancheka Matapira.
Banda was appointed to the post by former president Joyce Banda but his installation was disrupted when government officials installed David Chiwaya after it claimed that he was the legitimate heir to the throne.
But Justice Dingiswayo Madise on July 19 this year stopped Chiwaya’s ascendancy and restrained Banda following a stay order which the latter obtained from the High Court at the Mzuzu Registry.
Banda has since dragged Nankhumwa and his ministry to court for contempt of court.
Banda wondered why Nankhumwa and Dowa District Commissioner (DC) Fanny Msimuko are failing to abide by the court ruling which ordered that he be installed within 60 days.
“The minister and DC for Dowa were ordered to install me as STA Mwamcheka Matapira. It is clear that the authority of the court is being hugely undermined by the conduct of the minister, his ministry and the DC,” said Banda in an interview.
His lawyer, George Kadzipatike of Jivason and Company, confirmed the development and said court proceedings for contempt of court will be commenced against Nankhumwa and team..
“We gave prior warning and reminder to the minister in September through the Attorney General but they have taken no action. They have also failed to defend themselves. So this is a deliberate disregard of the rule of law,” said Kadzipatike in a separate interview on Monday.
Responding to the development, spokesperson for Ministry of Local Government, Mulhabase, Mughogho said, with or without court orders, there are procedures that government follows to install chiefs and the process takes time.
“Let me consult for specific reasons why he has not been installed but, in an ideal situation, these things take time and the ministry takes a long time to plan,” she said.
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