By Esther Chisola
Human Rights activist Brebner Changala says independent Petauke-Central member of parliament Emmanuel Jay Jay Banda should be given time to recover and share his ordeal with the people of Zambia.
And Changala has called upon the Medical Association of Zambia (MAZ) and Human Rights Commission (HRC) to intervene in the manner Banda is being treated.
Since Banda was found after his abduction, the police have never allowed him to go home and be with his family, nor have they allowed him to heal before they could interrogate him.
The police attempted twice to interrogate him on some offences he is alleged to have committed in the past but he fainted.
Yesterday, police informed the nation that Banda was discharged from Maina Soko Medical Centre where he was admitted for treatment but remained in custody. They have since charged him with aggravated robbery and attempted murder over a matter he committed in 2015 and ruled upon by the courts
Speaking to Daily Revelation, Changala urged the government to allow Banda to heal.
“Allow Jay-Jay to heal. He is the man who was abducted, traumatised and dumped. He cannot be subjected to such treatment. You cannot treat a human being in the manner they are treating Jay-Jay unless there is something to hide,” Changala said. “I am inviting the voice of the Human Rights Commission also to clearly issue a statement and intervene in the abuse of one citizen by the state police. What is the role of the Human Rights in this matter?”
He said the treatment Banda was receiving from the police was barbaric and a cover up.
He said since Banda was abducted, there had been no clear statement either from him or the police regarding what could have transpired.
“First and foremost, we are seeing some of the worst barbaric conduct by state police. We agree that Jay-Jay Banda was abducted. We must agree that there has not been any clear statement either from Jay-Jay Banda himself or indeed from state police as regards to what transpired on the day he was abducted,” Changala said. “What we have witnessed is a cover up. The state trying to go back into history and find cases against Jay-Jay which we don’t dispute but we have one demand, they must allow Jay-Jay to recover. Give him a period of recovery and time to share his ordeal with the people of Zambia.”
He wondered why the government must start looking at long time cases against Banda when he had been a member of Parliament for three years now.
“Jay-Jay has been a member of parliament for three years, when did they realise that he had cases eight years old? Until after the abduction. That is a cover up. So, we demand that Jay-Jay receives human treatment, he is given time to recover,” he said.
Changala also demanded that the Medical Association of Zambia must intervene in the matter.
“The health facilities are now being used as state detention centre. May it be reminded to those colleagues of ours that what they are doing today, will catch up with them tomorrow. It is important that the correct things are done and in an orderly manner,” said Changala.
