IN a twist of events, former Ministry of Health human resource officer Henry Kapoko has gone to court to challenge government’s decision to turn his lodge into a correctional facility while he was in jail.
Mr Kapoko seeks a declaration that the conversion of Best Home Lodge into a penitentiary for women inmates with circumstantial children, without his consent or compensation is illegal.
Sometime in 2018, Mr Kapoko and others were sentenced to 18 years imprisonment with hard labour for corruption, money laundering and theft of over K6million.
The sentence included theft, another five for money laundering and a further nine for theft by public servant.
He was convicted alongside accountants namely, Zukas Kaoma, Evaristo Musaba, Vincent Luhana, and an Internal Auditor Jasper Phiri, who were asked to pay back the K6.8million.
The magistrate also ordered that all convicts properties and accounts in which stolen money was deposited be forfeited to the State.
But Mr Kapoko and others appealed against the judgement in the Lusaka High Court, which upheld Mr Kapoko and two convicts’ conviction in 2020, while acquitting two.
The court ruled that they would only serve nine years on both counts instead of the initial consecutive 18 years.
In February this year, Government converted Mr Kapoko’s forfeited lodge into a prison facility for female inmates with circumstantial children, the move the convict is now challenging.
Mr Kapoko, alongside Best Home Lodge Limited have cited the Anti-Corruption Commission and Attorney General as respondents.
In the statement of claim before the Lusaka High Court, the plaintiff submits that the decision to convert the lodge into correctional facility, without his consent was in total disregard of the 2023 judgement delivered by the Court of Appeal.
Mr Kapoko submits that Court of Appeal delivered a judgement in which it said “The property subject of the conviction for money laundering excludes Best Home Lodge Limited, stand no.13949 Roma Township and stand number 13947”.
“At the time of seizing and taking over of Best Home Lodge, the said lodge was a well-known and an active going concern which used to make revenue of not less than US$500,000 per month”.
(Mwebantu, Tuesday, 25th November, 2025).
So why didn’t the NPA appeal to the Supreme Court? Was someone paid to ensure the appeal was not made within the period allowed? The Ministry of Justice has a duty to find out what really happened?
$500,000 per month?? A Lodge!
….And on 1997?