State Withdraws Charges Against Former Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala
Former Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala (Photo/ Courtesy)
By Kalama Mshomi
Email, thecoastnewspaper@gmail.com
A Malindi court has withdrawn corruption charges facing the former Tourism cabinet secretary Najib Balala and sixteen others.
This comes in the wake of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP) applied for the accused person to be discharged.
In a letter dated July 31, 2024, the ODPP directed for the discontinuation of proceedings against the ex-minister as investigations had not been completed and full disclosure made.
The prosecutor argued that the period that it might take to finalize the investigations was uncertain.
In his ruling, the Malindi chief magistrate James Mwaniki allowed the application of the ODPP to withdraw the case.
The magistrate ordered the accused persons to be discharged under section 87(a) of the criminal code.
“Any cash bail deposited in court be released to the depositors and any security documents deposited in court be given back to the accused persons.”
However, he said that withdrawal of the charges as sought by the ODPP cannot be said to amount to an abuse of court process.
Whereas the withdrawal amounts to a discharge, the ODPP can still institute subsequent proceedings against the accused or any of them on the same charges if new evidence is filed in the future.
