Maravi

Regina speaks out

Regina speaks out
Written by Lambwe Kachali
Friday, March 06, 2009 6:26:56 PM

IMPRISONED former president Frederick Chiluba's wife Regina yesterday said everyone is a potential prisoner. In an interview at Lusaka Central Prison, Regina, who was in a jovial mood, expressed gratitude to the prison officers who she said were taking good care of her.

Regina, clad in white prison attire, said she was very fine and had received a lot of support from her husband and family.

Regina said she prayed to God and that her family members were also praying for her. When asked whether she missed home since she was now in prison, Regina said she did not.

"My husband and my children come to see me every day, so how can I miss home? And these people [pointing at female prison officers] are taking good care of me. So, I feel at home, I don't miss home.

I pray to my living God every day, my husband and the family are praying for me," Regina said. "So there is no need to be anxious for nothing. Our living God is always with us."

Regina was last Tuesday sentenced to three years, six months simple imprisonment for receiving property suspected to have been stolen.

Earlier, members of parliament donated paint, brushes and other materials to Lusaka Central Prison as part of their International Women's Day activities.

Energy deputy minister Gladys Lundwe, who led the members of parliament, said their donation was in line with the International Women's Day, which falls on March 8 every year.

Lundwe called on stakeholders to help improve the condition of prisons in the country.

"People in prisons are as good as I am. So we need to think that they are equally important as we are. Tomorrow it might be me to be here. But if I let these people not have better facilities, how would I feel if I came into prison?" Lundwe asked. "We need to give the facilities that are okay, that are acceptable, so that these people are also comfortable where they are. We have started by donating to the women cells so that we improve the cells."

She bemoaned the poor state of prisons across the country, which she said were overcrowded.

"...The prisons are not very good in the sense that when they were built, they targeted a number of people. But the number or the population has grown; as a result a lot of people are coming into prison. So you cannot expect the prisons to be very clean or so, because the number has increased. This is why we are saying that people out there are supposed to do something for these people, so that they are also happy inside," Lundwe said.

And speaking on behalf of the female inmates, Evelyn Munakupa called on stakeholders to come to their aid to complete the two buildings meant for a nursery, pre-school and catering services.

She said one project was started by a Mrs Banda from Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) while the other was started by Barclays Bank but that the projects had since stalled.

Munakupa said as a result of this, female inmates were dormant since they had nothing to do.

"...Most of the time, if we finish doing our work, we just sit, and we are so dormant. We don't know what has happened, maybe it's due to lack of resources. The buildings have been lying idle for quite some time," said Munakupa.

Labels: PRISONS, REGINA CHILUBA

posted by MrK @ 6:28 PM