By Agness Changala
Ambassador Emmanuel Mwamba says Inspector General of Police Graphael Musamba should resign for perpetrating lawlessness in the country.
And Ambassador Mwamba who is also PF information and public chairperson, has condemned in the strongest terms, the disruption of a press briefing by Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and confiscation of cameras and other gadgets from journalists who were covering the event in Kitwe.
On Monday, Musamba told Daily Revelation that police intervened in late Tutwa Ngulube’s memorial because of PF vice-president Given Lubinda’s “swearing” which was agitating against public order.
The Inspector General of Police also said the police was simply acting on the request by Ngulube’s family who he said feared that the event had been turned political.
But Mwamba told Daily Revelation that before Lubinda issued a statement, Ngulube’s family was already being pressured to cancel the memorial by the police because they had invited former president Edgar Lungu to grace the occasion.
He said the family was under intense pressure to cancel the event and he was happy that Musamba had confessed that the police helped in the cancellation.
“It had nothing to do with Hon Given Lubinda. The police just came and used Given Lubinda’s statement as an excuse and I am glad that the IG has confessed that they helped the cancellation because that’s the information I found on the ground. So this is illegal and we have called on the IG to resign because this IG doesn’t respect the rule of law, he doesn’t enforce law and order. He in fact perpetrates lawlessness,” Mwamba said. “He has allowed abuse of the Police to infringe on the rights of individuals, to abuse political leaders and citizens. He has allowed torture, inhuman treatment and long incarceration.”
Mwamba also said Musamba is engaged in torture of citizens and abuse of other rights.
“His police is engaged in abuse of citizens, inhuman treatment, he is engaged in all sorts of lawlessness, he cancels public rallies, he cancels memorials, he is now cancelling press conferences, so this lawlessness must not be allowed. Zambia is a democracy, we are a Constitutional democracy and the conduct of the IG is of much concern and that is why we are calling for his resignation or his dismissal. Whichever can work best because he is perpetuating lawlessness,” Mwamba said.
And Mwamba said the detention of journalists is an affront against freedom of expression and freedom of the press.
He said a source doesn’t need a police permit or notice to hold a press conference.
“That must be made very clear. Rae Hamoonga made a statement that Kasonde and Siame didn’t get a permit or didn’t notify the police about their meeting. It is unlawful. This is the lawlessness we are talking about, you do not need a permit or notice from the police to hold a press conference, further confiscation of cameras, recorders and phones from journalists and deleting their footage again is lawlessness” he said.
Mwamba said this is an attack on the practice of journalism and on the rights of journalists to apply their trade.
He said the attacks on journalists are unfortunate and an assault of freedom of the media.
Mwamba added that the IG should not be allowed to break the law.
“This is the lawlessness we are talking about by the police that this Inspector General of Police is a present danger to our democracy and must resign,” said Mwamba.
On Monday, police in Kitwe disrupted a scheduled press briefing by EFF president Kasonde Mwenda and his secretary general Changala Siame and confiscated gadgets from some journalists.
The two opposition leaders together with journalists were taken to Riverside Police Station and were released later and given back their gadgets after footage was deleted.
The police confiscated the cameras and other gadgets from some journalists on account that the briefing they were covering was an illegal one.
