Former Mayor Bikoko Released on Bail

Desmond Bikoko granted bail Desmond Bikoko granted bail

The Lilongwe Senior Resident Magistrate Court on Wednesday granted bail to Immediate past Mayor for Lilongwe City, Desmond Bikoko, hours after he was detained by the country’s graft bursting body Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in connection with alleged illegal land allocation in the city.

Following his arrest early hours of Wednesday, the ACB took Bikoko to court where he was formally charged with abuse of office.

The court heard that on 7 September 2017, the suspect Bikoko authorised the sale of a plot in area 46 to the Trustees of Jimmy Bowman Partners and other beneficiaries without following procedures.

The former Mayor who did not take plea, was released on bail after satisfying all bail conditions including the payment of K300 000 cash bail bond, 2 non-cash sureties of  1 million Kwacha each, surrendering his travel documents to ACB and that he should be reporting to ACB offices on Mondays every fortnight.

Senior Resident Magistrate Florence Milner Msekandiana has adjourned the case to 11 December 2019 when Bikoko will take plea of the charge against him.

ACB is investigating the manner in which officials have been selling land in the city following revelations that pieces of land including part of Livimbo school was dubiously sold to business people.

The issue came to light when Lilongwe City South West legislator Nancy Tembo alleged before the Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament that land at Livimbo Community Day Secondary School was sold to a Malawian of Asian origin.

Read 2495 times

Last modified on Thursday, 05/12/2019

Login to post comments
Go to top
JSN Time 2 is designed by JoomlaShine.com | powered by JSN Sun Framework