Having appealed to the general public to bring forward stalled cases for action, the Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI), has penned Chief Justice Rezine Mzikamanda to walk the talk on the Illovo Sugar Company case.
CDEDI says their interest in the matter is coming in based on the fact that six months have elapsed, but Judge Charlotte Malonda is yet to deliver her ruling on the issue where the company was also granted an injunction to restrain both the Ministry of Trade and Industry from effecting a 25 per cent sugar price cut and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) from commencing criminal proceedings against Illovo for allegedly violating the competition and Fair-Trading Act.
This is despite assurance from Mzikamanda that apart from the judiciary having in place measures and mechanisms to ensure speedy delivery of judgements, Parliament passed into law the Courts Act that mandates Judges to deliver rulings within 90 days.
Namiwa says the low-income consumers who should have benefited from the CFTC determination, had a rude awakening when both Illovo and Salima Sugar companies announced another price hike, the second one since the 44 per cent devaluation of the kwacha, a situation which shouldn’t have happened if the issue was dealt with utmost urgency considering that justice delayed is justice denied.
He added that the current situation is regrettable because the developments surrounding the matter seem to create an impression that the elite is at liberty to use the law to punish the marginalized and less privileged people who were supposed to be protected by the same law in the first place.
He has therefore asked Chief Justice Mzikamanda, in his capacity as the Head of the Judiciary, to take over the matter and ensure that justice is not only served but be seen to be delivered before the citizenry can get used to life without sugar.
He demonstrated the need to treat the matter with the urgency it deserves by citing Section 12 subsection 1 (a) of the republican constitution which clearly states that both legal and political authority of the state derives from the people of Malawi and shall be exercised to solely serve and protect their interests.
“It is, therefore, a majority view that a ruling on this matter will not only serve the public interest but also strengthen confidence and trust in the effectiveness of our independent judicial system as per the spirit and wording of Section 13 (O) of the constitution,” he said.
Meanwhile, productive citizens are queueing for hours for the commodity that is not available.
“Where it is available, they are reduced to laughing stocks as respectable citizens are pictured scrambling for a packet of the commodity,” he expressed his disappointment.
Malawians are now enduring suffering due to the seemingly never-ending sugar crisis that has culminated in unprecedented soaring prices—hitting K5,000 per kilogramme on the parallel market.
Judge Malonda of the High Court granted an injunction to Illovo Sugar on September 7, 2023, sparing the firm from prosecution for alleged unfair competition.
Surprisingly, the stay order was granted after an investigation by the CFTC found the company guilty of unfair trading practices.
“The CFTC further applied to have the injunction vacated on September 20, 2023, and a hearing on the matter was done on October 24, 2023, but six months down the line, the judgement is nowhere to be seen,” concluded Namiwa.
