A judge has allowed the freezing of Chief Nkana(Godfrey Shamanena)’s bank accounts pending determination of a lawsuit filed against him by jailed former Lusaka Province Minister Bowman Lusambo.
Lusaka High Court Judge Irene Mbewe upheld an injunction restriction the accounts because Mr Lusambo presented adequate evidence to justify why the accounts should be frozen.
Mr Lusambo applied for the injunction fearing that that the chief would use the money which is subject of a lawsuit.
The politician sued Chief Nkana demanding payment of US$105,000 allegedly owed to him from the sale of Bismark Mining Limited.
He submitted that he was at all material times actively involved in the facilitation and investment processes relating to the sale of Bismark Mining Limited.
He said the defendant, Chief Nkana, received the full sale proceeds in respect of the sale of the mine.
The plaintiff submits that at various times in 2021 and 2022, he facilitated negotiations and invested substantial resources into legal and commercial efforts to ultimately sale Bismark Mining Limited.
He said he is supposed to be paid US$105,000 for having facilitated the negotiations, submissions the chief countered.
Mr Lusambo also filed for a Mareva injunction to the chiefs’ freeze accounts.
A Mareva injunction, or freezing order, prevents a defendant from disposing of or concealing their assets to avoid satisfying a future judgment
In her ruling, Judge Mbewe said Mr Lusambo had proved that the defendant is about to dispose or remove the property (money).
“The plaintiff has reason to believe the asset may be diverted before judgement in this matter is delivered.
“This conviction is based on the fact that the defendant intend to have use of the said money in dispute, the ruling reads.
“The plaintiff believes this is real and actually confirmed by the defendant in his affidavit in opposition which himself deposed that the monies are meant to facilitate his treatment abroad,” Judge Mbewe said.
She said by his own admission, the chief wants to use of the money to meet his medical conditions.
“…for the above reasons I sustain the ex-parte mareva injunction granted on July 16 2015, pending the hearing and determination of the main matter”.
(Mwebantu, Thursday, 2nd October, 2025)
Our civil society and Human Rights advocates should be in the forefront in this suit.
Where are they as they should be asking in what capacity did Chief Nkana obtain mining rights that led to this transaction with Bowman Lusambo?
ACC and DEC investigated the Chief as to how he was found with more than US $ 5 million in his account.
My naive understanding is that Chiefs hold land “in trust” on behalf of those in their chiefdom. Has this been abused? Or those in the legal fraternity chosen to stay quiet and profit from the land transactions and now this, which should be the property of the people indigenous to the area?
Ndwee while abuse takes place but very vocal in issues that are not relevant.
This case needs to attract interest from a lot of quotas in the Nkana area and the wider country as a whole. Our Judicial system will need to cast a wider net on such issues rather than just look at ,the case on the table’. We are and have been dealing with the looting on a scale never seen before in our country, we have to do what we can to help the situation that we find ourselves in. Lusambo is a convict and a known wrongdoer on the Copperbelt where he had jurisdiction over the province. This should definitely open up another line of investigations on his deeds over the years. Even the ‘little things like’. the way Lusambo was giving free fuel to all taxi drivers, in Ndola when he was minister, honestly who does that? Ba Chief nabo, was corrupted by the bulldozer!
Yes,$5.5million (K 130,894,637.50) and not even a Kwacha in tax remissions.ZRA,that’s the cost of bituminous road from Kasempa to Lukulu
Bowman needs the money to pay his lawyers.