By Peter Sinkamba
The Supreme Court of Zambia, in the case of Chifire and other, elaborated in detail what constitutes contempt of court. Being a criminal matter, contempt of court must not be prosecuted merely on conjectures and speculation. Criminal cases must be prosecuted based on evidence beyond any reasonable doubt.
I saw the clip where Nakachinda was captured talking about some judges meeting the President bla bla bla. He never made mention of any specific judge or judges, and no specific court or courts.
Of course, there are several election-related cases before High Court judges across the country. And there are several court cases before the Concourt. Which one of the courts was Nakachinda talking about? High court or Concourt?
I repeat what I said a couple of days ago. President Bally should be very careful with State Security agencies. They can deliberately do things to promote a government. And they can do things to deliberately undermine a government and thereby lead to its downfall. Knowing the difference is what most leaders fail to decipher in good time.
UPND and President Bally should be the last to talk about commentaries on the justice system. Do you recall Mr. Henry Chilombo of Lufwanyama who appealed to former DPP to commence contempt proceedings against Mr. Hichilema?
Mr. Hichilema, was on 10th October 2017, alleged to have called three Constitutional Court Judges, namely, Her Ladyships Mungeni Mulenga, Anne M. Sitali, and His Lordship, Palan Mulonda, are “agents of evil and three musketeers, a crop of judges Zambia has, (who are ) totally disgruntled and corrupt.”
Do you recall that former Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) President, Linda Kasonde condemned Mr. Hichilema for accusing judges of corruption without valid evidence?
And do you recall that in a separate letter to Judge Hilda Chibomba as President of the Constitutional Court, Mr. Chilombo argued that the failure by the Constitutional Court to prosecute Mr. Hichilema for contempt has given rise to continued issuance of contemptuous remarks against Constitutional Court Judges by members of the public?
Of course, the issuance of careless and unsubstantiated allegations of corruption against judges has the potential to create anarchy and erode public confidence in the courts of law, which are key institutions of governance.
However, UPND should not be too overzealous on such commentaries. As the Supreme Court demonstrated in the previous cases, where the court thinks a person has crossed the red line outside court premises, the court doesn’t need a policeman to arrest a person or the Attorney General or any other person to make an application. The court will surely move itself and cause the alleged offender to appear before it. So imwe Ba UPND, bola panshi.
The people of Zambia emphatically made it loud and clear they don’t want a Police State.
Focus on economic delivery, and we will wholeheartedly support you in that regard.
You didn’t address the fact that Nakacinda’s comments were abuse of freedom of expression and that the judiciary was attacked whether specific judges were mentioned or not. What you are worried about is that your friends have been arrested. Where were you when ECL attached and threatened judges? Why isn’t that an example in your comments?
I am PF and I always want to be objective, there is a very distinction between freedom of speech and telling blatant lies the way Nakachinda behaved. If you look at the United States, Lizzy Cheney is republican but broken ranks with her republican party and does not want to support blindly but be objective. Nakachinda’s case case might not be contemptous but surely it is a criminal defamatory case, why tell lies like that and without any evidence and sadly the acting PF secretary general is suggesting that Police should ignore crimes and treat them as petty, just how. A crime is a crime, The Police have to remove the lawlessness from loose canons like Nakachinda other wise we will drift back to the PF lawlessness era
@Kasonkomona you are unable to argue your case and want to impress us with the jibber jabber of Cheney which is as irrelevant as bringing Apollo 11 in a discussion of lack of market space in Lusaka. Do you even know what a criminal defamatory case is supposed to be? Whose character has Nakacinda defamed when he mentioned no one. Politicians including HHH always accuse each other. That is their dirty game.
Quite disheartening. He has only been a few months in office. All institutions of government now safely under his armpit as he turns intolerant and so full of himself.
We will see where this harrassment of opposition using underhand methods will take him.
We saw it, lack of experience and u5ness makes him miss his roles. Many people are waiting for the promises he made to be fulfilled and he is busy kicking haphazardly.
