By 
It was a dramatic fall from grace for two towering figures of the Patriotic Front (PF) era as former Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Malanji was sentenced to four years in prison, while former Secretary to the Treasury, Fredson Yamba, received a three-year term following their convictions in corruption-related cases.
Malanji, once a flamboyant Cabinet minister, will serve four years on each of the seven counts he faced, with the sentences to run concurrently.
Yamba, who for a decade controlled the government’s purse strings, was handed three years.
Both sentences took effect on September 3, 2025.
Delivering judgment on Thursday, Senior Resident Magistrate, Ireen Wishimanga, said she had considered their mitigation but found their actions to constitute a serious abuse of public trust.
She said the court exercised “leniency” in passing the sentences.
Outside the holding cells, PF sympathisers broke into chants of support for Malanji, popularly known as “Bonanza,” shouting “Mukose Bonanza!”—loosely translated as “be strong.”
The convictions marked the conclusion of a long legal battle.
Malanji was found guilty of possessing a Bell 430 helicopter, a Bell 206 Jet Ranger, three houses in Silverest, and over USD 200,000 in cash deposits—all deemed proceeds of crime.
The court ruled that the assets would be forfeited to the State.
Magistrate Wishimanga noted that evidence showed Malanji returned from Turkey carrying large sums of cash, which he deposited in banks through multiple transactions.
His company, Gibson Charter Limited, was found incapable of generating the revenue required for such acquisitions.
He was, however, acquitted on a charge relating to Gibson Royal Hotel due to insufficient proof of unlawful acquisition.
Yamba was convicted of wilfully breaching procedure in authorising the transfer of K108 million and an additional K45.8 million to Zambia’s Mission in Ankara, Turkey.
The funds, meant for emoluments, were instead diverted towards the purchase of a chancery without clearance from Parliament, the Attorney General, or the Zambia Public Procurement Authority.
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