Reinstate expelled COBUSU leaders, demands Hichilema

Reinstate expelled COBUSU leaders, demands Hichilema
Written by Agness Changala, Mutuna Chanda and Mwila Chansa
Wednesday, September 09, 2009 6:22:25 PM

UPND president Hakainde Hichilema has demanded that the expelled union leadership at Copperbelt University (CBU) be reinstated immediately. Commenting on CBU management's decision to expel the students' union leadership for what they called breaching students rules and regulations following a riot that took place at the institution a few weeks ago, Hichilema said expelling students would not solve the problems facing the education sector in the country.

"We demand that this be done immediately, if it's not done, it will be done by the UPND-PF pact regime, 24 months from now and we will find a lasting solution to the problems at the universities and other colleges," he said.

Hichilema said the decision came as a result of management’s failure to solve the problems at the institution coupled with the MMD government's inability to address the problems in the education sector.

He said problems facing universities needed clean managers who would be able to reason and solve them as opposed to expelling students.

Hichilema said if shooting of students under President Rupiah Banda's government was easy, and that it should also not be difficult to reinstate the students.

And University of Zambia Students Union (UNZASU) president Duncan Nyirongo said students' representation was provided for in the University Act and that the senate had no authority to suspend students' representation in the institution.

He said the university's action was uncalled for as it showed how desperate the university authorities were and how undemocratic and oppressive they had become.

Nyirongo said the students would not take sequential approach but would take a parallel approach because they had seen that there was a totally tyrannical way of doing things by those they thought meant well.

Nyirongo said students would take the matter from the legal perspectives as well as civil and formal appeals to those in authorities.

And former Copperbelt University Students Union (COBUSU) secretary general Christopher Kang'ombe condemned the senate's expulsion of the entire students union executive and suspension of some students.

The student leaders' expulsion comes in the wake of home affairs minister Lameck Mangani's sentiments recently in Chililabombwe that it was unfortunate that some of the COBUSU leaders may have to be expelled.

Kang'ombe demanded that the expelled and suspended students be reinstated to allow justice to prevail.

"I note with sadness that the suspended and expelled students have not been given an opportunity to exculpate themselves as demanded by the law," Kang'ombe stated. "My experience as a former leader is that when a student is accused of misconducting himself or herself, there must be an opportunity for the accused to write an exculpatory letter followed by a disciplinary hearing and in this case there is failure by CBU management to follow the procedure as outlined both in the students handbook and also in line with the rules of natural justice."

He stated that the disturbances that led to the closure of CBU should not be blamed on innocent union leaders and a few selected students.

"People will recall that the students had been demanding a report on why police shot and wounded a student [Cornelius Mwape] and why the Inspector General of Police had not disciplined the culprit officer," he stated. "This demand was followed by students to have Dora Siliya replaced as minister of education because according to the students, the judge [Dennis] Chirwa tribunal had found the minister of violating the Republican Constitution when she was at the Ministry of Communications. In my opinion the various stakeholders involved in managing the affairs of the university could have predicated the continued protests and to expel COBUSU leaders is very unfair and unjust."

Kang'ombe charged that it was clear that the decision to expel the union leaders was a directive from one of the government leaders.

"It is wrong for management and the police to single out the COBUSU executive as being responsible for disturbances at university because from my own experience you can't hold a union leader responsible for an action by a few students who attack motorists at night," Kang'ombe stated.

He advised the suspended students and expelled COBUSU leaders to take the matter to court if CBU management did not rescind its decision and resolve it in a diplomatic manner.

Former UNZASU treasurer general Johnstone Chikwanda appealed to the Copperbelt University senate to rescind its decision to expel the entire COBUSU executive.

"Anyone who is familiar with the challenges of student governance will attest to the fact that not all riotous behaviour is orchestrated by student leaders," Chikwanda stated. "Various forces within the student body can cause an explosion beyond the reach of its leaders. To lead is therefore to live dangerously. That is why, each riotous behaviour, is supposed to be studied case by case instead of going for the necks of student leaders each time there is entropy. The Universities Act provides for the place of student leadership. It occupies a critical role in the governance of the Universities and as such, it must not be instilled with fear by powers that be. World over, it is wrong to assume that the place of student leadership is the epicentre of every unrest that rocks a University."

Chikwanda stated that for a case of criminal indulgence to be sustained, CBU needed to prove that all student leaders took part in the riotous behaviour.

"They need to be guided by a system of identifying and harvesting the correct 'hot heads' instead of expelling everyone including those who were on sick bed and out of town. It is my prayerful appeal that the CBU revisits these expulsions and analyse them case by case," he stated.

Chikwanda stated that universities were institutions with sufficiently prudent systems and procedures.

"Therefore, when dispensing disciplinary actions, they must be seen to act within the precincts of natural justice where even the most egregious criminal is given an opportunity to tell the side of his case," he stated.

However, he advised students that while they had a right to demonstrate, they were not supposed to attack innocent people and destroy property.

"Students are not supposed to be egregious at violent behaviour," stated Chikwanda. "While it is provided for to hold lawful and peaceful demonstrations, students are supposed to conduct such demonstrations with the right decorum and demeanour so as not to destroy property and innocent people who are paying for their education."

Recently in Chililabombwe, Mangani said COBUSU leaders had to take responsibility for the confusion because according to him they were on record of having instigated it and that some of them would be expelled for that.

CBU senate on Monday resolved to re-open the institution on Sunday September 13 but expelled the entire COBUSU leadership for having violated students' rules and regulations as provided for in the students' information handbook.

The senate further suspended students that were identified as having actively participated in causing disturbances at the institution between April 18 and August 12 pending appearance before the dean of students disciplinary committee.