By Agness Changala
Chishimba Kambwili left the country legally, says his lawyer Kennedy Mambwe.
And sources have revealed that the government initially wanted to send Kambwili abroad for medical treatment but suddenly informed him that his trip was cancelled indefinitely, prompting him to travel at his expense as [pp-logged-users] his health was deteriorating.
Last week, Home Affairs minister Jack Mwiimbu and Health minister Sylvia Masebo held a briefing where they informed the nation that Kambwili had left the country illegally.
Asked on his client’s whereabouts following the government’s revelation that Kambwili left the country illegally, Mambwe said his client was allowed to travel by the court and the government through the Ministry of Health.
He said the government was the one that initiated his evacuation abroad.
“There was nothing illegal. That person was allowed to travel by the court and the government itself. In fact, the government is the one that initiated him to be evacuated upon medical assessment,” Mambwe said. “Our client legally left the country based on the court order dated January 19, 2024 and a letter from the Ministry of Health dated January 9, 2024.”
However, sources close to this matter, told Daily Revelation that on January 3, this year, Kambwili fell sick and went to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) to be attended.
They said when he was attended there, the doctors recommended that the problem that he had required him to be treated abroad.
“So premised on that, they made a recommendation to the Minister of Health (MoH), and through the office of Minister of Health, on 10th January 2024, they equally wrote a letter affirming the recommendation and writing to India and South Africa to try and engage them whether they could proceed and treat him,” the sources said. Now as you know, there is that issue of the Kasama High Court where he was granted bail and one of the bail conditions was that he surrenders his passport which he did.”
The sources explained that the MoH advised him that for them to process his trip abroad, he needed to give them his passport.
They said his lawyers were informed and applied for release of the passport and on January 19, 2024 his passport was released by High Court judge Matthew Zulu.
The sources said upon the passport being released to him, he surrendered it to the Ministry of Health, who said they would facilitate for him to go abroad.
The sources said, due to the government’s long administrative procedures, Kambwili waited for a long time to travel and his health was getting worse.
However, last week on Saturday, the Ministry of Health communicated to him to say he would be flown to South Africa on a Sunday.
They said after they communicated, they proceeded and told him that they had booked the flight and made all the arrangements.
The sources said prior to the above, he had indicated to them that since his condition was deteriorating and he indicated to them that if they are having problems with the funds, he could still do it and provide funds through relatives and well-wishers.
According to sources, they told him that this was not necessary because the government undertook to pay everything and they confirmed that he was going.
“Then surpassingly on the same Sunday he was to travel, the government through one of the doctors there just sent an sms (short messaging service) to say, his trip was cancelled indefinitely because they needed some kind of approvals from the Cabinet,” sources explained. “But now at that time, he had no time. He couldn’t wait because they knew from the 3rd of January, he was under medical emergency which affects his kidneys and lungs and the doctors had indicated that the more he delays the more he is likely to suffer a collapse of kidneys and the lungs.”
The sources said Kambwili then decided to proceed and fund his own trip and went to Chirundu on January 30, and presented himself to the immigration there.
They said because he was sick, he remained in the vehicle and one of his colleagues went and informed immigration officials to say this person was going for medical treatment and showed them all the documents.
The sources said the officers at the border were shown the court documents and the letter from the government adding that, at this point, he was allowed to travel except that since the government had attempted to fund the trip but failed, he presented himself there.
“So there, they saw the documents and they agreed with him. However, the issue was that according to the immigration officers, they said that looking at his political status in Zambia, they needed to have some third party from Lusaka to clear him. Now because that process took long, they agreed that he should go on the Zimbabwean side then wait for them to clear with the officers then they would send the passport. So he was just by the border on the Zimbabwean side so he started waiting for that process. Then surprisingly, they couldn’t because they were saying they couldn’t clear him,” sources said.
They said on February 2, he was surprised to just see a press briefing where the government was suggesting that he had unlawfully left the country because section 16 of the immigration and deportation Act, required him at the point of exit to present himself before an officer and he did that.
Sources said Kambwili had been waiting and accused the government of not capturing the facts as they were.
“But otherwise, he had a court order that allowed him to travel as recommended by the government. Right now he is still in Zimbabwe, and according to the report that they gave, it suggested that the government was aware,” said sources.