All those people being victimized when it all said and done should sue any individuals or institutions found wanting. Is he any cleaner considering this article? Sad readings. What the issue here? INTOLERANCE!
The only reason UPND are mad at Nakachinda is because there could be an element of truth. Vasco is a hypocrite who says rule of law in our faces but behind our backs instructs his security wings to lockup people. His days are numbered!
That is why the case is being taken to court so that your man Nakachinda may prove his tantrums. Time to account
“The Supreme Court demonstrated in the previous cases, where the court thinks a person has crossed the red line outside court premises, the court doesn’t need a policeman to arrest a person or the Attorney General or any other person to make an application. ”
AND NEITHER DOES IT NEED CADRES FOR IT ACT.
#1 Ntaulu, kindly give us the date on which Lazy Lungu threatened judges. The beauty with LT is that you can get stories as way back as ten years ago. Please assist me with this information.
Big useless Mulomo and his foolish biñnoculars stunt,
Congrats
Raphael Nakacinda asked for it and has now got it. He’s surely enjoying it. All RN as u now try to justify your utterances.
The arrest was pushed by cadres that in itself is disheartening
#6 Nemwine… Yes Nakachinda deserves what he’s got…. but this to be done at the demand by cadres is what is worrying. This means that things have not changed from what people fought against….. the PF thuggery, impunity and power by mere cadres. We have just changed the president…. the mentality is still the same.
What upnd doesn’t realize is that it’s decampaigning itself with this kind of behavior, which clearly zambians don’t like.
We condemned PF for the same behavior, but alas, upnd go exactly the same route.
When people complain, their supporters say PF also did this or that. But isn’t that why PF is not in govt today?
The arrest of kakachinda was not pushed by caders but by us aggrieved citizens………
Right here on LT we had some bloggers calling on the AG to proceed with charging him………..
We want to know which judges the president meet and what he was influencing , why was he pushing for one party state as alleged……
Those judges need to come clean or also face the music…..
Zambia we just go in circles. This arrest was triggered by cadres and done to please cadres . It seems we shall be in this cadre grip for a long time. Slowly everything is returning to the PF era days. Cadres are slowly taking over while we are in a bubble.
Imagine the acting PF SG saying the President should ignore Nakachinda, this has nothing to do with the President, the President could have shown concern about the lie but ultimately the Police have to do their work. This is an SG who needs serious orientation, he was busy attacking journalists asking him relevant questions on live TV, very wrong temperament on TV for somebodty appointed a leader, and still taking about PF doing a lot on infrastructure, the same reasons they were chucked out of power with Zambians more interested in bread and butter issues, appears not learnt anything at all. Amos Chanda and Kamba are right PF can not rebrand with the current crop of leaders, bubbling with the same confidence to win Kabwata with same false confidence PF had before August 12. Nakachinda…
Contempt of Court: Which Court? And Which Judge? or Judges?
@ Deja vu – I don’t see how the spirit of cadreism would end in Zambia. Effectively Zambia has two kinds of cadres; white collar and bus stop/market hooliganish cadres.
Removing them thuggish cadres from bus stations and markets is not about all there is. Chief cadres like M’bvious Owaliteta and Cwangwa Khileshe cannot be put in one pot. One looks white collarsh the other bus stopish. I don’t know where you would put Wanda Billiam. He is a class of his own. Probably at the centre of championing the arrest of innocent citizens. We have so many too, turned Ministers. B’nthony Awalya is state house has fallen trumpeter, another cadre. Cadres rule! This is an effective summation.
Deja Vu. Yes he did. when Kenyan Judges nullified Uhuru’s elections and when he was vying for the third term. I try and search it on LT. However, what Nakadancer did was very wrong. Those are old fashioned politics of lies and insults. It would have brought more harm(loss of confidence in the Judiciary) if he was not arrested and made to account for his lies.
