A 27-year-old teacher of Samfya district in Luapula Province has pleaded guilty to defamaing President Edgar Lungu and being possession of pornographic material.

In this matter, Enockson Banda is facing four counts of defamation of the President and possession of obscene material.

It is alleged that between April 1 and June 30 last year, Banda, with intent to bringing the name of the President into ridicule, published defamatory statements.

It is further alleged that on the same dates, Banda had in his possession obscene materials, including pictures tending to corrupt morals.

Banda had initially denied all the charges in the matter last year and trial had commenced.

However, when the matter came up for continuation of trial before magistrate Sylvia Munyinya, Friday, Banda pleaded guilty after the court read out the charges to him.

Asked why he had issued the defamatory statements against President Lungu, Banda said it was because he was angry.

The court then entered a plea of guilty and adjourned that matter to today for reading of facts and sentencing.

Meanwhile, a forensic pathologist, Tadjimurat Musakhanov, who conducted a postmortem on Vespers Shimuzhila, has disclosed that the cause of her death was an obstruction of respiratory tracks due to soot which contained carbon monoxide poison.

This is an inquest hearing before the coroner’s court at the Subordinate Court, Lusaka, to ascertain how the UNZA student came to her death last year.

Vespers, who was a fourth year student at UNZA died in October last year of suffocation after the police allegedly burnt one of the hostels using a tear gas canister during a student riot over delayed payment of meal allowances.

And testifying before coroner Sylvia Munyinya, Friday, Dr Musakhanov who has more than 25 years’ experience, said he conducted the postmortem examination on Shimuzhila on October 7, two days after her death.

He told the coroner’s court that his external examination of Vesper’s body showed dark fluids from her nose and mouth.

Dr Musakhanov added that Vesper’s body and skin were intact with nothing to show that she had been injured.

He said there was no evidence to show that Vespers had consumed any toxic substances to cause her death.

Dr Musakhanov said although he discovered that the deceased had a concomitant disease, it could not have led to her death.

Asked by a lawyer representing Vesper’s family, Lastone Mwanaabo, whether he took the dark red soot he found on the deceased to the laboratory, Dr Musakhanov said he did not.

Hearing continues on April 3, 4 and 5, 2019.