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Corporate lawyer Jai Banda of Sacranie Gow and Company Friday enlightened internal auditors in the country on court procedures.
Giving a talk entitled ‘The internal auditor and the law’ Banda said many cases are lost not because the accused persons are not guilty, but because the witness has failed to lay out his or her evidence properly.
He, therefore, advised the auditors to make sure they know how to present their case to a judge or magistrate.
“The auditor should not accept to go into the witness box before he has a pre-trial conference to discuss exactly the evidence the auditor should present to the court,” he said.
Lawyers in adverse (defence) team tend to ask questions aimed at discrediting any evidence given by a witness.
For this reason Banda advised the auditors not to allow themselves to be confused and also to avoid being emotional for fear they would lose track of their evidence.
Banda stressed the need for internal auditors to have knowledge about how offences are committed and about the law and offences like theft and fraud at work places.
“The internal auditor should be on the lookout to the possibility of transgressing the law and be active in investigating or assisting others to investigate unlawful activities.
But the internal auditor himself or herself should also observe the law and be incorruptible. Whatever he or she does must be within the law.” he said.
The auditors learnt that any evidence they obtain through illegal means is likely to be inadmissible in court.
They were also advised to be very careful in handling people suspected to have committed a crime or else they would be sued if the suspect is acquitted.
For this reason delegates said there is need to put in place a law that would protect auditors otherwise some may shun taking action.
The theme for this year’s conference, held at Club Makokola in Mangochi, was ‘Delivering the goods in our environment’
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