Court orders police to bring Mulenga Fube before court to explain where former Nkana MP Binwell Mpundu is

The Lusaka Magistrates' Court has ordered police to bring Mulenga Fube, a former Chilubi Member of Parliament, before it on Tuesday to explain the whereabouts of former Nkana MP Binwell Mpundu, who has missed his court date and faces a fresh bench warrant. Mr Fube is one of two sureties who guaranteed that Mr Mpundu would attend court. When the matter was called, Mr Mpundu's lawyer, Leon Lemba, told the court that police had picked up Mr Fube on Saturday, which is why he did not appear. Mr Lemba said the second surety, former Kanfinsa MP Christopher Kang'ombe, could not come because he is unwell. Magistrate Webster Milumbe had earlier issued a bench warrant against Mr Mpundu for failing to attend court and directed both sureties to show cause why he was absent, and to either produce him or say where he is. After hearing that Mr Fube was in custody, the magistrate ordered that he be brought to court the same day. Mr Mpundu is charged with one count of seditious practices. The charge arises from a Facebook post allegedly published on 30 December 2024, in which he is accused of urging members of the public and politicians to acquire firearms for self-defence. He has not been convicted of any offence. ## Background This is not the first time the court has issued a bench warrant for Mr Mpundu. A warrant was issued in July and later revoked after the court accepted his explanation for missing a sitting. A surety is a person who signs a promise that an accused will turn up in court, so when the accused is absent the court looks first to the sureties to say where he is. ## Why it matters A bench warrant allows police to arrest a person wherever they are found and bring them to court. The case also shows how bail works in practice: the people who vouch for an accused can themselves be called to answer when he does not appear. The matter sits among a number of cases against opposition-linked figures that have been before the Lusaka courts since the August election, and