We are in a dictatorship. Not to worry, God has a way of dealing with undesirable elements. The upnd leadership will start to drop dead one by one unless they change their ways.
If you are saying nakachindas arrest was pushed by caders ……….
Then there are 2.8 million UPND caders……
Those same 2.8 million caders voted against the president influencing the judiciary and pushing for a one party state………….
The 2.8 million want nakachinda to tell us in courts if he cant provide that information freely which judges HH is influencing…….
That’s why the courts are there. Nakachinda will have to prove which judge HH met, it might be one way of making Nakachinda know Jesus, because surely this unfortunate incident which some misguided PF souls are calling the lies from Nakachinda as freedom of speech will surely make Nakachinda know Jesus
Also write another one after this one showing how helicopters were being stoned in Shiwang’andu in every election during Kampyongos tenure there as an MP, I see your articles are well researched well done, let us know the make of the helicopter as well. By the way, does your party have any section chairman now
There is no civility in Zambian politics. That is why most decent men and women shun politics and leave for mostly hooligans, opportunists, outright thieves and thugs. Very few in politics are of upright character. It is a reflection of our society in general.
Ever since Mr Peter Sinkamba thought it was wise to donate money to Stephen Kampyongo for his illegal stay in office,I knew he just did not understand politics and had no emotional intelligence. So for him to be supporting Nakachinda at this timeor even supporting PF in the last elections does not surprise me at all. As for Mr Binoculars himself, he thrives by creating confusion and anarchy. Just ask Dr Nevers Mumba and the MMD.As far as accusing the President the Judges is concerned, the onus is on the accuser to prove that indeed pressure or money was involved. Let him have his day in court.
I doubt it the money Peter Sinkamba paid for the unconstitutional stay of ministers in office after dissolution of parliament in 2016 came from his pocket. No one who has to sweat to make money would give it away like that. I suspect there was something between the PF and Peter Sinkamba. By the way, who’s Sinkamba’s deputy in his party? HH is an executive president who wants to concentrate on the big issues facing Zambia. The last person he wants to listen to are the likes of Sinkamba and his ilk. Sinkamba doesn’t even express shock at the PF’s corruption. What does he really want?
So what will happen if Nakachinda provides his evidence and it’s true!!
Just wake up from your sweet dream, Nakachinda will never ever provide any evidence because there is none. Are you sure you don’t know him from the MMD days that he is just a rouble rouser
It feels like waking up to PF again! Arrests for insulting the President and such like! Where is this going???
#plant a tree now please!
Atorney general need inductions its like we have a cadre in office. hh did this more than Nakachinda but the learned atorney genaral he never moved his pen.
At least the new dawn is trying to follow the law. The former govt the police would have already made an arrest and charged the hooligan with NON BAILABLE TREASON CHARGE. Looked up for almost half a year in Chimbokaila. It is too early to forget the disproportionate use of force and irrational lawfare used by PF. I have no sympathy for anyone of them, especially if he calls for his own arrest. ATI kupusa bati
Well if what sinkamba says is what the law says then his friend nakachinda has nothing to worry about.
SINKAMBA MUST BE REMINDED THAT HH UTTERED THOSE WORDS RES JUDICATA WHILE NAKUCHINDA UTTERED THEM SUB JUDICE.
Mr. Hichilema, was on 10th October 2017, alleged to have called three Constitutional Court Judges, namely, Her Ladyships Mungeni Mulenga, Anne M. Sitali, and His Lordship, Palan Mulonda, are “agents of evil and three musketeers, a crop of judges Zambia has, (who are ) totally disgruntled and corrupt.”
Do you recall that former Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) President, Linda Kasonde condemned Mr. Hichilema for accusing judges of corruption without valid evidence?
I am trying to figure it out as to which of the two evils ( Nakachinda’s and HH’s ) need to be punished for. The other guy was even specific which judges he was defaming whilst the other was unspecific. Sin is sin.