Ruth Mbandu’s uncle denied appeal for bail

THE Supreme Court yesterday dismissed an appeal for Constitutional bail by murdered National Institute of Public Administration (NIPA) student Ruth Mbandu’s Uncle George Kalomo.

A bench of judges comprising, Gregory Phiri, Evans Hamaundu and Florence Lengalenga said they could not entertain Kalomo’s appeal because trial in the matter in which he is alleged to have murdered his niece was ongoing in the High Court.

This is in a matter in which Kalomo had appealed to the Supreme Court against the High Court’s decision to refuse him Constitutional bail after he complained of delayed committal of his murder case to the High Court for trial.

Mr Justice Phiri said the appeal by Kalomo was improper because the Supreme Court could only hear appeals when a matter had been concluded by the High Court.

“The application as it purports to be is therefore dismissed,” Mr Justice Phiri told Kalomo’s lawyer Kelvin Hang’andu when he refused an application for leave to file his clients’ arguments out of time.

Mr Justice Phiri said that the bench was concerned that Kalomo was appealing to the Supreme Court when he had already been committed to the High Court and his trial was on.

He said the court did not want to go into hearing the details of Kalomo’s arguments which were irrelevant but that it would exercise its discretion to refuse the application and throw out the appeal.

Times Of Zambia