Zambia Police has said that the Police received four cases of Assault OABH which occurred today on 24th June 2017 around 13:00 hours at memorial park in a confusion between UPND and PF cadres. The names of the victims are Hambote Christopher of chalala, Arnold spatula of unknown residence, Mulungu Jones of Salama Park and Samoa Davies of chalala. All victims sustained head injuries and have since been issued with medical reports. The incident happened when suspected UPND and PF Cadres who were burying their party members started exchanging insults which later resulted into a fight.
According to the Police Report released to the media by Police spokesperson Esther Katongo, the first incidence happened on the northern side of memorial park where PF Cadres were burying their member. Police officers were called in but both UPND and PF cadres were accusing each other to have provoked the situation.
Mrs Katongo said that the second incidence happened when PF Cadres approached memorial park from the wall fence separating memorial park and Old leopard hill cemetery, where UPND members were awaiting the body of their member. The PF cadres started throwing stones at UPND cadres which led to another confusion. A lot of people who had their programs at memorial park got caught up in the fracas. In the process , one motor vehicle belonging to PF was set ablaze.
The Police concluded the statement by saying that they will follow up with information as officers are still on the ground.
Earlier there were reports that unruly PF cadres this afternoon stormed Leopards Memorial Park in Lusaka and beat up several mourners attending the burial of outspoken UPND cadre Clance Zulu.
Mourners and some UPND members sustained serious injuries and were being nursed at UTH after allegedly being brutally battered by PF cadres.
Eight are reportedly battling for their lives in UTH while one is reported to have died although there is no independent confirmation of the fatality.
Family members and pall bearers were forced to briefly abandon the casket and run for their safety as the PF cadres went on rampage attacking them.
Some of the PF cadres were heard shouting that they will not allow the UPND to have a rally at the cemetery.
But PF Media Director Sunday Chanda has denied that the PF cadres attacked the mourners.
He said the incident happened after PF cadres who went to bury their own deceased member clashed with their UPND cadres.
Below is the PF statement
NEWS RELEASE
CONTRARY TO MEDIA REPORTS, PF YOUTHS WENT TO BURY AN OFFICIAL FROM CHAWAMA CONSTITUENCY
Lusaka, Zambia, 24TH June 2017 – The regrettable events from Lusaka’s Memorial Park where youths from the Patriotic Front (PF) and Opposition United Party for National Development (UPND) clashed is regrettable. No one from either camp should seek cheap glory out of this unfortunate incident and as such we are calling on our colleagues preach restraint to their members in the same manner that we are doing as PF.
Contrary to the incorrect and lopsided version being spread by the UPND. Information reaching us indicates that burial for a deceased PF member coincided with that of the UPND’s member. Both the deceased were to be put to rest at memorial park. PF went to put to rest a deceased PF member, Mr. Amos Chilufya, the husband to our Chairlady for New Soweto Market while the UPND was burying their deceased member, Clance Zulu. These departed colleagues deserved to be sent off in peace.
The PF condemns all forms of violence and continues to call on its membership across the country to exercise maximum restraint even under intense provocation. As stated by the Party’s Deputy Secretary General Hon Mumbi Phiri, the Party will not condone any form of violence as the era of machetes went with those that had already defected from the PF and now belonged to the Opposition. As the collective, we all have a duty to co-exist and celebrate our political diversity. We must all reflect on the important words of Mahatma Gandhi that “an eye for an eye (and a tooth for a tooth) only ends up making the whole world blind”.
Lastly, we wish to send out a clear message to the body politic that while we can have sharp disagreements, we can conduct our politics without becoming personally disagreeable. PF condemns all forms of violence irrespective of who the perpetrators are. It is high time we viewed each other as competitors and not enemies. This is the Zambia we in the PF seek to build for present and future generations.
Issued by
Sunday Chanda, Media Director – Patriotic Front
Blame Mumbi ..
No tension in Zambia?
Some pf fellow said there is no tension in the country.
Murderous and deadly party called PF. A party from hell with ruthless members who will kill without blinking.
That is peace and no tension by pf definition.
This was all planned by some big fish in pf, if not from state house itself.
There’s no tension in Zambia
It’s a real shame cadres reign supreme in Zambia. It’s getting beyond control now. They think life revolves around these 2 parties.
There is so much work to be done, yet they spend all their time planning and executing terror.
Animals! The report clearly alludes to PF cadres throwing stones at UPND mourners on the other side of the wall and attacking them. Sickening! How does any normal being, especially in the Zambian culture where we have hitherto come together at funerals for a respectful send off of the departed, attack mourners? How low has the respect for values, norms and ultimately life sunk? Any apologists or beneficiarys of this despicable state of affairs in Zambia should start to think and come clean. Predictably, there will be the usual bloggers here who will spew indefensible diatribes. Zambia is on the brink – partisan politics aside. People should step back and reflect.
