Maravi

Rupiah is a blood-thirsty monster, says Hichilema

Rupiah is a blood-thirsty monster, says Hichilema
By Speedwell Mupuchi in Mufumbwe
Fri 30 Apr. 2010, 04:00 CAT

Top: An MMD cadre assaulted during a clash with UPND cadres on Wednesday, bottom: A cadre who police assaulted at a UPND camp on Wednesday - Pictures by Abel Mambwe
UPND president Hakainde Hichilema has charged that President Rupiah Banda is a blood thirsty monster using violence to make his political position alive.

And President Rupiah Banda has charged that Hichilema is possessed by the devil.
Meanwhile, Inspector General of Police Francis Kabonde said he cannot allow Hichilema to point at him.

Commenting on the violence by MMD cadres and police brutality against UPND members, Hichilema blamed President Banda for the violence in Mufumbwe. He said Zambia was being driven down a tube and that the violence experienced was unprecedented.

Hichilema said the MMD top leadership was perpetuating violence.

“Since Rupiah Banda was here, the violence has worsened. The police are not helping out. When they help, they assist the MMD in beating and assaulting people. This happened when our member’s minibus was smashed in full view of the police and the police even looted the goods in the minibus,” Hichilema said.

He charged that President Banda was allowing violence to keep his political position alive.

“The MMD leadership is on the verge of commencing elimination of its political competitors. The incident in Mufumbwe has moved our suspicion levels to specificity - they tried to kill (Charles) Kakoma; the attack on Lumba (the campaign manager) are a confirmation that we have entered a police state,” he said.

Hichilema said the violence, if left unchecked, would make the country ungovernable more so as the country move towards the 2011 elections.

“Zambians now must know what type of leader Rupiah Banda is. Those who were doubting our concern that Rupiah Banda is a dictator and was introducing one party dictatorship have now seen,” Hichilema said.

“It’s up to the Zambian people to rise against this. We must secure our country for our children and their children’s children. We must not fear because if we do, this monster and dictator will grow to proportions that are likely to create civil strife in the country.”

Hichilema said the earlier Zambians came together to stop “this blood-thirsty monster”, the better the country’s future.

“This is the time to unite against the dragon. This is not time to say those being attacked are UPND, it’s not me. When the monster and dragon comes, it will be too late to defend yourself,” advised Hichilema.

He condemned the MMD and police brutality against UPND cadres who they followed at their campaign centre.

“One of our colleagues has lost an eye,” he said.

Hichilema said if President Banda provided leadership as head of state, the violence would not have escalated to levels where people were losing their eyes. He said that the history of struggles indicate that when there were threats to society as it was now, by the MMD, society came together to stop the evil they faced.

Hichilema urged the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) to take interest in what was happening in Zambia because in Zimbabwe and Kenya, what happened there was sparked by incidences like what happened in Mufumbwe.

Police recorded a total of six casualties in Wednesday’s violence in which a UPND cadre lost his eye after police severely beat him and four MMD cadres who sustained deep cuts in their heads after being beaten by the security officers.

Acting police deputy spokesperson Moses Suwali told journalists that police had not yet received details of what caused the violence.

He also said no arrest was made although dockets were opened and warned that police would move in on the perpetrators and arrest the offenders.

Suwali said more police officers were being deployed in Mufumbwe to quell the violence.

Tension in Mufumbwe had been high since MMD deployed thugs from Lusaka. The MMD thugs had been camped right in town and had been terrorising the locals and the opposition.

In Wednesday’s incident, a UPND Copperbelt treasurer Christopher Mwape went to buy drinks at one of the shops.

The MMD thugs identified the minibus as belonging to the UPND and immediately started smashing its windows and destroyed its tyres in full view of riot police officers deployed to maintain law and order.

Mwape helplessly watched his minibus being destroyed and reported the matter to the police.

Copperbelt UPND chairperson Elisha Matambo explained that his party’s cadres who witnessed the MMD thugs smashing the minibus wanted to respond but police restrained them.

