Maravi

Reflections from my detention cells

Reflections from my detention cells
Written by Frank Bwalya (Fr) in Kalulushi Police cell, Kalulushi
Saturday, January 10, 2009 7:41:41 PM

Salutation

I dedicate this message to you dear fellow Zambians living in our beloved land. I also dedicate this same message to the Zambians living in the Diaspora who constitute the virtual 10th province of our country.

I say to you, peace and goodness be with you all.

Background to my arrest

Wednesday, November 12, 2008 will forever be remembered by me in my personal life calendar as Dark Wednesday, since this was the day when Zambian State Police arrested me around 17:00 hours at Icengelo Radio Station premises immediately after presenting a radio programme on the inadequacies of the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ). During the radio programme, I argued that Zambia would never have free and fair elections if “rotten” laws that promote fraudulent elections remained in place. I also said that ECZ needed to be made independent and answerable to the people through Parliament.

I was detained overnight at Kalulushi Police Station without charge. What followed is public knowledge.

Police treatment

Police officers treated me humanely and did not say any word that I considered harsh, rude or violent. In their faces I saw tension and agony that reminded me of the agony of Pontius Pilate during the trial of Jesus Christ. It was clear that the police were carrying out instructions that made them agonise about arresting and locking up a peaceful and innocent person. I have nothing against them. I love them as my fellow human beings.

Flashes from the dreaded one party state

As I lay down in that police cell in Kalulushi without charge, I started having visions of the dreaded One Party State that our country was once in during the period 1973 to 1991, with its offshoots of:

- paranoia about criticism leading to wanton arrests of citizens holding divergent views, mainly on trumped-up charges;

- institutions of State like Police used against the innocent citizens in the name of maintaining law and order;

- the rule of law based on a legal system supporting the spirit of Animal Farm where citizens who belonged to the Ruling Party were more equal than those who did not;

- espousing of a culture of hero worshipping and appeasement Vs principled reasoning and merit;

Then I realised that all the institutions of State set up to prop up the One Party State in 1973 have remained virtually intact to this day. The country has since 1991 remained a de-facto One Party State while masquerading as a Multi-Party Constitutional Democratic Regime by making some cosmetic changes to the legal infrastructure over the years.

I cried

I cried over the lost 10 years under Chiluba. The man privatised our economy but went further to privatise public resources. No real change towards real democratisation and good governance took place. I remembered people like late Dean Mung’omba and others that were locked up on tramped-up charges. I remembered people who died mysteriously such as Ronald Penza, Wezi Kaunda, Paul Tembo to mention but a few. I prayed for leaders that would guarantee human rights and freedoms.

It was clear in my mind how since 1991 One Party State institutions have been used by the government of the day to undermine:

- multi-party democratic governance and real peace by always manipulating the Republican Constitution and the country’s legal order, thus compromising fundamental human rights and freedoms;

- socioeconomic progress leading to high unemployment levels, compromised socioeconomic rights hunger, poor education and health standards, poor housing, dilapidated infrastructure, high cost of living, institutionalised corruption; high cost of running government including the holding of unnecessary presidential and parliamentary by-elections;

- prosperity of the citizens leading to dehumanising poverty levels especially among rural dwellers, citizens not empowered with wealth.

Where did we go wrong?

I asked myself the question, “why has change eluded us again? Didn’t we change from One Party State to Multi-Party Democracy? Where did we go wrong?” I found the answer in no time. “We changed the driver, but not the system. We changed the president but not the bad laws.”

If we do not change the system, transform politics by imparting upon it attributes of servant leadership, overhaul our constitutional framework which currently promotes constitutional dictatorship, we are not going anywhere.

Way forward as a nation

In order for other citizens not to go through what happened to me on that dark Wednesday night, we in Zambia urgently need to undertake fundamental political and socioeconomic changes. However, the main target should be the Republican Constitution. All Zambians need to push for the amendment of the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) Act to transform the NCC into a supreme all-inclusive body superior to Parliament. This body shall have the authority of “We the People” in considering both the text and content of the final Mung’omba Draft Republican Constitution and the first draft report of the Electoral Review Technical Committee (ERTC). This is of paramount importance for the current NCC to produce a final people-driven Republican Constitution draft to be submitted to the people for final approval through a referendum.

This should be done and concluded way before the tripartite elections in 2011. Otherwise the constitution that will come out of the current NCC will lack legitimacy.

Sacrifice

No country or people have overcome problems whether political, social or economic without sacrifice, especially by those who offer themselves as leaders. Sacrifice is vital for Zambia to move forward. Unfortunately, our leaders think that sacrifice is only for taxpayers. It is clear that they believe that taxpayers are the ones that should tighten their belts. This is wrong and it shows that ‘animal farm’ is real here.

In order for our leaders to show that they are willing to sacrifice for the common good, the Republican President should reduce his bloated government by at least half. Positions of Deputy Minister should be done away with together with those of District Commissioners and double Permanent Secretaries in some Ministries.

Against this background ministers and MPs on the NCC should be asked to forego their allowances as their contribution to the sacrifice for this work since the taxpayer is already paying for them as ministers and MPs. The allowances for the other members should be borne by their sponsors.

My role as a priest

Since the relationship between the State and the Church is for no other reason than for the welfare of the people who are at the centre of these two institutions as both citizens and believers, the Church shall, at all times act within and with the State on all the issues of common concern that safeguard the welfare of the people while performing her basic fundamental duties.

Both the State and the Church have a moral obligation to dedicate themselves to the service of humankind by always acting in the best interest of the common good of the citizens; and also by always openly and courageously speaking out on issues affecting the welfare of the voiceless poor and helpless majority of Zambians whenever the common good of the people is at stake.

This is my motivation.

Personal Commitment

Therefore, I hereby declare that I will speak out for the voiceless come what may, whenever injustices show their ugly heads in our society. My arrest has awakened me. It has given me a kind of new birth into a time to speak out without fear whatsoever.

God bless you all.

Labels: FRANK BWALYA, GOVERNANCE, HUMAN RIGHTS, PRISONS

posted by MrK @ 7:42 PM