Malawi prosecutors Tuesday obtained a court order to force ex-president Bakili Muluzi, who faces graft charges, to sign a 12 million dollar bond to ensure he returns from a medical check in Britain.
"We want Muluzi to sign for a non-cash bond of 12 million (8.6 million euros). We want the whole nation to be in peace that Muluzi will come back," Alex Nampota, head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), told AFP.
The ACB last week seized Muluzi's passport in a bid to prevent him from travelling to Britain.
Muluzi, who ruled the impoverished southern African nation from 1994 to 2004, is facing charges graft over the theft of 12 million dollars in aid money.
"We are not taking any chances on the possibility that Muluzi might abscond," said Nampota.
The bureau has seized Muluzi's property which includes 150 cars, an office complex and his upmarket residence located in the Limbe district of Blantyre.
"We have also frozen all his bank accounts to satisfy ourselves that he will come back," added Nampota.
But Muluzi's lawyer Jai Banda says the 66-year-old leader plans to challenge the order.
"This is unacceptable because Muluzi is not yet convicted," said Banda.
"It's pathetic...he is actually very sick, and if you see him walking, you can actually see that he is not well. It's worrisome," Banda said.
Muluzi is the most senior figure to face graft charges in a sweeping anti-corruption campaign launched by President Bingu wa Mutharika, his successor and estranged protege.
The graft charges were first raised in 2006 but were withdrawn by the former director of public prosecutions, Ishmael Wadi. Mutharika revived the charges last year.
Tuesday, 30 June 2009
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