LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-The state this week amended the charge sheet in a case in which four directors of the Foundation for Irrigation and Sustainable Development (FISD) are answering fraud charges by including the company itself as one of the accused.
But defence lawyers claim this is a deliberate move by the state to delay the case further.
The quartet is accused of defrauding government a total of 325, 731.00 US Dollars which is equivalent to over MK260 million.
But the four including Frank Mwenechanya, Kondwani Nanchukwa, Moses Chirambo and Arthur Mpama argue that the money was a double payment made in error and was corrected.
When hearing of the case continued Tuesday afternoon, January 11, 2022 before Lilongwe Senior Resident Magistrate Florence Msekandiana, lead lawyer for the state Pilirani Masanjala asked the court to allowed them FISD Ltd as an accused as the money was deposited in the company’s account among other reasons.
The Magistrate allowed the amendment.
But one of the defence lawyers, Burton Phiri, argues the move is aimed at further delaying the case as the legal representatives of FISD Company might want that hearing of the case, which has seen two witnesses already testifying, to start allover again which could be be a waste of both time and public resources
