Prosecutors step out of shadows to meet people
VIVIANE NSINGO
Lusaka
THEY rise when a matter is called. A name is read. A charge is announced. A file is opened. And then comes the sentence heard in courtrooms across Zambia, from a packed chamber in Lusaka to a handful of people in a remote district:
“I appear for the people.”
It is a simple phrase. Yet behind it lies one of the most consequential powers in a constitutional democracy: the authority to bring cases before the courts in the name of the republic.
When a child has been defiled, when public funds have vanished, when a protected pangolin has been trafficked, the answer is not abstract. It is the prosecutor. And every prosecutor in Zambia derives authority from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
For 16 years, those who carry this responsibility have largely remained strangers to the public they serve. They work in courtrooms, offices and remote districts, following cases wherever courts sit, preparing witnesses, examining evidence, pursuing proceeds of crime and challenging decisions where they believe the law has been wrongly applied.
Yet for many Zambians, the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) is little more than a name encountered in a news report when someone is taken to court.
As the NPA marks its first National Prosecution Authority Day today, the institution that has quietly borne the weight of justice is stepping forward to introduce itself fully to the nation.
The NPA did not create its own power. Its mandate flows directly from the Constitution. Article 180 establishes the Office of the DPP, vested with authority to institute, take over or discontinue criminal proceedings.
The National Prosecution Authority Act provides the framework through which this mandate is carried out. In practice, constitutional power becomes daily work: evidence examined, decisions made, cases presented, witnesses supported, appeals handled and justice pursued.
That power comes with independence. Article 180 (7) stipulates that the DPP shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority, while requiring regard for the public interest, the administration of justice, the integrity of the judicial system and the need to prevent abuse of process.
This independence is not a privilege for the DPP. It is a protection for the public. It ensures that prosecutorial decisions are guided by law, evidence and public interest, not by political pressure, personal influence or public sentiment.
The DPP cannot personally appear in every courtroom. Prosecutorial functions are therefore delegated in accordance with the law. At the top is the DPP, supported by the chief state advocate. The service is carried nationwide by deputy chief state advocates, principal state advocates, senior state advocates, state advocates, senior public prosecutors and public prosecutors.
They are the lawyers who examine evidence, make prosecutorial decisions, prepare and present cases in court, handle appeals and ensure that the DPP’s constitutional mandate is carried into courtrooms across the republic. The titles may differ. The purpose does not. They appear for the People.
Their work is not confined to one level of court. Depending on qualifications and the matter before them, NPA prosecutors appear before subordinate courts, the high court and appellate courts.
And they do not all work from Lusaka. The NPA has a physical presence across all 10 provinces and in 68 districts. Where courts sit on circuit in places without permanent offices, prosecutors travel with them — to Chiengi, Milenge, Gwembe, Kazungula, Mulobezi, Mwandi, Chavuma, Mufumbwe, Mafinga and many more.
That movement matters because access to justice is not simply about having laws on the books. It is about whether institutions responsible for applying those laws can reach the people they serve.
The public sees the prosecutor when a case is called. But by the time a lawyer rises in court, much of the work has already been done. Evidence has been examined. A docket scrutinised. Witnesses considered. Legal questions resolved. Investigators engaged. In some cases, property traced, vulnerable witnesses supported or an appeal prepared.
This is where the NPA’s specialised areas of work become important. The authority has expertise in gender-based and child-related crimes, economic and financial crimes, asset forfeiture, environmental and wildlife offences, and appeals. These are not separate from the core business of prosecution. They are responses to the changing nature of crime.
A financial crime may not end when stolen money leaves an account. It may become a house, a vehicle, land or a business registered in another person’s name. The questions then become: Where did the money go? Can it be traced? Can it be recovered? Under the Forfeiture of Proceeds of Crime Act, the law provides mechanisms for pursuing property connected to criminal activity.
The same reality applies to environmental and wildlife crime. Illegal logging, mining and trafficking in protected species can extend beyond an individual offender to organised networks and profitable enterprises. Modern prosecution requires understanding not only the offence, but the machinery behind it.
There is another side of prosecution that rarely makes headlines: the witness. For a prosecutor, a witness provides evidence. For the justice system, a witness is also a human being. That distinction matters particularly in cases involving children and victims of sexual and gender-based violence. A frightened child may not understand cross-examination. An elderly victim may not know where to go. A witness may be terrified of facing the accused.
This is why witness liaison officers are an important part of the process. They help witnesses understand court procedures, navigate the system and access practical support, while ensuring that vulnerable people are treated with dignity. The objective is not to give one side an unfair advantage. It is to ensure that the process of justice does not itself become another source of harm.
Another change taking shape within the justice system is plea bargaining. The Plea Negotiations and Agreements Act provides a lawful framework for plea agreements in appropriate cases. It does not replace the trial. Where facts are genuinely contested, a trial remains essential. But where an accused accepts responsibility and the law permits a negotiated resolution, a case may sometimes be resolved without a protracted trial.
That can save valuable court time and reduce prolonged detention, while allowing the courts to concentrate resources on matters that genuinely require a full trial. The principle is straightforward: where responsibility is accepted and the law allows another route, justice should not be delayed.
The NPA and other stakeholders — the Judiciary, Legal Aid Board and Zambia Correctional Service — are working towards a national plea bargaining programme. This began with sensitisation in correctional facilities around Lusaka before nationwide implementation. The point is not to make justice softer. It is to make justice smarter and more timely.
For every prosecutor who walks into court, there is an institution behind them. Files must move. Vehicles must reach remote circuits. Technology must work. Salaries must be processed. Offices must function. Finance, human resources, IT, procurement, audit, public relations and other corporate services provide that support. They are essential. But they exist for one reason: to make the core business possible. And the core business is prosecution.
Ultimately, the public will judge the NPA not by its offices or organisational charts, but by what happens when a case reaches court. Was the evidence properly assessed? Was the law correctly applied? Was the victim treated with dignity? Was the accused given a fair trial? Was public money protected? Was an unlawful decision challenged? Was justice unnecessarily delayed? Those are the questions that matter.
This brings the story back to the courtroom.
Today, September 11, Zambians will have an opportunity to meet the NPA. In commemoration of National Prosecution Authority Day, the institution will open to the public at its headquarters in Lusaka and across the provinces. The public will meet the lawyers who handle cases, the people who support witnesses, those who pursue proceeds of crime, those who deal with appeals and the teams whose work keeps the service functioning.
For an institution whose constitutional role carries enormous power, visibility matters. Public confidence cannot be built through convictions alone. It is built through understanding.
People should know what prosecutors can and cannot do, and why prosecutorial independence matters. They should understand that the lawyer standing before the court is not there to represent a government, a political party or an individual.
The prosecutor appears for the People. Those four words may sound routine after being spoken thousands of times. They are not. They are a promise: that the justice system belongs to the public; that the powerful and the powerless are subject to the same law; that evidence, not influence, should guide decisions; and that when the State exercises its power against an individual, it must do so lawfully and fairly.
That is why the Open Day is more than an institutional event. It is an invitation to trust through understanding.
For years, prosecutors have met the People in court. Today, they invite the People to meet them outside it. The doors will open. And the institution that has spent 16 years saying “I appear for the People” will, for one day, turn the sentence around: Come and see who is appearing for you.
The author is NPA public relations manager.
