The state has finally released NDC leader Chishimba Kambwili on bail since he was arrested and denied police bond earlier this week.

Kambwili is facing 39 criminal charges, 37 of which involve being in possession of money believed to be proceeds of crime.

On Wednesday when the court granted him bail, the Anti Corruption Commission refused to release him on ground that his passport had not been surrendered to the court. Howver, Kambwili’s lawyers argued that the passport was already handed to the immigration who should have surrendered it to the court.

The confusion led to Kambwili being led into a detention cell where he fainted and instead of being rushed to the hospital, police surrendered him to authorities and Lusaka Central remand prison.

He was later taken to the University Teaching Hospital after his condition got worse.

Yesterday, his lawyer Gilbert Phiri said the Roan MP had finally been released.

“The department of immigration was subpoenaed by the court to bring the passport to court and they duly complied with the court order and the passport has been surrendered to the clerk of court. So as matters stand all the bail conditions have been met. And the accused person is free to receive his hospital treatment away from all this confusion,” he said.

Asked where the passport was, Phiri said: Funny enough, the passport was in fact not with the Department of Immigration. It was with the Ministry of Health. The Ministry of Health sent a doctor. The subpoena went to the Department of Immigration but the passport itself was brought by a medical doctor from the Ministry of Health with the information that the passport had been handed over to the Ministry of Health in order to evacuate Dr Chishimba Kambwili, yet he himself was not aware of those evacuation plans. Not even his family. That’s what we find quite amusing.”

And NDC Secretary General Mwenya Musenge wondered how a common Zambian would be treated if a serving member of parliament could be harassed like Kambwili was.

“If an honourable member of parliament can be handled in such a manner, what of a common person out there? It is not always that you detain. It’s important that we try to allow Zambians to enjoy their rights. Whatever has happened is very unfortunate. Otherwise we are happy that it has come to an end. This is the man that has never abrogated any order or any summon to appear before the ACC, the police, even to appear before the courts,” said Musenge.

“But to go to such a circumstance where you are even able to see that it’s a planned arrangement to just incarcerate him, to press him down, no that’s not right. Hopefully our colleagues in the judiciary will seriously look at this issue. The police should also take time to reflect. Let them not be used. Let us try by all means to do things according to the law.”