By Iommie CHIWALO
After state has moved in to revoke the bail of human rights activist Sylvester Namiwa, the Magistrate did not show up.
The state has confirmed the development saying that the Magistrate was not around and are currently consulting on the way forward.
A court document made available to this publication earlier indicated that a Suprentendent Oscar Nkhoma filed an affidavit in support of the state’s application to have Namiwa’s bail revoked.
According to the court document, all concerned parties were scheduled to appear before the Senior Magistrate court in Lilongwe, today, Friday the 28th of October 2022 but to the surprise of the rights activists, the Magistrate never showed up.
How government is handling the case is just a continuation of drama which started in Blantyre when District Commissioner Burnet Mkasala forced out Centre for Democracy and Economic Development initiatives (CDEDI) Executive Director Sylvester Namiwa from stakeholders meeting for the preparatory meeting of nationwide anti- government protests slated for October 27,2022.
It was reported that the Blantyre DC went that far purportedly due to Namiwa’s court bail condition forbidding him from leading any demonstrations that are contravening the police Act.
But Namiwa clarified that the conduct of the DC was out of error of law since such issues were already addressed in court last year.
Appearing at the court today Namiwa was welcomed by other human rights activists who showed solidarity.
