By Staff Reporter
Economic Front (EF) leader Wynter Kabimba says he told President Hakainde Hichilema both in writing and in a telephone conversation over the arbitrary arrests that are happening in his administration, including the conduct of his brother-in-law over the arrest of two Shibuyunji boys.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Kabimba said that President Hichilema and his officials never respond to demands of other stakeholders because of arrogance, saying he wrote to UPND SG Batuke Imenda over the use of the helicopter but he never responded until he took the matter to court, including non-responses from Inspector General of police Lemmy Kajoba over the Mary Chirwa issue. He also said that Local Government minister Garry Nkombo did not respond to his demand letter on the 156 vehicles and up to now has not filed any affidavit against Kabimba’s affidavit.
He accused those in the administration of manifesting an attitude that they do not want to be held accountable, despite the matters being raised being of a public nature, saying he has never seen such an attitude as he is seeing it in the UPND.
Kabimba said he wrote a letter to President Hichilema where he was raising governance issues with him, including arbitrary detentions and keeping citizens in police custody before investigations are completed, saying he reminded the President that when he was swearing in Kajoba he directed him to stop the culture of locking up people before completing the investigations.
He said he had two boys he was representing in police custody at Westwood police station in Lusaka for 10 days without being granted bond, claiming the only reason for that was that his (President Hichilema’s) brother-in-law did not want to use police in Shibuyunji and Westwood and therefore brought in his own police officers from Lusaka.
“He went and picked up the boys from the village, dumped them at Westwood police station and said these police officers are from State House. He ignored completely the jurisdiction of Westwood police station. He completely ignored the jurisdiction of Shibuyunji police station, which is the police station in the district. He ignored both those police stations and commandeered his own police officers from Lusaka. So I reminded him about that in the letter and I thought that he would take that as a serious indictment on the police officers and this continued culture of arbitrary arrests,” Kabimba said. “And you know what happened to those boys? They were released after 10 days without charge. So it’s not only the attitude that we are seeing from those below him, it goes way up to him. And that’s why things can’t change. And that’s why things are getting worse. Because even those that are working with him they realize that he doesn’t mean what he says. It’s arrogance in public office… It’s an attitude of who are you to hold me accountable?”
Asked which brother-in-law to the President he was talking about who he had also written about to the President, Kabimba said he was referring to Machacha Shepande, the immediate elder brother to First Lady Mutinta.
Kabimba said aside from raising the issue with the President in writing, he also addressed the same to the head of state during a phone conversation he said he had with the President.
“He personally called me and I even raised the issue with him on the phone,” he but asked what the President called to discuss with him, Kabimba said he was not discussing that matter.
He said he told the President that what he had ordered against arbitrary arrests was not being abided to by the law enforcement.
“I wrote a letter to him which he did not respond to. But when he called me I raised that issue because it was during the week when the boys were still in custody. I have even taken up the matter to court. I have sued the Attorney General for false imprisonment, and I have sued the boy who was the agent who identified them,” said Kabimba.
Kabimba said the lack of transparency was against the promise by the President to increase transparency in his government, arguing that transparency requires that those in leadership respond to the concerns of citizens even if they do not agree with them.
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