The violence in Mufumbwe

COMMENT - Now if only this was happening in Zimbabwe, then the likes of the BBC would be interested in covering this. But then the MMD is pro-business, so...

The violence in Mufumbwe
By The Editor
Sun 25 Apr. 2010, 04:00 CAT

THE leadership of the MMD in general, and Rupiah Banda in particular, should be blamed for the violence and atrocious acts by their party cadres in Mufumbwe.

The people who are wreaking havoc in Mufumbwe are not residents of that humble area; they are not sons of those humble people. They are thugs hired and transported from the urban areas to Mufumbwe by the leadership of the MMD.

Looking at the type of people whom the MMD has transported to Mufumbwe, it is clear what their job there is. That’s not the type of people one can hire for a peaceful and respectful election campaign. Those are thugs who can only be hired for only one thing: thuggery. To expect a peaceful campaign from such elements is like expecting to reap tomatoes where one has planted onions.

It is dishonesty of the highest order for the leadership of the MMD to deny responsibility for the conduct of those thugs they have hired to brutalise the peaceful people of Mufumbwe and force them to vote for MMD. Those thugs did not transport themselves to Mufumbwe.

They were hired and taken there by those with money and who control the affairs of MMD. Those hooligans have no capacity to raise money even for a bus fare to Mufumbwe, let alone to pay for where to sleep and buy themselves food while on that trail of thuggery.

In our comment yesterday, we pointed out that Rupiah was encouraging violence in the country through his statements. Rupiah’s statements and attacks on those he detests are nothing but a clarion call to violence. And what we are seeing in Mufumbwe is the result of Rupiah’s intolerance and hatred for fellow citizens who do not kowtow to his dictates.

Rupiah and his minions do not recognise the fact that this country is a constitutional multiparty state where the views and political activities of the opposition are of equal importance to those of the governing party. In a multiparty political dispensation, the political activities of the opposition are not illegal. What we are seeing now is nothing but a warning to what is likely to befall this nation next year if nothing is done to put Rupiah and his minions on the right path.

As we have stated before, no doctrine, no principle or proclaimed political position and no election campaign can justify atrocious acts such as the ones meted by MMD thugs against Charles Kakoma and his colleagues in the opposition UPND. No crime can be committed in the name of electioneering or indeed in the name of politics.

The leadership of the MMD was warned by the police that the cadres they were bringing in would likely cause the breach of peace from the way they were conducting themselves. It was very clear to the police what type of people the MMD was bringing to Mufumbwe but could do nothing about it. This is not because the law is not on the side of the police.

They had all the legal powers to stop these criminal elements from entering Mufumbwe to commit crimes. But politics would not allow the police to do so. The Inspector General of Police is serving at the pleasure of Rupiah. And if he is seen to be a stumbling block to Rupiah’s violent political schemes, he would not last in that job for a second longer. Rupiah would get rid of him.

And Francis Kabonde knows this very well. He is not the people’s servant but Rupiah’s. And for Kabonde, loyalty to Rupiah, pleasing Rupiah takes precedence over obligations to the people. We say this because we all know that Kabonde is hanging by a thread to his job. A man who is under investigations by the police, Drug Enforcement Commission and the Anti Corruption Commission for the role he might have played in a questionable deal involving the purchase of automobiles would have been suspended from performing his duties. But he hasn’t been because he is of value to Rupiah.

It doesn’t make sense for Kabonde to be in Mufumbwe and to be seen running away from MMD cadres in broad daylight with the force of police officers he commands. It is clear that Kabonde and his men are not in a position to control MMD cadres when they turn violent unless Rupiah tells him to do so. But where will this type of policing; where will this type of politics leave the country? Total anarchy is the only discernible ending.

We again remind Rupiah about the importance of the rule of law; about the need for equality before the law. The right to equality before the law, or equal protection before the law as it is often phrased, is fundamental to any just and democratic society.

Whether political ally of Rupiah or a supporter of the opposition – all are entitled to equal protection before the law. The police, and indeed Rupiah himself, should be required to deal evenly and equally with all citizens regardless of their political affiliation. No one should be above the law. This is important because when laws are obeyed, both law and democracy are served.

There’s need for Rupiah and those who command the police on his behalf to realise that the power they hold has the potential for abuse and tyranny. And no democratic society should tolerate Rupiah’s abuse of the police and the criminal behaviour of the thugs his party has hired to terrorise, intimidate, humiliate the residents of Mufumbwe and those from the opposition who are campaigning there.

The police must have the power to maintain order and punish criminal acts regardless of who is involved or what political party they belong to. But in Mufumbwe, MMD cadres were acting as they pleased, walking into a police station and intimidating everyone. Imagine what would have happened if those doing this were from the opposition! Would the police have behaved this way?

The rules and procedures by which the police enforce laws must be public and explicit, not secret, arbitrary or subject to political manipulation by those in the ruling party.

If this behaviour continues unabated, by the time Rupiah leaves office, we will have no police and other law enforcement agencies to talk about. Today even the Anti Corruption Commission and the Drug Enforcement Commission cannot be said to be free from the political pressures that are being exerted on the police. They are also busy harassing political opponents of the regime while protecting Rupiah’s friends and partners. This is not the way to run a country.

This is not a recipe for law and order; it a recipe for anarchy and chaos in the nation. This is the route Rupiah is taking us on. We cannot continue to accept to be led on this path of self-destruction. We want a peaceful Zambia; a Zambia that is genuinely multiparty, tolerant and respectful of political plurality that democracy entails. Democracy is only deepened where there is free will of the people; where the people freely choose their leaders through the ballot box and not with their blood.

We also want to remind Rupiah and his thugs that although they are being allowed to harass others without being taken on, they shouldn’t cheat themselves that they have the monopoly of force, of violence. Violence begets violence and in the end we all lose.