Maravi

LAZ should not over protect Sakala – Sata

LAZ should not over protect Sakala – Sata
By George Chellah
Wed 18 Nov. 2009, 04:01 CAT

PATRIOTIC Front (PF) leader Michael Sata yesterday urged the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) and President Rupiah Banda not to over-protect the judiciary and Chief Justice Ernest Sakala. And Sata said his closeness and friendliness to the defence and security officers enables him to have all the required information about the country.

Reacting to chief government spokesperson Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha’s comments that he should stop intimidating the police and judiciary, Sata denied intimidating the judiciary.

“The Law Association of Zambia, the government and Rupiah Banda should not treat the judiciary in general and the Chief Justice in particular like kids,” Sata said.

“When they become over-protective of the judiciary and the Chief Justice, they heighten people’s suspicion that government is manipulating the judiciary. We should not be intimidated by government or LAZ. They have no monopoly over the judiciary.”

Sata said he would not hesitate to seek clarification from justice Sakala over what he termed as ‘suspect or political’ judgments.

“For the people of Zambia to have confidence in the judiciary, the administrative and judicial decisions should be very transparent. But when they look suspect, we will not hesitate to seek clarification from the head of the judiciary,” Sata said. “We expect the judiciary to be fair and impartial so that when we go there or appear before them, we expect total fairness and not political manipulation or judgments.”

Sata rejected Lt Gen Shikapwasha’s concerns over his recent observations on the judiciary.

“I have been interacting with the judiciary long before Shikapwasha left the Zambia Air Force (ZAF) training school. I am helping Shikapwasha and his notorious government by seeking clarification. Already people are saying that in Zambia there is justice for the rich and justice for the poor,” Sata explained.

“I will not hesitate to seek clarification when the judgment is suspect. The Chief Justice in his letter said that law has been used before. Let him clarify when it was used and under what circumstances.”

Sata said as long as LAZ was not willing to explain to Zambians the decisions that are being made by the judiciary, the opposition would continue seeking clarification from anybody including the President.

“You tell Stephen Lungu that if LAZ does not want to explain to the Zambians what decisions are being made by the judiciary, it’s not him to tell us what to do. We shall seek clarification from anybody. We have written to the President, we have written to the Speaker to seek clarification,” he said.

On Lt Gen Shikapwasha’s reaction to the picture in The Post on Monday where he was addressing police officers in Solwezi, Sata said his closeness and friendliness to the defence and security officers enables him to have all the information about the country.

“When they talk about ‘police and you’ what does Shikapwasha think that means? Zambians are supposed to cooperate with institutions, which are protecting them,” Sata said. “I will continue my public relations with people in the civil service including the defence and security.

It’s because of my closeness and friendliness to these institutions of the state that’s why I have more information about Zambia than Shikapwasha will ever have.”

He said it was because of the mentality like the one Lt Gen Shikapwasha has that the government does not pay attention to the needs of the police service.

“They regard them as tools. The police are working under very hostile conditions from this notorious government. We understand the suffering of the police because we are always with them,” Sata said.

“Shikapwasha doesn’t care when he is inside his house snoring and the policeman guarding him is getting soaked outside due to lack of raincoats. Who is Shikapwasha to stop us from greeting the police? Shikapwasha is a disgraced General who ran away like a rat during the Captain Solo uprising.”

Sata maintained that Statutory Instrument Number 38 of 2009, which grants the President powers to extend the retirement age of officers in the defence forces, was discriminatory. He said the government was under pressure because the truth is coming out.

“Zambia police training schools produce intelligent officers who are better than Shikapwasha so they cannot be intimidated by a greeting,” said Sata.

Labels: ERNEST SAKALA, LAZ, RONNIE SHIKAPWASHA, SATA

posted by MrK @ 4:49 PM