From Sunday Chanda’s statement you can tell it was PF cadres who started the fight. The fake reconciliatory tone in Chanda’s statement says it all. Had the perpetrators been UPND supporters, Chanda would have come out guns blazing
Stupidity in this country has reached endemic levels.
Ba UPND please dont take sides.cadres in both PF and UPND are violent.we must learn to condemn them objectively.supporters of PF and UPND cannot mix freely anywhere and expect peace to be there as they both want to show who is more popular in Lusaka or CB.this is how dul1 they both think.FINE,PF IS MORE POPULAR IN LUSAKA,THEN WHAT?DEMOCRACY HAS RULES WHICH WE ALL MUST RESPECT AND FOLLOW!
The police must arrest criminals either PF or upnd!!!NOT ALL ZAMBIANS ARE PF OR UPND,NO!!WE ARE BELONG TO VARIOUS POLITICAL PARTIES!!!SO LETS RESPECT EACH OTHER!PLEASE ZP CAGE VIOLENT & FO0LISH CADRES!!WE ARE TIRED OF THEM!
May those 2 souls rest in peace!!!GOD BLESS MOTHER ZAMBIA!!
Fuseki man.
Njimbu unfair statement; the UPND were at a funeral and did Mumbi not tell the PF to stay away? in the fight for power we are losing our culture and our dignity as proud Zambians.
Why is it that upnd caders always get clobbered
Because they are under5 in everything. They can’t win anything.
@Dr Wajimona h,c: the reason why UPND cadres get clobbered always is simple”THEY ARE VERY FEW IN PF STRONGHOLDS SUCH AS LSK,CB”.BUT UPND CADRES OVER RATE THEMSELVES AND WANT TO COMPETE WITH PF CADRES WHO EASILY OUTNUMBER THEM WHEN FIGHT A STARTS.Almost all those huge kaponyas in urban areas today are pro PF or are PF cadres since PF is power.upnd cadres are mostly slim guys from 3.5 provinces who are not used to street life!!moreover,in those 3.5 provinces,PF cadres are few so they cant start fights for fear of being defeated!!so as long as upnd remains in opposition,their cadres will be clobbered in PF strongholds because they are few.
wrong Njimbu; Zambia has two sets of laws; the PF are beyond the law and the UPND CANNOT EVEN GO TO FUNERALS OF THEIR OWN AND THEY ARE ATTACKED.
This is fake news.There is no political tension in the country.
I remember how Tabo Mbeki kept denying the causality of the HIV virus and Aids. The black population was nearly decimated by the virus as the SA government refused to address the cause of the pandemic.
Similar parallels exists in the current political state of affairs.
“President in waiting whenever he will the elections” HH and current President Lungu should be held accountable for the violence being perpetuated by their parties. It is totally unacceptable.
shame ba pf
Njimbu i think you have not helped your party. Everybody read njimbu blog amd see what he says .pf is used to streetlife and they will clobber the upnd cadre because they are less in numbers ..How proud are njimbu to be a Zambian and a PF supporter. U want a united zambia by encouraging dusunity. A strange way of thinking
That is the same kaponya who proudly supports looting and lungu interfering with court cases.
This was all planned by some big fish in pf, if not from state house itself.
Lungu and PF rule by mob violence.
They fail to provide jobs for the youth and instead pay gangs of youth to be street enforcers against opposition.
On the copper belt their unemployed youth who they promised jobs are now legal marrowdding copper theives.
That is how dictators work.
Lungu is to blame. He has made it clear that now Zambia is for PF cadres and Police. This was seen the time of KK when we had vigilantees (by air) and police state.
Nimbu stop making silly comments on issues that border on lives of people. Dont you have guts to reflect on if your dear mother/relative died and someone came and made fun of you! How would you feeel if part cadres came at the grave yard and started beating up mourners who eventually scamper away for their security leaving a casket lying? It is you pipo with hate who are causing all this animositybecause you are taking things childishly. Rememeber if war broke out in this nice country it wll not spare anyone including pipo such as Njimbu. Find something to do on this platform that will improbe lives of these struggling youths who have nothing to but fight each other. Dont hide yourself behind this bloger. You sim to be a very educated person but am shocked over your comments you post…
All of us the old and the young; do you believe that this has never happened in any of the 5 President’s? Why Muli Lungu Edgar’s regime?
Food for thot.
@17 Chale this though a bad thing is not a new thing. Remember the assault on Mr Kapwepwe by Unip cadres under the leadership of William Banda? When I was growing up in Nchanga North murders by ANC on Unip members and vice versa were not uncommon. This behavior is up to the individual to restrain themselves. Even when we were fighting KK, I stayed away from violence.
Lungu is threatening violence against his Opponents in the PF and Opposition ranks. So u know who were the attackers. Pangas and Machetes were used and that is a Trade Mark of the Panga Family (PF). ZPS knows the attackers are PF and that is why they have not been arrested by the PF Police. PF and their Leaders are above the Law under Dictator Lungu.We cannot apportion blame when we know the PF thugs are the culprits.
OK when one fails to lead you destroy what is there as a scapegoat.