President Edgar Lungu has pardoned Chanda Chimba, a freelance journalist who was jailed for two years in November 2016.

Chimba was convicted for disposing off property suspected to have been proceeds of crime.

In 2011, Chimba produced highly defamatory articles against then opposition leader, Michael Sata, the Catholic Church leaders and others for the benefit of the MMD using public resources.

President Lungu promised to pardon Chimba at a rally in Mbala recently, saying he only had powers to pardon a convict and not a suspect like UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema.