DPP drops appeal against Kampyongo’s acquittal

By GRACE CHAILE

DIRECTOR of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Gilbert Phiri has abandoned the State’s appeal against the acquittal of Shiwang’andu
Member of Parliament,
Stephen Kampyongo.
From front
A notice signed by State Advocate V. Choongo on behalf of the DPP confirmed that the matter, which had been set for hearing on August 6, 2025, before the Economic and Financial Crimes Court in Lusaka, would not proceed.
“Take notice that the appellant herein has wholly abandoned the appeal,” read the document.
Mr Kampyongo, who served as Home Affairs Minister in the Patriotic Front government, had been jointly charged with his wife, Wanziya Chirwa, for possession of illicit properties.
While Chirwa was convicted and handed a three-year prison sentence for corruption-related offences, Mr Kampyongo was acquitted by the Lusaka Magistrates’ Court.
Magistrate Sylvia Munyinya, in her ruling, found Chirwa guilty on five counts of corruption but cleared Mr Kampyongo of five charges relating to properties and undeveloped plots in Lusaka, which the State alleged were proceeds of crime.
The court held that the prosecution failed to establish a factual basis for the suspicion, noting that some of the properties were not owned by Kampyongo, while others had been legally acquired.
Dissatisfied with the ruling, the Anti-Corruption Commission appealed, arguing that the trial court erred both in law and fact when it acquitted him.
However, the DPP has now formally withdrawn the appeal,