Malawi Law Society Accuses DPP of Shielding Connected Elites in Lin Yunhua Case

Malawi Exclusive 

The Malawi Law Society has publicly challenged Director of Public Prosecutions Fostino Maele, asking whether prosecutorial powers are being used to fight corruption — or to protect the politically connected.

In an unusually blunt statement released Thursday, the country’s legal watchdog condemned the planned withdrawal of the high-profile corruption case against Chinese businessman Lin Yunhua. The Society said the move threatens judicial integrity and reinforces the perception of “one law for the powerful, another for everyone else.”

MLS said it was alarmed that the Anti-Corruption Bureau moved to discontinue _Republic v Lin Yunhua_ on the DPP’s instructions before any evidence was tested in court.

“The Society questions why a corruption-related case should be discontinued without the evidence being subjected to judicial scrutiny,” the statement said.

The sharpest criticism centered on conflict of interest. The Society revealed Lin Yunhua was previously a client of Maele before his appointment as DPP.

“This creates an apparent conflict of interest,” MLS said, urging Maele to recuse himself from the decision to “avoid any perception that prosecutorial power is being exercised for personal or improper purposes.”

The Society warned this is not an isolated case, pointing to “an increasingly disturbing pattern” of discontinued prosecutions involving politically aligned figures and former clients of the DPP.

“Based on information available to the Society, many of the affected cases involve political figures aligned with the current government and/or former clients of Mr. Maele,” it said.

While the Constitution grants the DPP wide prosecutorial discretion, MLS argued that authority must come with accountability.

“Equality before the law must apply to all persons without discrimination,” the lawyers said. With Malawi stuck at 34 out of 100 on the Corruption Perceptions Index, they warned that dropping high-profile cases is eroding public trust.

The statement was released as Malawi marked 62 years of independence — an anniversary MLS said most citizens had no reason to celebrate.

“For most Malawians, the day passed like any other day. There was nothing really to celebrate.”

The Society also criticized the government for failing to implement judicial reforms, delaying appointments to the Judicial Service Commission, and leaving the Anti-Corruption Bureau without a substantive director for more than two years.

“Acting appointments must not become the norm in a country already suffering the corrosive effects of corruption,” it said.

To curb future abuse, MLS proposed constitutional amendments to give Parliament oversight over DPP decisions to discontinue cases, and to allow courts to review those decisions.

It closed with a warning: “The promise of independence will remain incomplete unless public power is exercised lawfully, public resources are protected, and every citizen can live with dignity under a just and accountable constitutional order.”