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Republican Party (RP) president Gwanda Chakuamba is demanding K38 million ($358,490) from government as payment for a house which was confiscated from him after he was arrested by the MCP government in 1980.
Chakuamba’s lawyer Edwin Banda said Chakuamba may have to put his case before the international community and Malawi’s financial partners because the government is failing to compensate him.
Court records indicate that Chakuamba already took the matter to court and that on June 23, 2003 the High Court ruled that the RP president get his house back and be given rentals that accumulated when the house was disposed from him.
“Our own valuation in 2003 yielded in excess of K38 million. The government is also to pay damages to be assessed and the court is yet to set a date for the assessment of damages,” said Banda.
He, however, expressed hope that government should compensate Chakuamba as ordered by the court.
“Presently the government has been shunning court orders of such nature,” said Banda, adding that this is for the apparent reason that successful litigants are not able to enforce payments on government and they cannot have it declared bankrupt like they do on companies and individuals.
“Here is a government that does not compensate its own citizens whom it has wronged thereby engaging in direct suppression and oppression by victimising the victims with no regard to human rights,” said Banda.
He also said government is itself in contempt of its own court.
Efforts to talk to Attorney General Peter Fachi proved futile as his cellular telephone kept on being out of reach.
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