Actor Tumpe Mtaya, commonly known as Phwedo Thursday, pleaded not guilty to two charges of having sex with a minor and abducting a minor.

Mtaya appeared before Principal Resident Magistrate Benjamin Chulu to take his plea. 

He was arrested on 22 April and was later released on bail on 25th after spending three days in a police cell.During the bail application rulling, his case was adjourned to 08 May for plea taking and direction of the case.

On Thursday, Mtaya took a plea of not guilty, and immediately after taking the plea, his lawyers made an application for further disclosures in the case after the plea-taking.

One of the defence lawyers, Khwima Mchizi, pleaded with the magistrate that the State should give them an ID which the victim in the case used when sitting for his Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) and biological age test examination results.

“We believe that in the custody of the state, they have proof of the age of the person that they are talking about. We are only asking that if she claims that she wrote MSCE national examinations last year, then there should be a student ID that should show her age.

“We also got some report from the hospital, an age assessment report. We believe that report was not just made from air; there must be some documents that were used. We would want to have a look at the documents that were used, if there were images that were taken, we would like to have a look at those images,” said Mchizi.

In response, state prosecutor Dalireni Kalunguka accused the defence of dictating how they have presented their evidence and witnesses.

Kalunguka said in court; “The defence should not worry about the evidence. What is important is that their client has denied the case. It is up to us, the state, to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.“

It is also not proper for the defence to be dictating to the state how it intends to bring its evidence and witnesses. There are many ways to prove one’s age. They should not worry about the age report at this point. The one who produced the report is an expert; he will come to explain it and the victims’ ages in detail.”

Meanwhile, Principal Resident Magistrate Benjamin Chulu, after assessing arguments from both sides, adjourned the case to 16 May, when he will make his ruling on the application for disclosures.

Child rights activist Memory Chisenga, who was also at the court, said she wants to see a fair and speedy trial in the matter.

“The case involves a minor. This case is about human rights. It is our prayer that the magistrate will treat this matter with the urgency it deserves,” Chisenga said.