JUDGEMENT IN NAKACINDA DEFAMATION OF HH APPEAL SET FOR SEPT 9
THE Lusaka High Court yesterday reserved judgement to September 9, 2025, in the appeal case of Patriotic Front Secretary General Raphael Nakacinda, who is challenging his conviction and 18-month jail term for defaming President Hakainde Hichilema.
Nakacinda was convicted on May 17, 2024, by Lusaka Magistrate Irene Wishimanga, who found him guilty of defaming the President. The charge is from a statement he made on December 13, 2021, while addressing PF supporters at the Lusaka High Court.
During the address, Nakacinda alleged that through his binoculars, he had observed President Hichilema summoning judges to his private residence to intimidate and coerce them to frustrate the PF’s legal matters.
He denied the charge, stating that his remarks were made in defence of democracy. However, Magistrate Wishimanga ruled that the statement amounted to defamation and sentenced him to 18 months imprisonment, citing the need to send a clear message to those who may seek to undermine the Judiciary, one of the three arms of government.
In his appeal, Nakacinda among other grounds argued that the lower court erred both in law and fact by interpreting his statement as an attack on the Judiciary and using that interpretation as a basis for the sentence.
During the appeal hearing before Judge Anna Malata-Ononuju, Nakacinda’s lawyer, Muluza Chongola, urged the court to set aside the conviction and sentence, stating that the findings of the lower court were not supported by the evidence on record. “We submit that the conviction and sentence should not be upheld. The appellant should be set free,” said Chongola.
In response, the State maintained that the lower court was on firm ground in convicting Nakacinda. It argued that the record clearly showed that the alleged words were uttered by him and that prosecution witnesses testified to the impact the statement had.
“The evidence on record demonstrates that the appellant’s words were defamatory and the trial court was correct in its findings,” submitted the State.
In reply, the defence insisted that the testimony of the prosecution witnesses did not justify the conviction, describing it as misplaced.
ZDM
Add two more years to what he was slapped on him. He deserves a longer custodial sentence. It will help him reflect and come out a better citizen. Let the message be loud and clear to would be attackers of the Judiciary.
That’s too far to wait. His fellow PF members will be providing patriotic solidarity assistance to his wife before visiting him in jail.