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Former High Court Judge, Wilfred Muma, has been found with a case to answer and would face trial in a case reportedly involving the transfer of Zambia Army land to the Patriotic Front (PF) party.
The matter, before the Economic and Financial Crimes Court, involves allegations of willful failure to comply with the law and abuse of office.
Muma, who was Commissioner of Lands at the time, is accused of requesting the Zambia Army Commander to surrender the certificate of title for property number Lusaka/LN-8426/1.
Prosecutors argued that the land was then arbitrarily transferred to the PF, contrary to government interests.
The events in question occurred between April and December 2018.
A panel of judges—Pixie Yangailo, Anna Ononuju, and Ian Mabbolobbolo—ruled that the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence for Muma to present his defense.
According to court records, former President Edgar Lungu allegedly instructed the Army Commander to hand over the land title to Muma in exchange for a larger plot along Airport Road.
Read More: Judge Muma’s case of alleged abuse of office moved to High Court
The Army complied, and the land was subsequently re-registered under new trustees.
Muma is expected to testify under oath, though it remains unclear how many witnesses he will call.
In the first charge, he is accused of failing to comply with Section 84(f) of the Lands and Deeds Registry Act (Chapter 185 of the Laws of Zambia) by instructing his subordinates to cancel Certificate of Title No. 21818 without following due process.
The second charge alleges that he abused his authority as Commissioner of Lands by requesting the surrender of military land and reallocating it to the PF, an action deemed prejudicial to the government.
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