Maravi

Blame the violence on Rupiah

Blame the violence on Rupiah
By The Post Editor
Thu 29 Apr. 2010, 04:10 CAT

TRULY, politicians should not take each other’s lives for the sake of winning an election. It is indeed saddening to see some people who are ready to kill in order to be national leaders. This is what Rupiah Banda is saying. But this is exactly the opposite of what he is doing.

All along, Rupiah has defended and justified the violence of MMD cadres. We have been victims of this violence and Rupiah has justified the MMD cadres’ violence against our journalists.

Our reporters are not violent people and have never in any way gone out to physically attack anyone. But still this has not spared them the violence of MMD cadres. And MMD cadres have never needed pretext to attack anyone. This is why they attack any citizen who tries to exercise his or her constitutional right to belong to a political party of their choice other than the MMD.

They are also ruthless on those who attempt to exercise their freedom of expression and assembly; and those who try to exercise their political rights and criticise Rupiah and his government. For them, anything that threatens Rupiah’s continued hold on power is a target of their violence. Rupiah has not in any meaningful way come out against this violence. He has instead consistently justified it. At one time he even boasted that he also has support and those who support him will not allow him to be insulted.

There’s no need to try and apportion blame for the violence in Mufumbwe when its source is well known. It is MMD cadres who are the initiators and perpetrators of violence in Mufumbwe. It is them who attacked Charles Kakoma and his colleagues in their sleep in Mufumbwe. What violence did Charles cause in his sleep to the MMD cadres? Can a sleeping man attack anyone?

It is also a well-known fact that it was MMD cadres who invaded the police station and made Inspector General of Police Francis Kabonde to run for cover and hide from their violence. It is equally a well-known fact that the churches that were burnt and damaged in chief Mushima’s area was the work of MMD cadres.

It is a fact that MMD cadres were given instructions by Mulondwe Muzungu, their party’s parliamentary candidate, not to allow any UPND members to campaign in the area. And when the UPND members went to try and campaign in the area, they were attacked by MMD cadres whom, however, they managed to overpower.

The overpowered MMD cadres ran into the bushes and later on decided to vent their anger on the three church buildings, setting them on fire and breaking windows. This is what happened.

This is a matter that can be easily investigated and the culprits arrested and prosecuted. But it won’t happen because they belong to Rupiah. If these churches were burnt and destroyed by UPND cadres they would have been arrested by now. They are not arrested simply because no policeman will dare touch them when they are under the protection of the highest authorities.

For those who judge the facts in this way it is well to remember that Rupiah and his cadres have never needed pretext to perpetrate their villainy on any citizen who is not with them, who doesn’t support them, who opposes their way of thinking and of governing the country.

A well-known fact is that Rupiah is the defender, protector and promoter of all the elements behind this violence that we are today witnessing. There’s no need to try and maintain a neutral line between good and evil. Evil has to be condemned. And this evil is coming from Rupiah and his cadres, and its dishonesty to try and talk about it in general terms when we know very well its source.

Our sympathies should go to the innocent victims of the insolence of Rupiah and his cadres; our solidarity should be with Charles and all other innocent citizens who have been injured by MMD cadres for simply belonging to the opposition UPND and for exercising their political rights to campaign for their party’s candidate in today’s parliamentary by-election. Solidarity with Charles and his comrades might be used as a pretext but shall never be the cause of their violence.

Denying solidarity with victims of violence, intolerance and injustice in order to deny the pretext is ridiculous ostrich-like politics, which has nothing to do with hatred for violence. To cease solidarity with victims of Rupiah’s intolerance and the violence of his cadres does not mean to deny a pretext but actually to show solidarity with Rupiah and his cadres and their violence. We shouldn’t be easily enticed to read peace and fairness as meaning parity between injustice and justice.

Those cadres are violent because Rupiah rewards them for being violent. It is not possible to build a peaceful nation on the basis of violence; you can’t win the support of the people with brutality. And as we have warned before, the MMD’s violence can only do one thing, and that is to breed counter violence from the opposition and other citizens who don’t support them.

We hope Rupiah and his cadres will soon realise that the use of violence against their political opponents and others who don’t support them puts them next to animals.

There’s need to be truthful about this violence if we are to stand any chance of eradicating or containing it. There’s no need to be lying about who is behind this violence. When you tell the truth, justice is done, but lies lead to injustice. Anyone who means well, anyone who wants to do good wants to be told when he is wrong. It is dishonest and evil-minded people who hate to be corrected. You will earn the trust and respect of others if you work for good; if you work for evil, you are making a mistake. Wicked people bring about their own downfall by their evil deeds, but good people are protected by their integrity. Wise people walk the road that leads upward to life, not the road that leads downward to death.

It is wrong for those in power to tolerate evil, because justice is what makes a government strong. Those who are good travel a road that avoids evil; so watch where you are going – it may save your life.

Condemning the innocent, the victims of violence or letting the wicked and violent go scot-free are both wrong. It is not right to favour the guilty, the violent and keep the innocent, the victims of violence from receiving justice.

Clearly, all this violence should be blamed on Rupiah. The police cannot even function properly because they have become a personal tool for Rupiah’s schemes. The violence that is going on is not beyond the capacity of our police. Things are out of control simply because the police cannot move strongly against violent MMD cadres for fear of offending or antagonising Rupiah. This is why it is said that “when evil men are in power, crime increases. But the righteous will live to see the downfall of such men” (Proverbs 29:16).

Labels: CADRES, POLITICAL VIOLENCE, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 3:16 PM