“One youth was taking a bath behind the building of our candidate and the MMD thugs spotted him and they went and knifed him,” said Matambo. “Our youths were infuriated and they again attempted to stone the MMD until police descended on them and chased them into Maikulile Compound.”

Meanwhile, police just stood and watched the MMD thugs armed with catapults, stones and sticks move from their position to near where the UPND campaign centre was and started stoning.

Riot police officers watched for about three to five minutes before firing teargas to quell the situation. The police officers from Kamfinsa who got fed up with the MMD cadres’ behaviour caught four of them whom they beat severely and they sustained cuts in their heads.

Those arrested and injured were taken to Mufumbwe police to get medical reports for them to seek medical attention.

While giving a statement at police station over the smashing of his vehicle, two MMD thugs identified as Patrick Kabwe and Derrick Lungu, who were among those that sustained injuries in the violence, were brought in and Mwape identified them as the ones behind the smashing of his minibus.

Later, some unknown people followed the injured cadres at Mufumbwe Hospital where they beat them. It was later heard all those injured in the violence had discharged themselves from Mufumbwe Hospital where they were admitted.

And concluding his campaign for MMD candidate Mulondwe Muzungu at Kamabuta Middle Basic School on Wednesday, President Banda said a leader must not espouse violence. He blamed Hichilema for violence in Mushima area where MMD cadres burnt churches but the MMD twisted the facts in order to frame the UPND.

President Banda said he was condemning the violence and that he expected Hichilema to do the same.

“Maybe I am wasting my time since he is a partner with Sata that you are calling here Satana. It may be that the spirit of Satan has gone into him, that is why he is so vicious. He is so upset with people that they are willing to listen to us and not to him,” President Banda said.

“You can see the young man is possessed with the devil. How come he is has gone round torching churches? Three churches were destroyed in Mushima, they ran over the legs of people with their vehicles.”

President Banda said he had heard Hichilema at his rally asking his supporters that if they (Hichilema, President Banda and Muzungu) were in a race who would win and that the supporters responded that he (Hichilema) would win.

“This is not a race for running. This is politics. … I have stood with Hakainde and I defeated him. This kind of race as Kenneth Kaunda would say ‘wacepa sana’, I will overrun him,” he said.

“Let’s say we have a physical race, myself, himself and he is holding hands with Sata. I will beat them because he will be pulling Sata. Sata will be coughing, because he has been smoking all his life and I will win.”

President Banda said the MMD would defeat the PF-UPND Pact.
He also told the people that when they voted for him, they did not expect him to be a magician who would to work within 90 days to do everything.

He said Hichilema would never be president of Zambia.
And Kabonde said he would not allow Hichilema to point at him in the manner depicted by The Post picture last week.

Briefing the press in Mufumbwe, Kabonde, to suit President Banda’s position, said he saw churches burnt by cadres suspected to be UPND who had gone to the area to campaign. He said the situation in Mufumbwe had became worse as some people went to attack Charles Kakoma and UPND cadres reacted by besieging the police.

“And around them were MMD cadres. It put the police and myself in a precarious situation in the sense that if we took action, a serious action then could have resulted in death because the two groups were ready to fight, even in the face of the police,” Kabonde said.

“There was stone throwing against each group. Some people were pushed away. I personally went to push the group that surrounded the station. I have a lot of experience, there is no way I can go into hiding.”

Kabonde said journalists should never exaggerate issues.

“Even the picture that was taken depicting that Mr. Hichilema was pointing at me, that was never pointed at me. It was taken at an angle to appear that he pointed at me. I wouldn’t allow him pointing at me. Even Hichilema himself if you ask him will say that. I am not his subordinate. I am a national leader,” Kabonde said.

Kabonde pledged to ensure yesterday’s election had legitimacy. He also said police would deploy between 15 and 20 police officers at every polling station to ensure elections were conducted in a conducive atmosphere.

Labels: BY-ELECTIONS, CADRES, CORRUPTION, FRANCIS KABONDE, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, INSPECTOR GENERAL, MOSES SUWALI, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 1:06 PM